The true story of the Janes: How a secret network provided thousands of abortions in the US in the 1960s
In 1965, before women in America had the constitutional right to choose abortion, a then 19-year-old student at the University of Chicago helped a friend find a doctor who was willing to carry out the procedure illegally.
With desperate women putting their lives in danger by seeking back-alley terminations, it wasn’t long before more were contacting Heather Booth. She quickly realised the demand for the service, and couldn’t handle it on her own.
And so the Jane Collective was set up: an underground network of women who helped other women facing unwanted pregnancies find safe access to abortion. Eventually, some of the members learned enough to carry out the procedures themselves.
Norma McCorvey – the Jane Roe in the 1973 Roe v Wade court case – pictured with attorney Gloria Allred outside the Supreme Court in Washington in 1989
The secret group worked together to provide an estimated 11,000 to 12,000 women and girls with safe and secure abortions before the landmark 1973 ruling known as Roe v Wade, which legalised abortion in the US.
Rape victims, women whose pregnancies were putting their own lives at risk, single mothers who couldn’t afford another child, young women who simply lacked education about birth control – there was no judgement. Women did not have to justify their reasons for not wanting to go through with their pregnancies.
Now, the story of the Janes is being told in a new film, Call Jane, starring Elizabeth Banks, Sigourney Weaver and Wunmi Mosaku.
Banks plays Joy, a wife and mother to a teenage daughter who finds a much-wanted second pregnancy has become life-threatening. When a board of male doctors refuses to terminate, telling Joy she must take her chances, desperate and afraid, she comes across the Janes.
The film has been in the making for several years, but following the US Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v Wade earlier in 2022 (Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organisation) – paving the way for half the US to severely restrict or completely ban the practice – its release seems timely.
‘It was very, very risky’
An anti-abortion march in Washington in 1981, eight years after the Roe v Wade ruling. Pic: AP/Herbert K White
There was a time when every state in America had anti-abortion laws. Critics of the laws accused authorities of punishing women for not managing their sexuality and fertility in ways the government, law enforcement, and medical and religious institutions approved of.
Many women did not know where to find help or were too ashamed or afraid to ask. Some were too poor, or fearful after hearing horrifying stories of back-alley and self-inflicted abortions.
A year before the Janes set up, a woman called Gerri Santoro, from Connecticut, died trying to obtain an illegal abortion; her photo became the symbol of an abortion-rights movement.
In Chicago, Illinois, the Janes changed things.
Call Jane producer Robbie Brenner consulted with some of the original Janes when making the film. “It was very, very risky,” she said. “They were thinking way out-of-the-box. What they did, and what they eventually accomplished in a relatively short time, was nothing short of revolutionary.”
‘Abortion is not controversial – curtailing the right to it is’
Elizabeth Banks works with the Centre for Reproductive Rights in the US. Pic: Alyssa Schukar/Centre for Reproductive Rights via AP
For Banks, known for starring in films such as The Hunger Games and the Pitch Perfect series, playing Joy was more than just a role; as the leader of the creative council for the Centre for Reproductive Rights charity in the US, the right to abortion is an issue she feels passionately about.
Speaking while promoting the film in the UK, she told Sky News she disputed the idea that abortion is a controversial subject.
“In fact, the majority of the electorate in America – and obviously here in England – support safe and legal abortion access,” she said. “We represent the majority opinion that is not very controversial whatsoever.
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“I do think that there’s a lot of conversation around it right now, of course, because of our Supreme Court and the Dobbs decision.
“But I just always warn people about creating a scenario where we talk about abortion as if the abortion side of it is the controversial side; the side that’s controversial is not allowing women the access to safe, legal abortion healthcare that they need for any variety of reasons. That’s what’s controversial, is curtailing that right.”
‘We don’t have to justify it’ – how Lily Allen spoke in favour of the right to choose
Pic: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP 2022
Following the Dobbs ruling, many examples of why women might need an abortion – rape, life-threatening circumstances, harm to the baby – were given by those campaigning against the decision.
But some, including singer Lily Allen, questioned why women should have to justify the procedure at all.
Speaking out about having an abortion herself, the star, who is a mother of two daughters, wrote on Instagram: “I wish people would stop posting examples of exceptional reasons for having abortions.
“Most people i know, myself included, just didn’t want to have a f****** baby. AND THAT IS REASON ENOUGH! WE DON’T HAVE TO JUSTIFY IT.
“It shouldn’t have to be said, and I think all these examples just play into the hands of the baddies.”
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A pro-life protest took place in London earlier in October. Pic: AP/Alastair Grant
There are those who feel differently, even in the UK, where abortion has been legal for decades.
Earlier this week, anti-abortion demonstrators took part in a pro-life protest in Parliament Square in London on the 65th anniversary of the bill being passed.
Call Jane shows women being accepted by the Janes to have their termination no matter what the reasons behind the decision.
“I find it fascinating that women are sort of infantilised in this way when it comes to their own bodies and healthcare,” Banks told Sky News. “That we somehow don’t know what’s best for us. So a group of men need to be sure that we’re making the proper decision. You know, it’s insulting, frankly.
