Dutch physician Rebecca Gomperts' abortion boat and the Women on Waves group have anchored their ship in international waters off the coasts of Poland, Spain, Mexico and other countries, offering medical abortions to women; in the US interest has been surging in her other organization, Aid Access, which since 2018 has provided abortion pills over the internet
Abortion rights activist rally at the Washington Monument before marching to the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, May 14, 2022. Thousands of activists are participating in a national day of action calling for safe and legal access to abortion. The nationwide demonstrations are a response to leaked draft opinion showing the US Supreme Court's conservative majority is considering overturning Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling guaranteeing abortion access. (Credits: Jose Luis Magana / AFP)
Washington, United States: Rebecca Gomperts, a 55-year-old Dutch physician, has spent years fighting for women's access to abortion around the world.
Made famous by her "abortion boat," as recounted in the 2014 documentary "Vessel," she and her Women on Waves group have anchored the ship in international waters off the coasts of Poland, Spain, Mexico and other countries, offering medical abortions to women otherwise unable to obtain them.
But it is in the United States that interest has been surging in her other organization, Aid Access, which since 2018 has provided abortion pills over the internet.
Behind the fast-rising demand is what appears—based on a rare leak from the US Supreme Court—to be the imminent end of federal protection for abortion rights. Once the court makes its decision official, probably next month, some 20 states are poised to ban or severely restrict abortions.