Jessica Valenti makes a (couple of) connections

Fascism & Anti-Abortion Violence

I want to take a minute to talk about what happened this weekend in Idaho, where a woman was assaulted and dragged out of a town hall meeting. In a now-viral video, Teresa Borrenpohl is pulled from her seat by three unbadged, unidentified men as she screams. They knock her to the floor and even try to zip-tie her hands.

“It was really violent and really traumatic,” Borrenpohl told the Idaho Capital Sun. "My only thought was to maintain my airway. They were forcing me down on the ground. I just wanted to make sure I could still breathe.”

A lot of people are calling this another sign of our country’s descent into fascism, and they’re right. But I want to be clear: this is also about abortion.

Just before Borrenpohl was assaulted, the conversation had turned to the end of Roe. Someone in the audience yelled, “Women are dying!” Another shouted, “Doctors are leaving our state!”

That’s when the moderator, Ed Bejarana, snapped at the crowd, telling them to stop “popping off with stupid remarks.” Borrenpohl responded, “Is this a town hall or a lecture?” And for that, she was attacked.

As Borrenpohl was being assaulted, Bejarana mocked her: “Look at this little girl over here, everyone… she spoke up, and now she doesn’t want to suffer the consequences.”

To recap: A stage full of white men were spewing bullshit about abortion, and when a woman pushed back, they had private ‘security’ assault her.

Right before she was attacked, Borrenpohl said “Women deserve a voice.”