L-8 Video and Reproductive Freedom Resources

Panel Discussion

Panelist Bios

Read the full digital program here.

Writer, Director, Actor, & Producer Gillian Rabin created L-8with the goal of sparking conversations and creating empathetic connections that lead to tangible social change. Recent credits:Recurring as Lydia on The Big Door Prize (Apple TV); Bianca inEmergency (Amazon Prime); Clara/Cory in the world premiere ofDarlin’ Cory (Alliance Theatre); Edward Tulane (SynchronicityTheater); Sophie in Gigi & Nate (Hulu); Jesse in Dung & Drag onTikTok (@dunganddrag). Repped by AWA & Robyn BluestoneManagement. Follow @gillianrabin

The Honorable Jen Jordan was Georgia’s Democratic nominee for Attorney General in 2022 after serving in the state senate since 2017. In 2019, she delivered an eloquent and emotional please opposing Georgia’s six-week abortion ban with a speech which immediately went viral with its heart-tugging sincerity. Her 2022campaign received the most votes for any Democratic candidate seeking statewide constitutional office.

SD Senator Sonya Halpern represents portions of several metroAtlanta campuses and is Chair of the Senate Study Committee on excellence, Innovation & Technology at Historically Black College& Universities (HBCUs). First elected in 2020, she is the mother of three, Vice Chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus and a leading advocate for restoring reproductive freedom and reducingGeorgia’s maternal mortality rate.

HD 50 Rep. Dr. Michelle Au is a practicing anesthesiologist with both an M.D. and master’s degree in Public Health from Columbia University. A mother of three, she has served in the house since2022 after Republicans gerrymandered a suburban Senate district she previously served. Dr. Au is a leading advocate for gun safety reforms and a well-respected voice for restoring reproductive freedom.

HD 52 Rep. Shea Roberts first FLIPped her seat in 2020 and has become a leading voice for the protection of reproductive freedom both as primary sponsor of a bill to restore pre-Roe access to medical care and by sharing her own abortion story from a much-wanted, high-risk pregnancy similar to those making headlines today. She is a Treasurer of the Georgia House Democratic Caucus.

HD 95 Rep. Dar’shun Kendrick was first elected in 2010 at the age of 27 and was the youngest member of the Georgia GeneralAssembly at the time. She is a co-founder of the Georgia FutureCaucus, a bi-partisan group of legislators 40 or younger, and also House Whip for Georgia’s Legislative Black Caucus, the largest in the nation.

The History of Reproductive Freedom in Georgia

For 24 years, electing more pro-choice Democratic women to the Georgia General Assembly has been the core mission of Georgia WIN List. This mission is even more important since the Supreme Court of the United States overturned Roe v Wade and sent abortion decisions back to state courts and legislatures.

Georgia is currently enforcing an approximately six-week abortion ban passed by the narrowest of margins in 2019. In October 2023, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled the law remains in place while other aspects of a court challenge await a ruling from Fulton Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney. Read more here.

Discussion Guide for L-8 Film Showings

Those who care about the protection of reproductive freedom may wish organize an in-home showing of L-8 for friends to serve as a catalyst for beginning a discussion of reproductive freedom issues.

If you wish to host a gathering of friends to watch the film together, use the suggested questions below to get your discussion moving after the screening:

• What is your initial reaction to the film?
• If you were required to write a “what happens next” scene at the end of the film, what would yours be?
• Physicians are bound by the Hippocratic Oath to provide the highest standards of medical care to patients. Federal law also requires emergency rooms to screen and stabilize all patients presenting for care. In contrast, abortion restrictions at the state level conflict with these standards by limiting the type of care which can be provided for pregnant women facing complications. Some states even provide criminal penalties for medical professionals providing abortion care they deem medically necessary in emergencies. Cases arising from these legal disparities from Texas and Idaho are currently making their way through the court system. Your thoughts?
• The film’s creator Gillian Rabin was inspired to write the L-8 script after hearing radio news accounts of the SCOTUS decision to overturn Roe v Wade just as she was crossing the state line from Florida into Georgia. This prompted her to think about legislative proposals which would make it illegal to leave a state where abortion is banned to travel to a state where abortion care is legal.  What do you think about bans on out of state travel for reproductive healthcare? Would you drive a friend to receive such care?
• Georgia Democratic women have introduced a bill which would restore reproductive freedom to pre-Roe levels in Georgia. Would you support such efforts and what are you willing to do to demonstrate your support?
• Where does support for reproductive freedom fall on your “issues priority list? Is support for reproductive freedom a “make or break” issue for your political decisions?
• With reproductive freedom an issue in 2024 campaigns, will you be more involved in politics this election cycle? What does increased involvement look like for you?

L-8 Premiere Photo Gallery from January 7

All photos by Erik Voss