0:00

Come see the new quiz show.

0:02

Go fact yourself! With special guests,

0:04

Andy Richter and fresh air time

0:06

you mostly it's March twenty third

0:08

at the proper. Get your tickets

0:10

at las.com/events. Hey,

0:18

I'm. Anthony for a few our and you're

0:20

listening. To Imperfect Paradise A show

0:22

about hidden world and messy

0:24

reality. We

0:27

are bringing you are latest

0:29

earliest investigates a single. Episode:

0:31

Deep Dive into investigation out of

0:33

our Las Newsroom. Today

0:36

a messy. Story about abortion

0:38

access here in California. The

0:41

biggest blue stay. On

0:48

a sunny day in November, Twenty Twenty

0:50

three Las Senior Health Reporter Jackie for

0:53

The Aim met up with Deanna Gomez

0:55

at a park in Rancho Cucamonga. How

0:57

long do I have you for like

1:00

our or have o Now What the

1:02

time? Deanna is twenty five. She has

1:04

dark hair about shoulder length, she has

1:06

long acrylic nails i think they were

1:09

French tip than she speaks a lot

1:11

with her hands, so if you listen,

1:13

like really carefully to the audio you

1:15

can hear can click a little bit.

1:19

She's really vicious. You look a lot

1:21

younger than I anticipated. Oh yeah, I

1:23

don't like the same age and so

1:25

you. So you graduated from two thousand

1:27

and I know I'm thirty six. allow

1:30

your age beautifully. With of the heard

1:32

at year Deanna wanted to study to

1:34

become a teacher or an educator of

1:36

some kind. She. Enrolled at

1:38

Cal State San Bernardino and Twenty

1:40

Twenty two. It's one of twenty

1:42

three schools in the California State

1:44

University or Cs You system, the

1:47

largest public university system in the

1:49

country. Most. Cs use

1:51

including Cal State San Bernardino

1:53

are what's called Hispanic serving

1:55

institutions, colleges or universities, or

1:57

twenty five percent of under.

2:00

graduates are Latino and at least half

2:02

of the students are low-income. Cal

2:04

State San Bernardino is the kind of university

2:07

that attracts students who are focused on getting

2:09

their diploma and getting out. I

2:11

think within the Cal State and University

2:13

of California systems, they're not

2:15

selling that campus based on the amenities. You're

2:18

not going to have a climbing wall, there's no lazy

2:21

river, you can go and

2:23

you can get a degree and you're you

2:25

know going to be equipped to get a job and

2:27

that's what these students I think are looking for at

2:30

least Deanna was. Still,

2:32

Cal State San Bernardino does show off

2:34

the amenities they do have. Deanna

2:37

remembers her orientation day. She

2:40

was toured around San Bernardino's campus with

2:42

its brutalist architecture. During like orientation like

2:44

they only showed you like the new

2:46

CGI building. Dude, I'm a

2:49

sociology major, I don't care. They showed you a

2:51

cool place to study, a cool place to hang

2:53

out. Looking back, Deanna feels

2:55

that the tour focused on the flashy stuff

2:57

and left out some of the things that

2:59

would be most useful to students like basic

3:02

health care services. I didn't even know we

3:04

had a clinic, they

3:06

just didn't mention it for some reason and orientation was

3:08

like all day long. As

3:10

Deanna's college experience went on, there

3:12

would be more information that she

3:14

wished that she had been told.

3:17

Information that could have drastically altered

3:19

her college experience, altered

3:21

her life. Did anyone at any

3:23

point say anything about you being able to

3:25

get a medication on campus? No,

3:28

no. When

3:31

Roe v. Wade was overturned in June 2022,

3:35

many universities across the country in states

3:37

like New York and Massachusetts were

3:39

scrambling to figure out how to guarantee

3:41

access to medication abortions on their campuses.

3:44

Higher education institutions are figuring out how

3:46

to try to serve students, how to

3:48

try to serve their communities in a

3:50

post-Roe world. In January of 2023, California

3:52

became the first

3:55

state where it became law. All

3:57

publicly funded universities were mandated to

3:59

to offer medication abortion on their

4:02

campuses. Nearly a million

4:04

students attend California's public universities.

