The dominant narrative in the United States often portrays religion as inherentlyopposed to abortion, largely due to the influence of certain Christian groups.However, the reality is more complex: the majority of religious individuals inthe United States actually support legal access to abortion. For decades,Jewish communities have played a key role in challenging this narrative andadvancing reproductive rights. In this session, we will explore how Jews havebeen at the forefront of this advocacy—through efforts in women’s health, legalaction, religious engagement, and the power of personal storytelling aroundabortion.

Michal Raucher is Associate Professor ofJewish Studies at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, where sheteaches courses on religion and reproduction, women and gender in religion, andIsrael/Palestine. Her research focuses on women in contemporary Judaism,reproductive ethics, and religious authority. Raucher is the author of“Conceiving Agency: Reproductive Authority among Haredi Women” (Indiana, 2020),an ethnography of Israeli ultra-Orthodox Jewish women’s reproductive ethics.She recently completed her second book, The New Rabbis, anethnography of women rabbis in American Orthodoxy. Dr. Raucher is a PI on twostudies exploring the intersection of religious identity and abortion. She hasinterviewed over 100 Jews who have had abortions in America since1973.  Dr. Raucher is the co-editor of the Journal ofFeminist Studies in Religion. She earned her PhD in Religious Studies fromNorthwestern University. She also has degrees from the University ofPennsylvania, The Jewish Theological Seminary, and Columbia University.