The Clinic that Clergy Built: Abortion Provision and Religion in the United States before Roe v Wade

An online lecture by Dr Gillian Frank (TCD) organised by the Medical and Health Humanities Seminar Series.

To join this lecture please use this zoom link: https://tcd-ie.zoom.us/j/97859995142
Meeting ID: 978 5999 5142

Abstract
What if we looked at faith as the cornerstone of the abortion clinic, rather than the rock hurled through its windows? Abortion clinics are rightfully portrayed as besieged by religious forces. But since 1970, behind the walls of abortion clinics, a different, quieter story of religion and medicine unfolded. This talk will focus on the path setting Center for Reproductive and Sexuality Health (CRASH) in New York City, which was founded and supported by religious institutions and by clergy and other people of faith. By 1971, CRASH had become the world’s largest abortion clinic and the hub of an extensive faith-based abortion referral network. In telling the story of CRASH, this talk maps a history of religion and healthcare provision in the years immediately before the 1973 Supreme Court decision Roe v Wade. At a moment when abortion provision is precarious and also possible because of religious activism, sharing this under told history of faith and reproductive healthcare access will enrich the public conversation about religion, politics and medicine.

About the Speaker
Gillian Frank is an Assistant Professor of History and the director of the Centre for Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at Trinity College Dublin. He is the author of numerous academic articles on the histories of sexuality, gender and religion, which have appeared in venues like Journal of the American Academy of Religion, Journal of the History of Sexuality, American Jewish History, and Gender and History. Frank’s public facing writing can be found in The Washington Post, Time, Jezebel and Slate. Through his prize-winning column at the Revealer, Frank regularly writes about the intertwined histories of religion and sexual politics. He is currently completing a manuscript titled A Sacred Choice: Liberal Religion and the Struggle for Reproductive Freedom Before Roe v Wade (forthcoming UNC Press). You can listen to his podcasts, Sexing History and Red State Religions, wherever you stream your shows.

This event is run in accordance with Trinity’s Dignity and Respect policy, and its commitment to nurturing a respectful and inclusive research culture.
Please indicate if you have any access requirements, such as ISL/English interpreting, so that we can facilitate you in attending this event. Contact: laragyg@tcd.ie