Videos Discuss Reproductive Rights 40 Years After Roe v. Wade

January 25, 2013 — Our video roundup includes a unique assortment of Web videos hand-picked by our editors. This week, we feature segments discussing the state of abortion rights 40 years after the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision.

In a special report, MSNBC's Rachel Maddow speaks with abortion clinic personnel in four states where there is only one abortion clinic. The personnel -- including some whose identities are not disclosed -- describe security measures taken to protect themselves and patients from antiabortion extremists, as well as how state laws and harassment by activists have contributed to the declining number of providers. A second segment focuses on the last abortion clinic in Mississippi, which has been unable to comply with a state law that requires its doctors to obtain hospital admitting privileges (Maddow, "The Rachel Maddow Show," MSNBC, 1/18).



On MSNBC's "Viewpoint," host Al Sharpton, Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.) and Diane Derzis, operator of the only abortion clinic in Mississippi, discuss how state lawmakers have designed regulations to make it increasingly difficult or impossible for clinics to remain open (Sharpton, "Viewpoint," MSNBC, 1/22).



Current TV's Michael Shure talks with Mother Jones' Kate Sheppard about how other states are replicating Mississippi's strategy of targeting abortion clinics with burdensome regulations. They also discuss public opinion on abortion rights and how the reproductive-rights movement differs from other equality movements (Shure, "War Room With Jennifer Granholm," Current TV, 1/22).



NBC News justice correspondent Pete Williams joins host Andrea Mitchell to discuss changes in the Supreme Court since Roe v. Wade and how the battle over abortion rights has shifted to the states. Mitchell also speaks with Sarah Weddington, who argued Roe before the Supreme Court and went on to serve in the Carter administration and Texas Legislature (Mitchell, "Andrea Mitchell Reports," MSNBC, 1/22).



MSNBC's Melissa Harris-Perry, Planned Parenthood's Cecile Richards, Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.) and other guests discuss the future of the abortion-rights movement and the importance of bringing other reproductive health and social justice issues into the debate (Harris-Perry, "The Melissa Harris-Perry Show," MSNBC, 1/19).