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“…(The Janes) understood that invisibility could be their friend. And as long as no one paid attention to them, they could get away with running an abortion service basically under the noses of the Chicago Police Department and the Chicago mob and the Catholic Church.” 

- Director Tia Lessin

Emma Pildes and Tia Lessin, Directors of the 2023 duPont Awards-winning documentary The Janes, join Professor Jessica Bruder for a lively conversation about the film’s subject and its consequences today.. 

Before the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling provided for legal abortions in 1973,  a group of “outlaw” Chicago women provided illegal ones. This is the story of a group of women who five decades ago fought the police, church, and abortion mobs in Chicago. 

In this episode, the filmmakers talk about their very personal connection to the film, which focused on the risks the Janes took to provide women access to safe abortions - like that time Chicago police kicked down their doors. The directors also revealed how they tracked down some of the most fascinating characters in their movie, like Mike - the “rough around the edges” ex-construction worker who taught The Janes how to DIY abortions themselves, and Dori, who suffered through a painful and risky “mob abortion.” It’s a conversation that becomes more relevant with every passing day, especially in a post-Roe V. Wade world.

Pildes, Lessin and Bruder lies at the intersection of advocacy, activism and journalism. 

You can watch The Janes here