Who is behind the anti-abortion rights movement? In her latest documentary, Battleground, director Cynthia Lowen draws back the curtain, following three women as they slowly but surely chip away at access to legal abortions across the country.
The film, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in June and opened in theaters on October 7, dives deep into the organizations that fund the campaigns of anti-abortion politicians, harass women outside of abortion clinics, and spread anti-abortion lies on college campuses. Lowen began filming in Alabama in 2019 after that state passed its total abortion ban, she tells The Progressive, but her efforts quickly grew into a larger project.
Train of Thought Productions
“At the time, they were the first state to pass a ban like that,” Lowen says. “I was struck by how boldly unconstitutional it was and I wanted to understand the impact it would have. I started filming some of the individuals who testified in the Alabama state legislature against the ban and other pro-choice individuals in the state. But I had the feeling I wasn’t getting what I really wanted.”
As a Washington, D.C.-based abortion rights activist, I saw scenes from my own life in Battleground. Lowen filmed much of the documentary in D.C. throughout 2020 and 2021, a time in which the Supreme Court heard many cases around abortion access. I participated in every one of the rallies featured in the film, and it was good to see my fellow activists spar on screen with anti-choice instigators such as Kristan Hawkins, the president and founder of Students for Life of America. Hawkins is also no stranger to protesting in D.C. She’s a regular at the Supreme Court, with her iPhone in hand, live-streaming to her followers across the country, often depicting the pro-abortion side as evil or senseless.
While some viewers, like me, will be familiar with organizations like Students for Life of America, Lowen does an impressive job of exposing the behind-the-scenes machinations of anti-choice organizations. In one sequence, for example, she features Marjorie Jones Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, which works to elect federal politicians who advocate for anti-abortion policies. Dannenfelser, we learn in the film, has a direct line to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
“I wanted to get a bird’s eye view of the power structures in place,” Lowen says. “I decided I wanted to investigate the anti-abortion movement, to understand who they are, how they’re working and why, and their political connections and access to power. How is it that they’ve been successful at advancing their agenda against the will of the majority of Americans?”
While the film is fascinating, from an activist’s perspective, and as someone who’s interacted with anti-choicers featured in the film, I had my concerns. As a writer, I take very seriously that words have power, and amplifying anti-choice rhetoric, even for the sake of reporting on it, can have dangerous consequences. The repeating of false and harmful rhetoric leads directly to increased violence against clinics, providers, and volunteers. During my conversation with Lowen, I asked her about this explicitly. Why highlight the stories of anti-choicers? Was she worried about giving them such a large platform?
“I think it’s really important for pro-choice people to know what they’re up against,” says Lowen. “Of course, there are very visible factions of the anti-abortion movement that are outside clinics that are committing . . . terroristic acts of harassment against individuals seeking abortion care. But the power structures that have great access and influence over people like Mitch McConnell or Donald Trump were very happy to be doing so behind closed doors. If you can’t name your opposition, it’s very hard to develop a strategy to fight them.”
But what about spreading disinformation?
“Not spreading disinformation was part of the editorial process of making the film,” Lowen says. “There are many things that anti-abortion people will say in this film that many will strongly disagree with. But we were mindful to not spread disinformation stated as fact, at least not without [it] being challenged.”
Among those challenging anti-abortion rhetoric in the film is Planned Parenthood Federation of America president and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson, who speaks urgently about the work the organization is doing to protect abortion access. And while the film itself is generally editorially neutral, Lowen isn’t. At press events around the country, Lowen’s team handed out free pregnancy tests, along with local information relating to abortion access. The film’s website has a page of resources where visitors can find a discussion guide or sign up to host a screening.
The makers of Battleground are also hosting a national week of action from November 2 to 8 in the leadup to the midterm elections, during which Lowen encourages viewers to register to vote, donate to the National Network of Abortion Funds, and share their stories in a database hosted by We Testify.
As we look down the barrel of an election in which abortion is on the ballot in five states, and many anti-choice politicians are vying for office around the nation, Battleground offers an urgent reminder of what people are up against in the struggle for reproductive justice.
“We have a responsibility as Americans to take united action for policies that impact people in our own states,” Lowen adds. “We have to believe it’s possible to take action now for abortion rights.”