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User Error Conversation: The Internet Post-Roe

The full recap of our conversation on abortion care and tech

Author

Kairos
February 23, 2023

It’s been nearly 7 months since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Laws differ state-to-state and how we continue to fight for reproductive freedom has changed, especially as tech companies play a big role in the restriction of abortion access to people seeking care. We recently held a panel discussion on all of this with tech and reproductive justice experts (you can watch the conversation here).

Here are the three big takeaways from our conversation:

1. The terrain has fundamentally shifted. In some states, abortion rights have been expanded; in many others, there are new bans, restrictions, or criminal penalties placed on abortion seekers and providers. And we must not forget how accessing reproductive healthcare is significantly harder for Black and brown people and people who are working class, LGBTQ, disabled, and/or hold other marginalized identities.

“The environment right now is confusing and chaotic and scary. And when it comes to disinformation and criminalization– that is the point, to scare people out of seeking care when it’s not already fully banned.”

Dina Montemarano, Research Director, NARAL Pro-Choice America

2. Tech is woven into every aspect of reproductive care. From how abortion seekers access information, to how providers store patient records, to how people ask friends for support, tech is part of every aspect of abortion care. But the platforms on which we rely are harming their users by turning over DMs to the police and failing to effectively combat dangerous misinformation being spread online.

“Something I’ve noticed in my research, data is sometimes the only evidence in some of these abortion prosecutions that is actually incriminating, especially for self-managed abortions at home, so it really feels like an urgent place to be focusing my research and to do advocacy there. Because people deserve a good understanding of the threats of digital data around them, and to not be unnecessarily in fear of those things so they can access healthcare.”

– Emma Weil, Senior Policy Analyst, Upturn

“People [are] going on Google and searching how to get an abortion, where to get an abortion [the] number one challenge that comes up with that is Crisis Pregnancy Centers. People go and search these key words and then find these fake clinics, and then they are put into a different type of hell. That’s a really big problem as far as searching.”

– Crystal Monds, Communications and Digital Media Coordinator, Amplify Georgia

3. The simplest action can put pressure on tech corporations and hold them accountable to us: their users. When we unmask a company’s wrongdoing and let them know we are watching, it makes it harder for them to hide behind their press talking points.

“I think with tech platforms in particular, sign petitions. Tech can feel really overwhelming, and holding platforms accountable can feel really overwhelming, but the thing to know is that there is power in numbers, and when we do deliver petitions to platforms, at the very least it makes them start thinking, and in many cases it does lead to change.”

– Jaya Aiyer, Campaign Director, UltraViolet

Panelists also shared a few links and resources, we’ve collected them here:

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