Sexing Harris: The Law and Politics of the Movement to Defund Planned Parenthood

The contemporary movement to defund Planned Parenthood reframes abortion restrictions through the lens of sex equality and sexuality rather than contraception. Anti-abortion advocates have successfully campaigned for new legal limitations on Medicaid and Title X reimbursement for Planned Parenthood while also restricting other family planning services, contraception, and cancer screenings. Notably, legal restrictions extend beyond abortion to non-abortion services. The defunding movement initially presented itself as opposing contraception, but evolved to emphasize sex equality and gender dynamics in heterosexual relationships. The movement frames abortion rights as potentially perpetuating women's sexual exploitation and psychological harm, invoking arguments distinct from traditional protection-based abortion restrictions. By drawing on feminist anxieties about sexual liberation, rape, and power dynamics in relationships, the defunding movement recharacterizes abortion access not as a women's right but as potentially facilitating male sexual dominance. The article demonstrates how the movement works to expand Harris v. McRae's principle—that abortion rights protect only against state interference—to encompass funding denials for all services offered by abortion providers. This framing as a sex equality issue rather than a contraception issue marks a significant rhetorical shift in how anti-abortion advocates approach women's reproductive autonomy.

Topics: Civil Rights · Family Law

Keywords: Planned Parenthood · abortion funding · Harris v. McRae · defund movement · sex equality · reproductive rights · Medicaid · Title X