The Last Abortion Clinic

Watch tonight November 8th on KCTS Seattle (Channel 9) at 10:00 pm pst. It will air again on Saturday, November 12, 3:00 am. In Spokane it will air on KSPS Channel 7 Tuesday, November 8, 9:00 pm and again Wednesday, November 9, 2:00 am.

The following description is from the PBS web site (You can also check other local listings):

(60 minutes) Today, the headlines are filled with speculation about changes in the U.S. Supreme Court and what those changes might mean for abortion -- an issue that has divided the country for over 30 years. Heated rhetoric from both sides continues to be heard in courtrooms and on the campaign trail. But while attention is often focused on the arguments, there is another story playing out in local communities. Pro-life advocates have waged a successful campaign to reduce abortions in many places throughout the country. By using state laws to regulate and limit abortion and by creating their own clinics to offer alternatives to women, they have changed the facts on the ground. On Nov. 8, FRONTLINE investigates the steady decline in the number of physicians and clinics performing abortions and focuses on local political battles in states like Mississippi, where only a single clinic performs the controversial procedure.

This is expected to be a "rallying-cry" to those in favor of legal abortion that they are close to losing "the right to choose", but I'll reserve judgment until I've viewed the program.

I hope that the program will highlight some of the differences between the situation "on the ground" in Mississippi and Washington. It's my understanding that Mississippi doesn't have the strong abortion infrastructure needed to maintain an abortion industry in a state: media; state Democrat and Republican parties who refuse to run anti-abortion candidates or outright support abortion; little if any organized religious/church opposition to abortion; a public that voted to legalize abortion prior to Roe v. Wade; state government policies that promote and encourage abortion (e.g. health department and school districts serving as referral services, state funding for abortion, etc.)