4:07

In a matter of months, medication abortions

4:09

will be available to students attending state-funded

4:12

universities here in California. But

4:15

a year after the law went into

4:17

effect, LAist senior health reporter Jackie Fortier

4:20

and higher education correspondent, Adolfo

4:22

Usman Lopez, found that many

4:24

of these basic universities have done little,

4:26

if anything, to notify

4:28

students about this newly mandated

4:30

abortion access, not even listing

4:33

it on their clinic's website. Students have told

4:35

me, well, if I didn't know about

4:37

it, that to me says that my

4:39

university doesn't want me to know about

4:41

it. The single largest reason

4:43

women drop out from college

4:45

is pregnancy. California's

4:47

law was designed to remove that hurdle

4:49

for students. In

4:52

this LAist Investigates episode, we'll explore

4:54

why thousands of students who

4:57

were supposed to benefit from this law

4:59

are still in the dark about on-campus

5:01

abortion access. When

5:15

Jackie Fortier met Deanna Gomez, Deanna was in

5:17

the middle of her senior year at Cal

5:19

State San Bernardino. Deanna

5:22

had two jobs. She worked in

5:24

retail, and then she also

5:26

worked part-time at a private

5:28

Catholic school. Deanna

5:31

was working to pay her way through school. Combined,

5:33

Deanna's jobs took up a lot of her time

5:35

each week. I remember between like 50 to 60

5:38

hours, probably. Was it a full class

5:41

load? Yeah, six classes. My

5:43

first semester took nine. She

5:46

was pretty inventive with how she could get everything

5:48

done. What I started to do, which saved me

5:50

a lot of time, was like recording

5:52

my essays or whatever into Google Docs instead of

5:55

typing it. So if I was driving to

5:57

work, I just would click it, and it would just

5:59

start. flowing my thoughts. She

6:02

would also do it on her lunch breaks so that she could

6:04

then kind of go back and edit it and

6:06

get her papers done. That's how I

6:08

kind of make it work because I don't really have

6:10

any days off. And

6:12

I don't really eat that often either. I forget sometimes, you

6:15

know, you're just busy, busy, busy. Deanna

6:20

found out she was pregnant in September

6:23

of 2023. And in September

6:25

it was like five weeks, barely. It

6:29

just completely disrupted the entire flow that

6:31

she had in order to keep her

6:33

head above water. She

6:37

thought she had taken correct precautions.

6:40

She was on birth control. She thought worked

6:42

100% of the time. So

6:46

she was in shock. I

6:48

mean, that's a huge decision. I

6:51

love children. I want children. But

6:54

I grew up poor. I grew up in poverty.

6:57

I grew up in a two bedroom apartment with

6:59

six family members. That's

7:01

not something that's fun when you see all your

7:03

friends having their own rooms and things like that.

7:07

I don't want that for my children, like

7:09

ever. I want to be financially stable,

7:11

which is why I put myself through school, which

7:13

is why I put myself through debt. So I

7:15

can, you know, one day provide financially

7:18

and do things that I want to do. When

7:21

you decided that you were going to get an abortion,

7:24

where did you look for information? I

7:26

always say I went to Google because that's what everyone does.

7:28

You know, it's your best friend if you don't know what

7:31

to do or who to talk to. And

7:33

then I also remember hearing like Planned Parenthood in high

7:36

school. They mentioned like, oh, yeah, you

7:38

just like walk in, get, you know, the pill.

7:40

Easy. I was like, you know what, this is

7:42

what we'll do. Deanna did a

7:44

Google search for the closest Planned Parenthood. It

7:47

was in Upland, about 25 miles east

7:49

of San Bernardino. She drove to Upland.

7:51

I went to Upland first and after

7:53

work one day. Half an hour there.

7:55

I was like, oh, like, you guys do abortions? Anyway,

8:00

of an hour and a half baths and so

8:02

I were subsequently in an hour and a half

8:04

their job on Monday where it didn't work and

8:06

I didn't get paid for the holiday either hour.

8:09

And a half that some of her

8:11

professors were not foreigners. They said we

8:13

have to have a doctor's note from

8:16

you. She had to drive back

8:18

out to Pasadena our in house their

8:20

get a doctor's note our in that

8:22

in order to see in school she

8:24

did it. She

8:26

ended up driving more than three hundred

8:29

miles to three different Planned Parenthood locations

8:31

in order to get the care that

8:33

she needed. It felt like I'm.

8:36

Just. Going out by fans like is really happening

8:38

to me again like is it when I'm

8:40

doing right now is a threat too late

8:42

to the other ask your is Sherry Seriously.

8:45

Am. I. Got

8:49

my first of October ninth. Medication.

8:53

Abortion is actually to

8:55

medications the first pillars.

8:57

Miss a persona. That's what she

9:00

took at the doctor's office in

9:02

that it dissolves in your mouth.

9:05

It was a lot more than I

9:07

had anticipated. Like I said that one

9:09

medication that day and then begin you

9:11

killed for nicer and then you had

9:14

a dick that for pills which is

9:16

let solidifies the voice and any that

9:18

those like on them instead of beauty

9:20

and he does all that thirty minutes

9:22

and noted that see any so you're

9:24

going on of on it but you

9:26

can't because I'm not. I'm aware. And

9:29

it really silly things and I felt like

9:31

like and the ammo the like anything I

9:33

can handle my downtime be fine if I'm

9:35

telling them what I'm doing. you know even

9:37

with a doctor them like the pelicans as me

9:40

says it's a religious school and so I went

9:42

to like the next day and a heretic

9:44

those foretells at a second time. She

9:47

said that the next day as

9:49

required on her lunch break at

9:51

the school that she worked up

9:54

one of my superiors falling and.

