The Defenders

We start Season 2 of The Defenders in Arizona, where abortion rights have been in turmoil since the overturn of Roe. Now, a citizen-led effort is trying to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution through a ballot measure. November’s election may not only change the fate of abortion in this crucial swing state; it could also flip the state legislature and impact control of the U.S. Senate and the fate of the White House. Learn more about Arizona’s abortion ballot measure at arizonaforabortionaccess.org, and Reproductive Freedom For All’s work in Arizona at reproductivefreedomforall.org/state/arizona.   This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts. Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia. Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan. Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Defenders is back. This season, all roads lead to Nov. 5, because abortion is on the ballot this Election Day and the stakes are higher than ever. Host Gloria Riviera interviews organizers, activists, and experts from Arizona to Florida to Texas – the people on the front lines of this fight. From building state power to voting for judges, we’ll arm you with everything you need to know to stand up for reproductive freedom this election. Coming September 12.  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When it comes to abortion, finding answers in a world of misinformation and changing laws can be hard. Especially when the places to turn to for care are diminishing. On this bonus episode, Gloria talks to Ariella Messing, the founder of the Online Abortion Resource Squad, or OARS. They moderate the r/abortion subreddit, a group on Reddit that is dedicated to answering questions about abortion. Not only are they helping people find care – they are ensuring that every question is answered with the truth. Check out OARS at abortionsquad.org. You can find the abortion subreddit at reddit.com/r/abortion.  To learn more about all the organizations featured in The Defenders, visit: https://lemonadamedia.com/the-defenders-resource-page/ This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the final episode of our series, we’re hitting the streets of Manhattan to join up with Nix Rao, a young activist dedicated to expanding reproductive health access in New York. Fueled by their motto, “legality does not equal access,” we’ll follow Nix as they lead the charge to bring abortion pills to college campuses. To learn more about all the organizations featured in The Defenders, visit: https://lemonadamedia.com/the-defenders-resource-page/ Share your thoughts on The Defenders! To help us keep creating great content, please take our short listener survey at bit.ly/thedefenderssurvey Gloria Riviera and Samantha Bee are our hosts. Muna Danish is our supervising producer. Hannah Boomershine and Lisa Phu are our producers. Isaura Aceves and Tony Williams are our associate producers. Ivan Kuraev and Natasha Jacobs are our audio engineers. Music by Hannis Brown with additional music by Natasha Jacobs.Story editing by Jackie Danziger, our VP of Narrative Content. Fact-checking by Naomi Barr. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, we’re bringing you part one of our series finale. Dr. Warren Hern is one of the few remaining physicians performing abortions later in pregnancy. After decades in this fight - and serious threats to his safety - nothing is stopping him from this important work.  Learn more about the Boulder Abortion Clinic: https://www.drhern.com/ To learn more about all the organizations featured in The Defenders, visit: https://lemonadamedia.com/the-defenders-resource-page/ Share your thoughts on The Defenders! To help us keep creating great content, please take our short listener survey at bit.ly/thedefenderssurvey Gloria Riviera and Samantha Bee are our hosts. Muna Danish is our supervising producer. Hannah Boomershine and Lisa Phu are our producers. Isaura Aceves and Tony Williams are our associate producers. Ivan Kuraev and Natasha Jacobs are our audio engineers. Music by Hannis Brown with additional music by Natasha Jacobs.Story editing by Jackie Danziger, our VP of Narrative Content. Fact-checking by Naomi Barr. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While the majority of the country supports abortion, much of the mainstream media has a long way to go to represent abortion accurately and ethically. This week, Sam talks to journalist Jessica Valenti and abortion activist Renee Bracey Sherman about how we can “arm the choir” with in-depth and more impactful storytelling. Plus, tips on how you can talk about abortion with your own family over the holidays.   