The Beautiful Idea

For as long as people have been getting pregnant, they've also been figuring out how to get un-pregnant. A self-managed abortion (SMA) is when a person ends their pregnancy outside of the formal medical system. Most often, self-managed abortions are done as "medication abortions" — abortions induced by medication. In this episode of The Beautiful Idea, we talk about self-managed medication abortions done with a combination of the drugs misoprostol and mifepristone. Guests Jane and Hazel are both abortion doulas (also known as abortion companions) with extensive experience supporting people completing self-managed medication abortions. Jane, based in Appalachia, works with the Mountain Area Abortion Doula Collective (MAADCO). Hazel, based in the Rust Belt, is a former abortion clinic worker, and wrote the zine "how to do it anyway: a guide to self-managing an abortion at home" after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022. We discuss the history of reproductive justice, how self-managed abortion is often stigmatized and why that can be harmful, and the actual step-by-step details of what a medication abortion entails (how to measure pregnancy, which pills to take when, how it might feel physically in the body, what to look out for to determine if an abortion has been completed, pain management, and some of the ways that people sometimes emotionally or culturally process an abortion), among other topics. There are many resources on self-managed medication abortion available. Here are just a few, mentioned in today's show: -"how to do it anyway: a guide to self-managing an abortion at home" (https://www.tangledwilderness.org/shop/p/how-to-do-it-anyway) -National Network of Abortion Funds (https://abortionfunds.org/) — connects people to local abortion funds for financial aid, and to resources that provide practical support (childcare, rides to clinics, etc.) -Abortion Finder (https://www.abortionfinder.org/) — finds verified abortion clinics -Plan C Pills (https://www.plancpills.org/about) — educational website w resources on how to source abortion pills, how to dose them, what to look out for -Aid Access (https://aidaccess.org/en/) — provides access to medication abortion via mail -RX List (RXlist.com) — searchable database that provides information about general drug interactions -Miscarriage & abortion hotline (https://mahotline.org/) — text hotline for medical advice, particularly if you are self-managing an abortion -The Mountain Area Abortion Doula Collective (MAADCO) (https://mtnabortiondoula.co/) -Holler Health Justice (https://www.hollerhealthjustice.org/) -The Yellow Hammer Fund (https://abortionfunds.org/fund/yellowhammer-fund/) -"The Janes" (https://www.hbo.com/movies/the-janes) — HBO documentary on the Jane Collective (1960s/70s underground network of abortion providers) -"Cool People Who Did Cool Stuff" podcast episode about the Jane Collective (https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-cool-people-who-did-cool-96003360/episode/part-one-the-jane-collective-direct-96629898/)

In this conversation, we speak with two recent International Solidarity Movement (ISM) volunteers about their experiences accompanying Palestinians in the West Bank. International Solidarity Movement is an initiative based in Palestine that enables international volunteers to physically accompany Palestinians facing harassment and attacks from the Israeli occupation. We discuss what everyday resistance — both large and small — looks like for Palestinians in the West Bank. Among many other topics, we explore the ways that ISM volunteers move between what they call "protective presence" and "solidarity" in their accompaniment work, how their experience has shifted or impacted the way they understand anti-colonial resistance more broadly, and what they see on the horizon for Palestine. This interview was originally conducted immediately following the agreement to a ceasefire between the IDF and Hamas, on January 16th, 2025. Israel violated the ceasefire numerous times from January 19 to March 17, killing at least 170 people in Gaza, averaging nearly three deaths a day. On March 18th, Israel officially broke the ceasefire agreement, and continues to bombard Gaza with air strikes and ground offensives. Gaza is on the verge of famine and a total collapse of healthcare infrastructure, as Israel continues to bar the entry of much-needed medical supplies, fuel, and other humanitarian aid including food and clean water to the region. As of May 19th, 2025, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, at least 53,339 people — including at least 17,400 children — have been confirmed killed in Gaza. Last month, we published an interview with a friend and comrade of Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi, a 26-year-old who was killed by the Israeli Defense Forces on September 6th, 2024, while accompanying Palestinians in the West Bank as an ISM volunteer. That interview, called "The Murder of Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi and the Future of International Solidarity" is available on our feed and at this link: https://thebeautifulidea.show/the-murder-of-aysenur-ezgi-eygi-and-the-future-of-international-solidarity-2/. For more information about the work of ISM, visit their website at: https://palsolidarity.org/

