Molly (last name withheld for privacy), a 35-year-old clinic escort, says they will not be deterred from helping patients get the care they need at a Milwaukee clinic that provides abortions.
Molly outlines the current landscape of threats facing providers, the history that informs this moment, and what is at stake when violence against reproductive healthcare workers is minimized or ignored.
"Being an abortion escort appealed to me because I would be able to interact with people who were coming to the clinic to receive an abortion and give them support. ...
"Abortion clinic escorts are doing de-escalation with radicalized people, and we have no weapons. We are a unique group of people with strong de-escalation training. ... When I train new escorts, I tell them the names of some of our regular protesters: 'This is Joe. This is Sam.' I think names hold a lot of power, and if you know someone’s name, it takes away some of the fear. ...
"I tell new escorts to approach a car slowly. Sometimes people arrive early and want to sit and take a breath. Sometimes they have children with them and are getting situated. ... Then as they walk into the clinic, stand between them and the people shouting on the sidewalk to act as a physical sound barrier.
"What’s kept me coming back to this work is the other clinic escorts, who are all passionate about reproductive rights. You make incredible friends and build strong bonds when you spend so much time together. I advise other escorts, especially new people, to practice self-care after a shift. It’s not normal to be yelled at for hours. We get called 'harlots,' 'jezebels' and 'sinners,' so I encourage decompression time. Everybody has their own post-clinic ritual for self-centering. ... I usually come home and do some baking. ...
"Everybody has their own post-clinic ritual for self-centering. I usually come home and do some baking. Knowing that always brings a smile to my face."
The post ‘Protesters Spit on Us’: Why This Wisconsin Abortion Clinic Escort Won’t Back Down appeared first on Ms. Magazine.