Subscribe to Abortion, Every Day: https://jessica.substack.com/ Learn more about We Testify: https://www.abortion.shop/ To learn more about all the organizations featured in The Defenders, visit: https://lemonadamedia.com/the-defenders-resource-page/ Share your thoughts on The Defenders! To help us keep creating great content, please take our short listener survey at bit.ly/thedefenderssurvey Gloria Riviera and Samantha Bee are our hosts. Muna Danish is our supervising producer. Claire Jones is our producer. Isaura Aceves and Tony Williams are our associate producers. Ivan Kuraev and Natasha Jacobs are our audio engineers. Music by Hannis Brown with additional music by Natasha Jacobs.Story editing by Jackie Danziger, our VP of Narrative Content. Fact-checking by Naomi Barr. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We travel to the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, where abortion bans intersect with immigration policy. And our team crosses the border into Mexico to buy something you can’t get in Texas: abortion pills.  Learn more about Frontera Fund at https://fronterafundrgv.org/.  To learn more about all the organizations featured in The Defenders, visit: https://lemonadamedia.com/the-defenders-resource-page/ Share your thoughts on The Defenders! To help us keep creating great content, please take our short listener survey at bit.ly/thedefenderssurvey Gloria Riviera and Samantha Bee are our hosts. Muna Danish is our supervising producer. Lisa Phu is our producer. Isaura Aceves and Tony Williams are our associate producers. Ivan Kuraev and Natasha Jacobs are our audio engineers. Music by Hannis Brown with additional music by Natasha Jacobs. Story editing by Jackie Danziger, our VP of Narrative Content. Fact-checking by Naomi Barr. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How do you make a complicated reproductive choice when you’re racing against the clock? We follow two women in Georgia as they figure out how to end their pregnancies in a state with a 6-week ban. And then we talk to Sister Song’s Monica Simpson about how the Reproductive Justice movement is expansive enough to hold space for people with conflicted feelings about their abortions.  Learn more about SisterSong at https://www.sistersong.net/. Learn more about Northwest Abortion Access Fund at https://nwaafund.org/ and Cascades Abortion Support Collective at https://www.cascadesabortionsupport.org/. And learn more about carefem at https://carafem.org/ and Lilith Clinic at https://lilithclinic.com/.  To learn more about all the organizations featured in The Defenders, visit: https://lemonadamedia.com/the-defenders-resource-page/ Share your thoughts on The Defenders! To help us keep creating great content, please take our short listener survey at bit.ly/thedefenderssurvey Gloria Riviera and Samantha Bee are our hosts. Muna Danish is our supervising producer. Lisa Phu is our producer. Isaura Aceves and Tony Williams are our associate producers. Ivan Kuraev and Natasha Jacobs are our audio engineers. Music by Hannis Brown with additional music by Natasha Jacobs. Story editing by Jackie Danziger, our VP of Narrative Content. Fact-checking by Naomi Barr. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Reproductive rights and religion may not feel like they go hand in hand. But in Atlanta, Black faith leaders are challenging that by talking about abortion…in church. Learn more about Faith in Public Life at https://www.faithinpubliclife.org/ Learn more about Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice at https://rcrc.org/ Follow Tiffanie Mackey at https://www.tiffanielanelle.com/ To learn more about all the organizations featured in this series, visit: https://lemonadamedia.com/the-defenders-resource-page/ Gloria Riviera and Samantha Bee are our hosts. Muna Danish is our supervising producer. Hannah Boomershine, Lisa Phu, and Julie Carlie are our producers. Additional production support by Mona Hassan. Isaura Aceves and Tony Williams are our associate producers. Ivan Kuraev and Natasha Jacobs are our audio engineers. Music by Hannis Brown with additional music by Natasha Jacobs.Story editing by Jackie Danziger, our VP of Narrative Content. Fact-checking by Naomi Barr. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs.  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s a trend happening across America. In blue AND red states, people are voting to protect abortion rights, with Ohio just the latest example. It turns out abortion is winning elections. This week, Sam sits down with author and writer Rebecca Traister to dissect why a record number of voters are showing up in droves to protect reproductive freedom.  Follow Rebecca Traister: https://rebeccatraister.com/ Learn more about All Above All: https://allaboveall.org/ Learn more about the EACH Act: https://allaboveall.org/resource/each-act-fact-sheet/ To learn more about all the organizations featured in The Defenders, visit: https://lemonadamedia.com/the-defenders-resource-page/ Gloria Riviera and Samantha Bee are our hosts. Muna Danish is our supervising producer. Claire Jones is our producer. Isaura Aceves and Tony Williams are our associate producers. Ivan Kuraev and Natasha Jacobs are our audio engineers. Music by Hannis Brown with additional music by Natasha Jacobs. Story editing by Jackie Danziger, our VP of Narrative Content. Fact-checking by Naomi Barr. