Repro Roundup: What is Wisconsin’s Unborn Child Protection Act (Act 292)?

Welcome to my column, The Repro Roundup, in which I summarize abortion news happening around the country, why it matters, and what you can do about it — in 250 words or less.

What’s the issue? Wisconsin has a law on the books that strips some pregnant people of their rights. Pregnant people can be taken into custody, have a lawyer assigned to the fetus or embryo (but not assign one to the pregnant person), and forcibly send the pregnant person to jail, a psychiatric hospital, or drug treatment regardless if it’s needed, according to a Reproaction report.

Governor Evers has complete authority to prevent this regressive law from being enforced.

Why does this matter? This law gives a fetus “personhood.” Personhood is a dangerous precedent that gives more rights to a fetus than the pregnant person. When personhood laws are enacted, pregnant people are extremely likely to face violence by the state because the potential life of the fetus is deemed more important than the person who is pregnant. When the concept of personhood is applied, pregnant people can experience things like an arrest for endangering their fetus, conviction of feticide for having miscarriages, or even an inability to give birth safely and comfortably if the doctor thinks they know more about a mother’s body than the mother. Personhood laws are extremely dangerous, infantilizing, patriarchal, and just wrong. When more rights are assigned to a fetus, it’s a slippery slope until abortion is banned outright.

What action can I take?

• Sign this petition by Reproaction demanding that Gov. Evers stop enforcing this barbaric law.
• Learn more about why Act 292 puts women at risk in Wisconsin with this resource from Reproaction.
• Read about Marshae Jones and the real-life effect that personhood has after Marshae was shot in the stomach and then jailed after having a miscarriage, also from Reproaction.
• Learn the full, sexist, and racist history of this bill by this Reproaction resource.
• Learn more about pregnant people’s rights and how the National Advocates for Pregnant Women can help.
• Watch NAPW’s webinar on pregnancy and drug use and why compassionate intervention is safer than punitive intervention.

• Subscribe to The Repro Queen of DC, my monthly newsletter on abortion access, activism, and writing on the frontlines of DC.
• Subscribe to Repro 101, a seven-week educational email series about all things repro. Topics include the basics of funding abortion, clinic escorting, anti-choice violence, and more.