{"id":13471,"date":"2016-06-13T14:30:30","date_gmt":"2016-06-13T22:30:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/independentlens\/?post_type=blog&p=13471"},"modified":"2023-09-06T16:24:33","modified_gmt":"2023-09-06T23:24:33","slug":"dawn-porter-unlocks-story-of-laws-targeting-abortion-providers","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/independentlens\/blog\/dawn-porter-unlocks-story-of-laws-targeting-abortion-providers\/","title":{"rendered":"Dawn Porter Unlocks the Story of Laws Targeting Abortion Providers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Filmmaker Dawn Porter has shown a willingness to probe uncomfortable truths and untold stories in the past.<\/span>\u00a0LA Times<\/em> critic Robert Lloyd called her acclaimed\u00a0Independent Lens<\/em> film <\/span>Spies of Mississippi<\/span><\/i><\/a>\u00a0“eye-opening” for its look at the ways civil rights activists were spied on by the government in the ’50s and ’60s. For her\u00a0new film,\u00a0<\/span>TRAPPED<\/a>,<\/span><\/i>\u00a0Porter returns to the South for a story that will open eyes even more,\u00a0and at\u00a0an especially high-stakes\u00a0moment<\/span>. The documentary, mostly focused on the states of Alabama and Texas, captures the\u00a0front lines of the controversial battle currently being waged over so-called TRAP laws \u2014 Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers \u2014 which reproductive rights advocates believe are designed to restrict access to abortion.<\/span><\/p>\n

The film is “aimed squarely at an enduring national conversation,” wrote Ben Kenigsberg\u00a0in Variety. “<\/em>Dawn Porter\u2019s sobering, gracefully constructed documentary about the tide of laws restricting abortion that have swept the country, couldn\u2019t arrive at a more timely moment,” adds Ann Hornaday in the Washington Post<\/em>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The filmmaker took some time to talk to us about making\u00a0TRAPPED<\/em>,\u00a0<\/em>whether she was worried about safety, and to give her opinion on how it can be used to spark a national conversation on the eve of the Supreme Court’s potentially landmark decision in Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Why did you make TRAPPED<\/em>? Why did you want to make a film about such a controversial topic?<\/b><\/p>\n

“In the end this is not a film about the morality of a woman\u2019s decision to have an abortion. It is a film about politics and power.”<\/pullquote>I found it so shocking that across the country, clinics were closing at an alarming rate, and that in America, where Roe v. Wade<\/em> gave women the legal right to abortion more than 40 years ago, that right was being stripped away by the passing of statewide laws aimed not at protecting women\u2019s health, but at eliminating access to abortion. And this is happening particularly in southern states. I also was so struck by the dedication of these clinic providers and doctors and the impact on low-income women and women of color in abortion clinics \u2014 and I felt like it was a story that hadn\u2019t been explored in depth.<\/span><\/p>\n

Once I met people like June Ayers, like Dr. Parker, I couldn\u2019t step away from this story. I feel like it\u2019s actually one of the most important civil rights conversations that we should be having. And I hope that everyone who is sitting on the sidelines actually exercises their political opinion.<\/span><\/p>\n

What were some of the biggest challenges you faced in making <\/b>TRAPPED<\/i><\/b>?<\/b><\/p>\n

Everything was a challenge. Convincing many people to appear on camera was hard \u2014 it is dangerous to be an abortion provider, and providers are very careful, as they should be. Following active litigation is hard \u2014 lawyers don’t always like pesky filmmakers! And then there were many moving parts to the story, so figuring out the narrative thread to a story that is unfolding around you is challenging.<\/span><\/p>\n

And were you and your producers actually worried about your own safety while making the film, or even now while it’s being distributed?<\/b><\/p>\n

To some extent, yes. We would have been naive not to think that was a possibility during the process of making and distributing this film. It is no secret that abortion is a contentious issue in the United States, and that contention can manifest itself in violent ways. My biggest concern was not for myself and my crew, but for the clinicians, staff, doctors, and others with whom I would be in contact while making the film. People have been killed doing this work. I never wanted the film to bring undue risk to those who were working to help women, or the women seeking their services. The biggest, eye-opening moment for me was when I tweeted one of my usual updates about where I was filming in Texas and some fervent anti-choice bloggers pounced, and within minutes had published something about my location and the staff I was with that day. It made me realize how quickly and intensely my actions could impact those around me while making this film.<\/span><\/p>\n