"Nearly two years into screening my documentary No One Asked You-a six-year road trip following Abortion Access Front, a team of activists and comics, and the communities supporting abortion providers and fighting to keep clinics alive-I thought I had seen every form of resistance. The film has traveled through red states where abortion pills are treated like controlled substances, rural towns where protesters record license plates, and cities where protesters stand shoulder-to-shoulder with police."
"In October, three days before our long-planned fundraiser for Lovering Health Center, New Hampshire's oldest independent reproductive health clinic, the Music Hall in Portsmouth abruptly canceled our screening. The event had been organized by clinic staff and board of directors to bring people together around the film while raising money for the clinic's annual gala. The Music Hall cited safety concerns after a single person said they might "chalk the sidewalk.""
"The cancellation wasn't just a local controversy. It exposed a national shift: as post- Dobbs abortion restrictions spread across the country, the pressure to silence abortion advocates was growing, too. Institutions that once claimed neutrality were now unwilling to risk blowback, whether on abortion or a host of other issues that have been made "controversial" by those seeking to maintain or expand their political power."
A screening scheduled three days before a fundraiser for Lovering Health Center in Portsmouth was abruptly canceled by the Music Hall. The theater cited safety concerns after a single person said they might "chalk the sidewalk." Lovering's executive director said the theater did not consult the clinic or allow opportunities to coordinate with local law enforcement or clinic security. The cancellation followed the documentary's screenings across red states, rural towns and cities confronting protests and legal restrictions. The incident reflected a broader national pattern of institutions avoiding perceived controversial events and fearing political blowback, prompting organizers to relocate the fundraiser to a new venue.
Read at The Nation
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