Living for the hope of it all

As the attacks on women's rights continue, I'm doing my best not to let the relentless news-and-doom cycle ruin August.

Welcome, August! When my kids were young, I used to refer to it as the juiciest month of the year—loving its bloated days, all sunshine and sweat. And, in our case, it’s punctuated by weekly cake and candles. In my family of five, all but me celebrate an August birthday. (Today my firstborn turns 29—here’s to you, kiddo!)

In 2025, I have to admit this is yet another joy I am doing my best not to let the relentless news-and-doom cycle ruin. Curating a round-up of breaking headlines about gender and democracy is surely not for the faint of heart or spirit. As ever, here’s what has happened across the country this week:

• On Monday, the Trump administration posted a new rule to block what already amounted to limited abortion care at hospitals run by Veterans Affairs (VA). It now proposes to eliminate exceptions for a patient’s health or in cases of rape or incest, even for facilities located in states where abortion is legal. It is a naked attempt to roll back one of the important post-Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization policies codified by the Biden administration—which not only permitted the VA to offer abortions in those circumstances but to provide abortion counseling as well. According to the National Partnership for Women & Families, more than half of female veterans live in states that ban abortion or are likely to; women are the fastest-growing group of veterans according to VA data. Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) serves on the Veteran Affairs’ Committee and called the measure “unspeakably cruel and a grotesque assault on women who have put their lives on the line to keep us safe.” The public has until Sept. 3 to comment on the Trump administration’s proposal; you can make your voice heard here.

• The Contrarian has covered the myriad ways the government is deliberately attempting to weaponize Medicaid to “defund Planned Parenthood” and undermine other reproductive health clinics’ ability to provide care. This is a lethal combination that leverages the Supreme Court’s decision in Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, a specific provision (currently blocked by a court order) in the “big, beautiful bill” signed by President Donald Trump on July 4, and ploys by anti-abortion state officials. Oklahoma has now joined those ranks: Gov. Kevin Stitt issued an executive order that would prohibit any individual or organization affiliated with abortion providers to participate in the state’s Medicaid program.

• At The Contrarian, we have also reported on the rise of medical care deserts thanks to abortion bans. A new report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that Idaho lost more than a third of its OB-GYN physicians since the Dobbs decision.

• The Department of Homeland Security issued a guidance on Monday that would deny certain visas to transgender athletes abroad to prevent them from traveling to the United States to participate in college sports. (The exact wording refers to “male athletes” who seek to compete in women’s sports.) According to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), there are around 25,000 international student-athletes out of the more than 500,000 total who compete in the United States each year. The NCAA president testified previously at a Senate committee hearing that he is aware of fewer than 10 who are trans women.

The attack on student athletes is a reminder of another August trademark: the countdown to back-to-school. According to Axios, it is the second-biggest American retail event of the year, after the December holidays, and covers a market worth nearly $40 billion, from textiles to technology. We can now thank Trump’s tariffs for sticker shock on school supplies: The New York Times reported that we can expect price jumps for everything from paper and crayons to shoes and backpacks, despite only moderate inflation; Bloomberg noted tariffs are also hitting dorm room staples like electronics and bedding.

A survey from U.S. News & World Report shows 85% of Americans of all income levels are worried about the rising prices of school essentials, with parents saying they plan to scale back this season explicitly because of tariffs. The impact extends to teachers, who often reach into their own pockets to stock their classrooms – a financial stress that is simultaneously compounded by the uncertainty of the administration’s broader funding cuts and its assault on the Department of Education.

The hypocrisy of all of these moves—by a White House that purports to encourage women to have more babies—surely knows no limits. But as my sacrosanct month of August kicks off, I have to admit it all feels extra cruel. As for me, I’ll be doing all I can to channel Taylor Swift (Trump only wishes he could) and trying to salvage August so that it is “sipped away like a bottle of wine.”

Jennifer Weiss-Wolf is executive director of the Birnbaum Women’s Leadership Center at NYU School of Law. She also leads strategy and partnerships at Ms. Magazine.

---