‘Women are losing their lives’: The US state where abortion rights could sway the vote
Irma, the receptionist at Acacia Women’s Center in Phoenix, Arizona, is repeating a spiel she gives dozens of times a week to different women before their appointments.
“We are going to do the procedure so you need to prepare,” she says, “arrive early, wear little to no make-up so that we can check the colour in your face.”
“There are protesters here, but mainly on a Saturday,” she tells the women.
Abortion is no longer simply a personal medical matter. Across this country, reproductive rights is a burning election issue.
Especially in the battleground state of Arizona, where abortion is literally on the ballot.
Signs inside and outside the clinic urge people to “vote yes to prop 139”. It’s a special measure which, if passed, would enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution.
The down-ballot measure was added at the demand of Arizona voters after two years of reproductive rights hanging in the balance.
The overturning of Roe v Wade, which gave women the constitutional right to choose, awoke a dormant law in Arizona from 1864.
The civil war era ruling banned all abortions even in the case of rape or incest. It has since been repealed but the fear over the rowing back of women’s rights remains.
Irma welcomes people to the Acacia Women’s Center in Arizona
“It’s horrific and women are losing their lives because of these bans,” said Kristin Gambardella, “we need to fight for them.”
Last year, at 17 weeks pregnant, Ms Gambardella, who is from Tucson, Arizona, was told by a doctor her unborn child had foetal abnormalities.
“Our baby, it was guaranteed she would live a short life and it would be full of pain and surgeries,” she said.
Already a mother to a son, born in 2021, this had been a desperately wanted pregnancy, but Ms Gambardella and her husband, Dave, made the heartbreaking decision to get an abortion.
Kristin Gambardella and her husband Dave
However, the law in Arizona now bans abortion after 15 weeks, even in cases of foetal abnormalities.
The couple drove seven hours across state lines to New Mexico to have the procedure.
“On the last night of my pregnancy, I fell asleep in a strange short-term rental in New Mexico, trying to cherish my last moments with my baby,” she said,
“I should have been with my family, giving our baby girl love and mourning our loss. I was angry with my state but that anger has turned into action.”
Ms Gambardella is determined to tell her story in the hope that people in Arizona will be moved to support abortion access.
She worries that, if elected, Donald Trump would pursue a national abortion ban, although he has insisted that isn’t part of his platform.
“I’m in disbelief that it’s 2024 and this is at stake,” Ms Gambardella said.
“I didn’t have the opportunity to take my own health care in my own state. The idea of being pregnant under a Donald Trump presidency, which is what it would be for me at this stage, is terrifying.”
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Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, right, on a visit to Arizona in June. Pic: Reuters
The Democratic Party is using abortion rights as a rallying cry.
In a state like Arizona, where polling shows the race for the presidency is on a knife edge, reproductive rights could hold the sway.
I joined Democratic state representative Quanta Crews as she canvassed in a suburb of Phoenix.
The sun was setting on a blisteringly hot day and children were playing in front gardens as she went door to door.
“I’m here to talk to you about abortion access,” she says, “just making sure you know early voting has started”.
Ms Crews is a black woman and a Methodist minister but has been campaigning to protect abortion access.
“When I talk to the voters about the 1864 abortion ban I share with them that in 1864, I would have been considered not a person,” she said.
“That makes it real for them because this is very dangerous. We can’t afford to go back.”
Donald Trump has waded into the debate surrounding Sydney Sweeney’s jeans ad.
The American Eagle ad, which features the 27-year-old actress, who starred in the HBO series Euphoria and White Lotus, has the tagline “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans”.
It has sparked a debate in the US over race and Western beauty standards.
One of the Sydney Sweeney jeans ads. Pic: AP
In a Truth Social post, the US president described it as the “hottest ad out there”.
Hailing Sweeney as a “registered Republican”, he said the jeans are “flying off the shelves”, adding: “Go get ’em Sydney!”
Most of the criticism of the ad has centred on videos using the word “genes” instead of “jeans”, with one in which Sweeney says: “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair colour, personality and even eye colour. My jeans are blue.”
Critics argued the play on words potentially promotes eugenics, a discredited theory that believed humanity could be improved through the selective breeding of certain traits.
But others have defended the ad, saying the critics are reading too much into its message.
The video appeared on American Eagle’s Facebook page and other social media channels, but is not part of the ad campaign.
In a statement on Instagram on Friday, American Eagle Outfitters said the campaign “is and always was about the jeans. Her jeans. Her story. We’ll continue to celebrate how everyone wears their AE jeans with confidence, their way. Great jeans look good on everyone.”
Stocks in American Eagle Outfitters jumped by 23.3% after Mr Trump’s intervention.
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In his Truth Social post, which he reposted three times to fix various typos, Mr Trump compared the ad with “woke” ones “on the other side of the ledger” – as he criticised other companies, as well as hitting out at Taylor Swift.
“The tide has seriously turned – Being WOKE is for losers, being Republican is what you want to be,” he wrote.
Sky News has contacted Sweeney’s agent for comment.
Police in Tennessee have discovered 14 improvised explosive devices in a man’s home as they were arresting him, the local sheriff’s office said.
Officers were executing a warrant in the home of Kevin Wade O’Neal in Old Fort, about 45 miles (70km) east of Chattanooga, after he had threatened to kill public officials and law enforcement personnel in Polk County.
After arresting the 54-year-old, officers noticed “something smouldering” in the bedroom where he was found.
Kevin Wade O’Neal. Pic: Polk County Sheriff’s Office
On closer inspection, they discovered an improvised explosive device and evacuated the house until bomb squad officers arrived at the scene.
Fourteen devices were found inside the property – none of which detonated.
Improvised explosive devices were found in Kevin Wade O’Neal’s home. Pic: Polk County Sheriff’s Office
Kevin Wade O’Neal’s home in Old Fort, Tennessee. Pic: Polk County Sheriff’s Office
O’Neal was charged with 11 counts of attempted first-degree murder, corresponding to nine officers and two other people inside the property when the suspect tried to detonate the devices.
He also faces 14 counts of prohibited weapons and one count of possession of explosive components.
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O’Neal is being held at the Polk County jail and his bond is yet to be determined.
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