Volume 40, Number 3

At the time of this writing, several states in the US have further restricted access to abortion through fetal heartbeat laws—Louisiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Georgia, and Ohio—and Alabama has passed a law, signed by Governor Kay Ivey on May 16, 2019, banning abortions at every stage of pregnancy and criminalizing the procedure for doctors (except in the case of medical emergency). The state of Indiana has recently placed a near total ban on second trimester abortions. The new sets of laws restricting access to reproductive choice in the US is alarming. We at Frontiers endorse the National Women’s Studies Statement in Support of Reproductive Justice. “We strongly condemn the current attacks on reproductive choice and add our voice to the chorus of opposition. Autonomy over our bodies, including our reproductive choices, is fundamental. NWSA members have upheld this principle in our scholarship and practice for over four decades. We reiterate it today in these urgent times.”

We acknowledge these pressing matters but also dedicate this issue to pursuing new conversations in feminist studies that surround the fat body, partake in discussions of the aftermath of overwhelming trauma, and help us comprehend how power shapes our responses to white supremacy and reproduction. The scholarship and artwork in this issue asks us to rethink how we understand these issues, their methods and histories, and their application in the field of feminist studies.