“It also is insulting to imagine that women are somehow pregnant all alone, and that no man was involved and isn’t involved in the decision to end the pregnancy either, which is nearly never the case, you know?
“I mean, I find that fascinating that we’re sort of… the act takes two but then everything beyond that is only about the woman. We are responsible for everything afterwards. And, you know, every unwanted pregnancy is a result of irresponsible ejaculation. And if this movie can remind anybody of that, I’m happy for it.”
‘Abortion is a normal part of millions of women’s lives’
Banks and co-star Wunmi Mosaku in Call Jane. Pic: Vertigo Releasing
The film also shows different women having different feelings about having a termination. For some it is a painful choice, but a simple decision for others.
“It is, of course, scary for some women,” says director Phyllis Nagy. “And we do have lots of stories like that already. So we thought that we had a responsibility [with Call Jane] to normalise the procedure and to show a group of women getting together to solve an unsolvable problem, or seemingly unsolvable.”
“I also think Phyllis really wanted to make abortion healthcare feel very normal as part of, you know, many, many millions of women’s lives, a decision that’s made every day,” says Banks.
“And that is not some scary, troubled moment for most women. It’s just, ‘oh, some sperm met an egg and the cells are dividing, and that wasn’t my intention. And so I would like that to stop’. That’s all.”
Call Jane is out in cinemas from 4 November
US President Donald Trump has suggested Ukraine “may not survive” the war against Russia even if American support continued.
In an interview with Fox News channel’s ‘Sunday Morning Futures’, Mr Trump was asked about his controversial decision to pause support for Kyiv as it fends off Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Mr Trump, who had a disastrous meeting with Mr Zelenskyy at the White House last week, was asked about a warning from Polish President Andrzej Duda “that without American support, Ukraine will not survive”.
Asked if he was “comfortable” with that outcome, the US president said: “Well, it may not survive anyway.
“But we have some weaknesses with Russia. You know, it takes two,” Mr Trump added.
Donald Trump. File Pic: Reuters
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It comes as Mr Zelenskyy will visit Saudi Arabia for a Monday meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, while Ukrainian diplomatic and military representatives will meet with a US delegation on Tuesday.
Mr Trump’s latest remarks come amid global concern over the souring relationship between Ukraine and the US, which alongside the EU has been Kyiv’s main backer in its defence against Russia’s three-year land, air and sea invasion.
The US paused military aid and the sharing of intelligence with Ukraine this month after a meeting between Mr Trump and Mr Zelenskyy on 28 February descended into acrimony in front of the world’s media.
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Mr Trump ordered the pause as he attempts to put pressure on Mr Zelenskyy to negotiate a ceasefire deal with Russia.
Mr Trump has privately made it clear to aides that a signed minerals deal between Washington and Kyiv will not be enough to restart aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine, Sky News’ US partner network NBC reported earlier on Sunday.
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How are Americans feeling after nearly 50 days of Trump?
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The 78-year-old president is said to want the deal signed, but also wants to see a change in Mr Zelenskyy’s attitude towards peace talks.
Officials have told NBC News that Mr Trump also wants Mr Zelenskyy to make some movement towards holding elections in Ukraine and possibly stepping down as his country’s leader.
Mr Zelenskyy said in a recent interview he would be ready to step down as Ukraine’s president if it meant his country would become a NATO member and find peace.
That came after he was branded a “dictator” by Mr Trump as Ukraine had not held fresh elections – despite laws prohibiting it during wartime.
US
Rating Donald Trump’s second term so far: He’s rattling the cage and so many here in Pennsylvania couldn’t be happier
President Trump promised profound change. His former aide Steve Bannon said the first few weeks would be ‘days of thunder’.
It’s been all of that and more.
Domestically and globally Donald Trump has proudly upturned norms.
One key question for me these past few weeks has been: if much of the world (and liberal America) has been buffeted and bewildered by Donald Trump, what do those who chose him back in November think, nearly 50 days in?
I’ve been back to Pennsylvania, a place I have spent plenty of time over the past few years. It’s crucial in every election and was particularly so last November.
The state is sort of a microcosm for the country. To the east and west are the urban Democratic strongholds of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
In between are the rural Republican heartlands. And dotted throughout are the hinterlands – smaller towns where there is more of a mix of voters but still with a general lean towards the Republicans or, more specifically, to Trump.
Gettysburg and Waynesboro both voted broadly two-thirds for Trump and one-third for Kamala Harris back in November.
On the edge of Gettysburg, a bleak rocky outcrop marks the location of the battle which changed the course of the civil war. The threads which stitch America run through this place.
A few hundred metres away is the spot where Abraham Lincoln delivered his Gettysburg address.
It was 1863 and America’s 16th president marked the end of the battle with a reminder to a country divided by a civil war that it was a nation founded years earlier on the principles of liberty and equality.
Lincoln was America’s most consequential president, until now, maybe.
In the town’s Lincoln Square, a statue of the 16th president stands tall. My focus was the new White House occupant.
