A Podcast about abortion in Canada
I had an abortion on Christmas Eve of 2019. And while it was a relatively accessible procedure, for me; it was also an experience that I found endlessly interesting. It was a decision that influenced — and was influenced by — pretty much every area of my life: my relationship with my body, my spirituality, my ambitions and anxieties, my money, career, friendships, partnerships, and my privileges.
Abortion is, fundamentally, a pretty normal reproductive event. If you haven’t personally had an abortion, you know someone who has … and if that’s the case… why is it still so off-limits as a topic of conversation? Why don’t we talk about it more? And, what does avoiding talking about it say about us?
There are a lot of conversations and issues that intersect with our reproductive lives and I want to talk about them. Throughout Aborsh, I’m sharing my abortion story while speaking with experts and activists about the state of reproductive rights in Canada today. We talk about why abortion is still such a big deal, what “choice” really means and what it looks like — and why that answer is different for different people.
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EpisodeS
June 13th, 2022
When Toronto artist Rachel accidentally becomes pregnant, she immediately knows what she has to do: get an abortion. But even though abortion is legal in Canada, it’s not as easy to get one as she thought it’d be. With guest Joyce Arthur of the Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada, Rachel pokes holes in Canada’s messy patchwork approach to abortion access — and explains how it got to be that way.
June 20th, 2022
We make 35,000 choices a day. Mayo or mustard? Swipe left or swipe right? In this episode, Rachel examines the meanings of “choice” — and how some people and organizations in Canada are actively working to undermine reproductive freedom by spreading abortion disinformation. Featuring guests Chantal Parkinson, founder of the Pro-Choice Society of Lethbridge and Southern Alberta, Frederique Chabot, director of domestic health promotion at Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights, and Rachael Johnstone, author of the book After Morgentaler: The Politics of Abortion in Canada.
June 27th, 2022
When Rachel calls her mother to tell her the news of her accidental pregnancy, her mom makes a surprising revelation. Featuring guests Darrah Teitel, a playwright and reproductive freedom activist, as well as early abortion activist Judy Rebick.
June 30th, 2022
This bonus episode features an interview with York University professor Tom Hooper, a historian of the Toronto bathhouse raids. Tom unpacks the mythologies surrounding the 1969 criminal code reform, particularly in regards to the impacts on the 2SLGTBQ+ communities, and in relation to the parallel struggles of the women’s liberation movement and reproductive rights.
July 4th, 2022
In Canada, 1988 became a pivotal year for abortion rights when Henry Morgentaler took the issue to the Supreme Court. Guest Rachael Johnstone, a political science professor and the author of After Morgentaler: The Politics of Abortion in Canada, explains how Morgentaler’s 1988 Supreme Court victory changed Canadian women’s lives — and what the ruling left unfulfilled. Longtime abortion rights activists Carolyn Egan and Judy Rebick join Rachel in this episode.
July 11th, 2022
Rachel takes “the abortion pill” and discovers she was woefully unprepared for it. With guest Dr. Dustin Costescu, an OBGYN in southern Ontario, Rachel discusses the abortion pill (Mifegymiso) and the history of self-managed abortions. She and Dr. Dustin also look at the abysmal state of abortion training in medicine, and what empathetic, inclusive health care might look like.
July 18th, 2022
What’s the difference between reproductive freedom and reproductive justice? As it turns out, a whole lot. In this episode, Rachel and guests discuss the fight for abortion access in New Brunswick and how the resurgence of Indigenous midwifery — as an anti-colonial movement — is reclaiming and returning birth to communities across Canada. Featuring guests Jessi Taylor, the spokesperson for Reproductive Justice New Brunswick, and Claire Dion Fletcher, an Indigenous midwife and co-chair of the National Aboriginal Council of Midwives.
July 21st, 2022
In this episode, Rachel and her guests continue to discuss reproductive justice, or rather the ongoing in-justices and structural racism in the Canadian healthcare system, and specifically in regards to anti-Black racism. Featuring Dr Tunde-Byass, an OB-GYN and president of the Black Physicians of Canada, who connects a throughline between the historical legacies of slavery and segregation to the disparities experienced today. And Dr Ruth Habte, a 4th year OB-GYN resident explains why universal cost coverage for contraception is an integral pillar of reproductive justice and choice.
July 25th, 2022
Distinguished professor Sarah Kaplan, founder of the Institute for Gender and the Economy, joins Rachel to discuss why reproductive rights is an economic issue as much as it is a human rights issue. We talk about “gendered capitalism,” the wage gap, the care economy, how we measure GDP and the economic consequences of having children.
August 1st, 2022
In the final episode of this season of Aborsh, Rachel ties up loose ends and looks forward. She’s joined by Aborsh story editor Tracey Lindeman to revisit key takeaways from the series and what progress might look like for Canadian reproductive rights and freedom.
The Team
Rachel Cairns (creator) is a Toronto-based actor and writer who cut her teeth as a creator making short films and web series that have screened at festivals internationally, garnered nominations and awards, and have been viewed millions of times on YouTube.
Maddy Falle (producer) is a Canadian producer and founder of Obvious Allegory Inc. She produces the hit digital series Gay Mean Girls, now in its second season, and most recently launched The Viral Creative podcast where she interviews entrepreneurs who have made an impact, built an audience, or founded a business off of their creativity.
Tracey Lindeman (story editor) is a Montreal-born, Ottawa-living Canadian journalist whose work has appeared in The Globe and Mail, The Guardian, The Walrus and many more publications. Her forthcoming book on Endometriosis, medical discrimination and gaslighting is coming to a bookstore near you in early 2023.
Alaska B (composer) is an award-winning composer whose film and game scores (Canadian Screen Award 2019, Canadian Game Awards 2016) and songwriting (Polaris Prize-nominated, Juno Awards nominated) have been heard all over the world.