Dean Spade is the author of "Mutual Aid: Building Solidarity During this Crisis and the Next", and "Normal Life: Administrative Violence, Critical Trans Politics, and the Limits of Law". Well known for highlighting the ways that mutual aid can be a direct response to societal needs as well as a transformative practice that shifts our reliance away from the state and toward each other, Spade has just published a new book called "Love in a Fucked Up World: How to Build relationships, hook up, and raise hell together". Informed by over two decades of experience pushing for trans liberation and racial and economic justice, Spade's new book discusses the urgency of building sustainable, accountable, and truly abolitionist interpersonal relationships that empower us to resist state violence over the long haul. In a time of increasing despair, he urges us to move beyond symbolic actions and embrace riskier, more meaningful forms of action that require trust, deep solidarity, and real vulnerability. We touch on Spade's personal journey of radicalization, think about some of the potential of this moment, and unpack some concrete tools for self-reflection and expression. In addition to Spade's books, check out the "Five Questions for Cultivating Solidarity When Responding to Political Repression", downloadable in English & Spanish here: https://www.communityjusticeexchange.org/en/resources-all/five-questions-for-cultivating-solidarity Follow Dean Spade: Twitter – https://x.com/deanspade Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/spade.dean Personal website – https://www.deanspade.net/

On September 6th of last year, 26 year old University of Washington graduate Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi was shot and killed by IDF soldiers while doing accompaniment in the West Bank of Palestine with International Solidarity Movement (ISM). In this episode, we speak with a friend of Ayşenur's who had travelled to the West Bank to do accompaniment with ISM alongside her, and was present during the days leading up to and immediately after her murder. We discuss what happened to Ayşenur, settler violence against Palestinians and IDF complicity, grief, remembrance, and ways in which anarchist movements internationally can effectively support people facing violence from the state and occupying forces. During the discussion a number of pieces are referenced: "Theses On Palestine Solidarity" (anonymous): https://haters.noblogs.org/files/2024/01/Theses-on-Palestine-Solidarity.pdf "The Gaza Ghetto Uprising" (Adi Callai*): https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Pt_1k7nSv1M&pp=ygUUZ2F6YSBnaGV0dG8gdXByaXNpbmc%3D "The Gaza ceasefire will not cure the wounds of genocide" (Roaa Shamallakh): https://mondoweiss.net/2025/01/the-gaza-ceasefire-will-not-cure-the-wounds-of-genocide/ For more information about Ayşenur and her murder at the hands of the IDF, please see https://www.realchangenews.org/news/2024/10/02/remembering-ay-enur-activist-s-death-felt-deeply-seattle-and-beyond and https://southseattleemerald.org/voices/2024/09/10/aysenurs-legacy-the-tragic-loss-of-an-activist-a-friend-and-a-fighter-for-international-solidarity The speaker interviewed on this episode does not represent the views of International Solidarity Movement. For more about the work of ISM, visit their website at:https://palsolidarity.org/ This interview was originally conducted immediately following the agreement to a ceasefire between the IDF and Hamas, on January 16th, 2025. We apologize for the delayed release. *Adi Callai has previously been interviewed by contributors to this show. Shortly following the October 7th attacks, they appeared on "This is America" (with Tom Nomad) to discuss IDF strategy (https://itsgoingdown.org/counter-insurgency-israel-podcast/).

