Home sweet home! And a bit sour at the moment? My home state of Missouri was one of 13 that enacted trigger laws that functionally outlawed abortion after the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision in 2022. (In a feat of diabolical efficiency, Missouri’s attorney general bragged about being the first state to pass the law less than 10 minutes after the court’s decision.) That’s why I joined Karlie Kloss, my fellow St Louisian and self-appointed kid sister, in an activist homecoming this week to advocate for Amendment 3, a bill that would end the abortion ban and is on the ballot on November 5. Karlie and I spent the day knocking on doors in South County with our pals Jen Rubio, Selby Drummond, and Molly Howard.
In addition to canvassing, Karlie hosted a screening of two short films she commissioned with Gateway Coalition, a collective she founded to provide support to women's health clinics in the Midwest, and Chelsea Clinton organized a panel discussion with Amanda Zurawski, a Texas woman who lost her baby—and almost her own life—under the draconian abortion laws that prevented her from terminating a failing pregnancy. FYI: States like Missouri and Texas currently outlaw abortions in nearly all circumstances, including cases of rape and incest, which means pregnant women in traumatic situations are being turned away from hospitals while their health deteriorates.
Chelsea and her mother, Hillary Clinton, spent two years working on Zurawski v Texas, a documentary about courageous women in Texas who sued their state for being denied medically indicated abortion care, even when at the brink of death. (One of the filmmakers, Abbie Perrault, was on the panel.) It’s moving, surreal, and infuriating. Amanda Zurawski received a well-deserved standing ovation at the screening at Chase Park Plaza theater (where, incidentally, I saw American Beauty for the first time in 1999).
Why do I care so much about abortion? I can already hear the trolls commenting that an unplanned pregnancy is pretty low on the list for a gay guy like me. But what’s terrifying about this law—and why I’m willing to travel across the country to advocate for Amendment 3—is the risk of what could follow if we don't send a message to our local and federal legislatures. Today, we’re talking about abortions. Will IVF be next? Gay rights? Gay marriage? I feel passionately that Missourians—actually, all Americans—and their families should have the freedom to make their own decisions about pregnancy and abortion in the same way that I'm passionate about my right to love who I want to love and create a family of my own.
So to my fellow Missourians: Please go to the polls on November 5 and vote YES on Amendment 3. (Similar bills are on ballots in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, Rhode Island, and South Dakota.) And to all Americans: I encourage you to vote with your conscience in this year’s presidential election.
P.S. Don’t think this trip to St Louis didn’t include a stop at the St Louis Art Museum, which has a fabulous “Narrative Wisdom and African Arts” show up at the moment.
P.P.S. I also introduced these girls to our local cuisine: Imo’s pizza, Ted Drewe’s ice cream, and ooey gooey butter cake. Antacids not included.
