The Chris Hedges Report Podcast with Tony-award winning playwright, author, and activist, V, formerly known as Eve Ensler

The leaked majority draft opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, which suggests the Supreme Court is be poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, returning the question of abortion to the states, is part of a broader assault against women. The Covid-19 pandemic has seen an estimated 30 percent increase in violent attacks against women along with the curtailment of their rights. This assault, writes V, formerly known as Eve Ensler, is “the most severe setback to women’s liberation in my lifetime.” Much of this abuse, including an increase in sex and labor trafficking, is driven by the loss of work, further disempowering women. “In the US, more than 5 million women’s jobs were lost between the start of the pandemic and November 2020,” V writes in The Guardian. “Because much of women’s work requires physical contact with the public – restaurants, stores, childcare, healthcare settings – theirs were some of the first to go. Those who were able to keep their jobs were often frontline workers whose positions have put them in great danger; some 77% of hospital workers and 74% percent of school staff are women. Even then, the lack of childcare options left many women unable to return to their jobs.” Joining me to discuss the assault on women’s rights, as well as her new book The Apology, is the Tony-award winning playwright, author, and activist V, formerly known as Eve Ensler.