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What does gender affirming care have to do with abortion? It’s all about bodily autonomy. And the forces that brought down Roe are going after Trans rights next. We stay in Tennessee this week as we break down the anti-trans, anti-abortion playbook and meet a group of young people who are navigating their state’s attacks on LGBTQ rights.  Learn more about OUTMemphis at https://www.outmemphis.org/. Gloria Riviera and Samantha Bee are our hosts. Muna Danish is our supervising producer. Lisa Phu is our producer. Isaura Aceves and Tony Williams are our associate producers. Ivan Kuraev and Natasha Jacobs are our audio engineers. Music by Hannis Brown with additional music by Natasha Jacobs. Story editing by Jackie Danziger, our VP of Narrative Content. Fact-checking by Naomi Barr. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What does it mean to be an abortion activist in a state where abortion is completely banned? We travel to Tennessee alongside two activists who are risking everything to expand access to care.   Learn more about Abortion Care Tennessee at https://www.abortioncaretn.org/about-us. Follow Tia Freeman on Instagram @slipp3rywhenwet and their work with Beyond Roe Collective @beyondroecollective. Gloria Riviera and Samantha Bee are our hosts. Muna Danish is our supervising producer. Lisa Phu is our producer. Isaura Aceves and Tony Williams are our associate producers. Ivan Kuraev and Natasha Jacobs are our audio engineers. Music by Hannis Brown with additional music by Natasha Jacobs.Story editing by Jackie Danziger, our VP of Narrative Content. Fact-checking by Naomi Barr. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode 1: Back in 2022, shortly after the fall of Roe, Brittany felt trapped. She was pregnant and stuck in an abusive relationship, totally cut off from her support system. She didn’t see a way out - until she happened to hear a radio story about the Midwest Access Coalition, an abortion fund helping people travel across state lines. We follow Brittany’s harrowing journey as she travels hundreds of miles, with the help of a group of volunteer pilots from Elevated Access.  Looking for resources?  If you’re in a domestic violence situation, you can call 800.799.SAFE. Or go to https://www.thehotline.org/. If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or considering self-harm or suicide, you can call or text 988 to access a trained crisis counselor. You can find an abortion fund through the National Network of Abortions funds at https://abortionfunds.org/need-abortion/  Learn more about Midwest Access Coalition at https://www.midwestaccesscoalition.org/about. If you need to get in touch with Midwest Access Coalition, please call or text their confidential hotline at 847-750-6224. Learn more about Elevated Access at https://www.elevatedaccess.org/about.   Gloria Riviera and Samantha Bee are our hosts. Muna Danish is our supervising producer. Lisa Phu is our producer. Isaura Aceves and Tony Williams are our associate producers. Ivan Kuraev and Natasha Jacobs are our audio engineers. Music by Hannis Brown with additional music by Natasha Jacobs. Story editing by Jackie Danziger, our VP of Narrative Content. Fact-checking by Naomi Barr. Executive producers are Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation. Follow The Defenders wherever you get your podcasts, or listen ad-free on Amazon Music with your Prime Membership. You can also get premium content and behind the scenes material by subscribing to Lemonada Premium on Apple Podcasts.  Stay up to date with us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.  Want to become a Lemonada superfan? Join us at joinsubtext.com/lemonadasuperfan.   Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and all other Lemonada series: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. To follow along with a transcript, go to lemonadamedia.com/show/ shortly after the air date.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since the fall of Roe, people are asking, what do we do now? "The Defenders," from Lemonada Media, will take a closer look at the fight for reproductive rights and gender equity happening across the country. Co-hosts Samantha Bee and Gloria Riviera share the stories of a growing network of helpers who are fighting back and doubling down on reproductive freedom. Coming November 8.  This series is supported by Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and Levi Strauss Foundation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.