In this episode of The Beautiful Idea, we speak with Tracy Rosenthal [https://www.haymarketbooks.org/authors/1596-tracy-rosenthal] and Leonardo Vilchis [https://www.haymarketbooks.org/authors/1597-leonardo-vilchis], two tenant organizers in Los Angeles, CA, involved in the Los Angeles Tenant Union (LATU) [https://latenantsunion.org/en/], and co-authors of the new book, Abolish Rent: How Tenants Can End the Housing Crisis [https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/2496-abolish-rent]. From the publisher [https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/2496-abolish-rent]: "Rent drives millions into debt, despair, and onto the streets. The social cost of rent is too damn high. Written for anyone fed up with the permanent housing crisis, complicit politicians, and real estate greed, Abolish Rent dissects our housing system from the perspective of those it immiserates. Through unsparing analysis and striking stories of resistance, it shows us how tenants can, through organizing and collective action, harness our power and win the housing we deserve. From two co-founders of the largest tenants union in the country, this deeply reported account of the resurgent tenant movement centers poor and working-class people who are fighting back, staying put, and remaking the city in the process. Authors Tracy Rosenthal and Leonardo Vilchis take us to trilingual strategy meetings, raucous marches against gentrification, and daring eviction defenses where immigrants put their lives on the line. These are the seeds of the revolutionary movement we need to make our housing, our cities, and the world our home." During our discussion, we cover the growing crisis around rent and housing and how landlords and politicians have attempted to shift the discussion onto attacks on migrants and the houseless. We cover how the Los Angeles Tenant Union and the wider Autonomous Tenant Union Network have grown to build a grassroots, tenant led autonomous movement, aimed at building power on a neighborhood level.

In our following episode, we speak with folks around the country about this unfolding reality. First, we catch up with Mia Wong [https://bsky.app/profile/miawong.bsky.social], a journalist at It Could Happen Here [https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-it-could-happen-here-30717896/], a daily podcast on Cool Zone Media about everyday resistance and the current crisis, then we speak with a participant in the publishing collective CrimethInc [https://crimethinc.com/], about the emerging cracks in the current crisis and what this means about how we can respond, and finally we speak to folks in Olympia, WA and North Carolina about recent "Festival of Resistance" [https://crimethinc.com/2025/01/20/reports-from-the-festivals-of-resistance-day-of-the-forest-defender] events that were organized in the lead up to Trump's inauguration. Thanks for listening, let's get into it. Music: Intros: Breakaway [https://breakawaybreakaway.bandcamp.com/] and Seaside Tryst [https://seasidetryst.bandcamp.com/] Transition: Filastine, Soundswarm Compostion [https://filastine.bandcamp.com/] and E.T., Sword That's Bending [https://e-t-music.bandcamp.com/]

Welcome back to The Beautiful Idea, a new project from a collective of several anarchist and autonomous media producers scattered around the world. We're bringing you interviews and stories from the front-lines of autonomous social movements and struggles, as well as original commentary and analysis. On today's show we have a conversation with Xander Dunlap, author of the recent book The System Is Killing Us, out with Pluto Press. In this conversation we discuss the current state of ecological resistance movements, the problems introduced by eco-Leninism, the concept of permanent ecological conflict, and the notion of home and connection to place in land struggles. You can find Xander on the Twitter at https://x.com/DrX_ADunlap and on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/drxdunlap.bsky.social. Xander is also involved in a new and exciting publishing project called Rupture Press, check it out at https://www.rupturepress.org/

On this episode of The Beautiful Idea, with the second Trump administration only weeks away, we sit down to speak with two anarchist authors and thinkers, Peter Gelderloos and Prince Shakur. Peter is the author of such classics as How Non-Violence Protects the State [https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/peter-gelderloos-how-nonviolence-protects-the-state]and Worshiping Power [https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/peter-gelderloos-worshipping-power], and also has recently published two new books, They Will Beat the Memory Out of Us [https://www.plutobooks.com/9780745349770/they-will-beat-the-memory-out-of-us/] and Organization, Continuity, Community [https://detritusbooks.com/products/organization-community-continuity-by-peter-gelderloos]. Peter is also currently publishing on substack [https://petergelderloos.substack.com/]. Prince Shakur [https://www.princeshakur.com/] is an organizer, author, and one of two hosts who run The Dugout [https://thedugout.carrd.co/], a Black anarchist podcast which you can check out here [https://thedugout.carrd.co/] and follow on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/dugoutpodcast/]. Shakur is also the author of When They Tell You To Be Good [https://bookshop.org/p/books/when-they-tell-you-to-be-good-a-memoir-prince-shakur/18299855?ean=9781953534422]. During our episode we speak with both Peter and Prince about their thoughts on the coming Trump administration and how people involved in social movements and struggles should ready themselves and their communities. Is it fair to call Trump a fascist and what can we expect from the incoming administration? What cracks can we see forming within the ruling order going forward, and what opportunities and challenges do autonomous rebels face in this new terrain?