“10!” It was the first of many ‘tens’ on my Trump scorecard.
“Oh he’s doing great…Yeah he’s doing real great,” one man said.
I asked what, in particular, he was happy with. “The money he’s making me.” The theme was the same with the next person.
“Trying to pass no tax on social security for one, no tax on tips, no tax on overtime – help out the workers, help out the retirees, that’s very important to me,” Mike said.
My third conversation was with a couple. I suggested to them that the federal firings had felt quite chaotic; a sledgehammer approach.
“No. I think they’re using a scalpel. They’re finding so much. It looks bad,” the man said.
“We had too many people that were in those jobs, they weren’t doing anything,” his wife added.
A couple say that Donald Trump has been a ‘scalpel’ – not a ‘sledgehammer’
“He’s upsetting Europe as well…” I said in my next conversation. “That’s not good, is it? We’re supposed to be friends.” I suggested with a smile.
“Yeah, well we need Europe to step up too,” the man replied.
“Zelenskyy was here for a pay cheque and got a reality check,” another said, referring to the Oval Office showdown.
“I believe he wants to keep this war going, because as soon as this war is over, he’s going to be voted out,” he said.
“We’re an ocean apart. We’re doing him a big favour by supporting him.”
So much of what I heard was parroting President Trump almost word for word.
“You know, we gave him, what, $300bn? Where did that money go?”
There was no point in telling him that the true American contribution was about half that, and that it is all fully and publicly accounted for.
Lunch was at Chubby’s, a local pizza joint where I met Tom Jaskulski, a retired federal worker, now a handyman.
“He campaigned on all these policies, and he’s fulfilling them,” Tom told me. “It seems like the world’s waking up when Donald Trump came in office.
“A lot of things are happening worldwide, not just in this country.”
‘He’s rattling the hornet’s nest,’ Tom Jaskulski says
Tom’s score? “10! Not because I’m wearing his hat, but a 10 because he’s doing what he says he’s going to do.
“You know, he’s rattling the hornet’s nest.”
Down the road, at the Yankee Doodle Pet Spa, Tina and her 22-year-old apprentice Molly had no regrets and were baffled that anyone could think they would.
“He’s doing what he said he was going to do and I am quite happy with him right now,” Tina said.
‘I don’t think (Ukrainians) deserve our money,’ Tina says
Our conversation turned to Ukraine. I wanted to know her thoughts on President Trump’s abruptly shifting position and near-abandonment of Kyiv.
“It’s not our war. We have enough people in this country suffering, that’s how I feel about it. I don’t think they deserve our money,” Tina said, quoting the president’s exaggerated figures for how much America had spent in Ukraine.
But then our conversation cut to the core of where America is right now: siloed worlds.
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We were discussing Elon Musk and his efforts to cut government bureaucracy.
“The social security, blowing that open with all of the people that are over 124 still getting social security,” Molly said of Musk’s claim that he had discovered social security was being paid to dead people.
“160 years old, I heard…” said Tina.
“Yeah, that’s insane,” Molly said.
I interrupted: “You know that’s been debunked? That wasn’t true. I’m worried that people are believing things that actually aren’t true. That the Trump administration is telling you stuff that is not true. What do you think?”
“I think it’s both ways,” Molly said, “I think both sides put out fake news and fake propaganda for each other.”
It was clear she didn’t know who to believe. She’d lost all trust in the legacy media. She and Tina had been drawn to social media and they’d concluded President Trump was trustworthy.
Back in Lincoln Square, a chance meeting exposed the other side of all this – deep anxiety.
“I’m a trans person so a lot of his policies have been impacting transgender people and that is just, it’s a scary time to live in,” 22-year-old Em told me.
Em said ‘there’s a lot of hatred in the world right now’
“There’s a lot of hatred in the world right now, especially at so many groups of people. I mean, it’s really… yeah…” Em said before trailing off, face filled with anxiety and emotion.
By nightfall my journey of conversations had taken me to the quiz night at a bar and brewery in Waynesboro.
“I’ve never been more embarrassed to be American…” one woman called Jacqueline said.
Jacqueline has ‘never been more embarrassed to be American,’ and Andrew says everyone is in their ‘own echo chambers’
Her quiz night partner, Andrew, chipped in. “I think it’s the access to information. I think we don’t go out and talk to each other.
“I think we’re on the internet all day. A lot of people are just on the internet and they’re getting news sources from their own echo chambers.”
“Things have been going downhill for a long time,” another man called Marco, at the next door table, said.
“I’m not saying Trump’s right about everything, but you know what? At least he’s trying, he’s doing something different. And I agree with what he’s doing.”
Marco says Donald Trump is ‘doing something different’
This wave of change has been profound. But to assume that those who chose this change – who chose Donald Trump – would have any regrets would be to fundamentally misunderstand America today.
The profound sentiment among everyone we spoke to who voted for him is that he is putting America first with a tangibility that they have never felt before.
It may turn out to be an illusion. But they feel no sense of that at the moment.
He is rattling the cage and so many here couldn’t be happier.
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