9:56

Are you okay? Can find by his

9:58

kids like they did. That makes you

10:00

want to throw up and like said hi,

10:02

any of the jaw and like isa all

10:05

I'm the only side but a obviously wanted

10:07

it to be successful so I kept them

10:09

in for the whole thing a minute like

10:11

I was doing he and they read on.

10:16

I can keep up at them as as a code, but

10:18

it's it's. really. Hard. Deanna.

10:21

Started to slip behind. On her

10:23

schoolwork. Eight and in one or

10:25

two classes. But I've literally miss like.

10:27

Polio all of October. And

10:29

that ready for me behind. At

10:32

In. Yeah, we're both out of my full time.

10:35

She continued to feel nauseated. The.

10:37

To medications work together to empty

10:40

the uterus. She had

10:42

cramping and bleeding. But. You

10:44

know she'd never done this before. She had no

10:46

idea. Is that okay? Probably work. That's I

10:49

had like a lot more campaign afterwards and the next

10:51

couple days. Like this

10:53

was rough and I was asked me

10:55

family is you Silesia isn't a like

10:57

move A nice acts as a this

11:00

doesn't really seem right. They.

11:04

Always schedule follow up to make

11:06

sure that it did work. Week

11:09

before him for the to sell As like still to

11:11

me for this time. So.

11:14

I sent her check up. A

11:16

month later I went and they

11:18

did like the ultrasound. That,

11:20

unfortunately you know of, wasn't successful.

11:25

I sort of thanks to those emotions a of he now what

11:27

I do. He was such

11:30

overwhelming news that the and A clicked into

11:32

problem solving. Mode and. Me to think

11:34

about it fast because once you seen as baseless

11:36

or nothing at all the harder and in that

11:38

time in a single eight or nine. And

11:42

they said it didn't work The first thing I knew

11:44

I would like a lot. How much is a second

11:46

time and being. By

11:49

this point the I had already sent six

11:51

hundred dollars trying to get an abortion. I

11:54

remember calling my partner and they're talking

11:56

about the options that the doctor has

11:58

a name. doing the pills

12:01

again, but I would still run into the chance

12:03

of it not working. Or

12:05

I could do the DNC. So

12:11

a DNC is a dilation

12:13

and cuterage. It's an outpatient

12:15

procedure. Basically, they scrape out

12:18

your uterus. It's almost guaranteed

12:20

to work because you're removing the pregnancy

12:22

tissue. We just figured the

12:24

DNC would be the best option, but

12:26

they couldn't do it at Pasadena because they only do it on

12:28

certain days. So I was like, okay, well, that's my other choice.

12:30

And they're like, well, if we want to get it before, like,

12:32

you know, 11 weeks, you have

12:35

to go to ballpark. So she

12:37

had to go to another, this is

12:39

now the third Planned Parenthood. It

12:41

was part of her continuing care, so she didn't have to

12:44

pay any more money for it. But

12:46

you know, it's another day, it's

12:48

another trip. Gas is extremely expensive.

12:50

She drives a big truck. Meanwhile,

12:53

she's having to carve out time to

12:55

do all of this within her very

12:57

regimented schedule because she needs to make

13:00

enough money to pay for school and

13:02

do all of her homework. So I

13:05

went to Baldwin Park and

13:07

I started to get like very

13:10

scared because they were talking to me about like

13:12

how the process would work and

13:14

what your experience when it's like this map. It

13:17

was really uncomfortable, though, just like loud,

13:20

like vacuuming down. And then you're kind

13:22

of just thinking like, you know, what's

13:24

happening? Deanna's

13:30

DNC abortion was successful in

13:33

terminating her pregnancy. She

13:35

thought an acutely stressful chapter of

13:37

her life was finally over. Hundreds

13:42

of dollars, hours of rented

13:44

driving, stressful appointments, procedures, and

13:46

missed school days. All

13:49

of this could have been avoided if

13:51

Deanna had known about California's law to

13:53

provide medication abortion access on public campuses.

13:56

If I Had known that, like, I would have

13:58

taken advantage of it. Eight hundred

14:00

three adverse pain like almost issue

14:03

like a pocket for it. Deanna.

14:07

Is the very kind of student that

14:09

this law was designed to benefit and

14:11

yet she had no idea it existed

14:13

as it's a really so that they're

14:16

not for the students, assesses in math

14:18

and gotten away. it's opposite sides our

14:20

advocate up in general. When

14:23

we come back, How did this happen?

14:25

How did the implementation of this law

14:28

sale? Deanna and thousands of other students.

14:30

Across California. And

14:33

leader, how Dns struggle to get

14:35

an abortion could threaten the goal

14:37

she's working so hard to accomplish.

14:41

For hear more from senior Hope for

14:43

for exactly forty eight and las other

14:45

for with landlocked This will also join

14:47

us about their joint investigation into this.

14:49

Story. Stay. With us.

15:05

Selling. A little or a lot

15:07

shopify help you do your thing however

15:10

you to change. Shopify.

15:12

Is the global commerce platform that

15:14

help you sell at every stage

15:16

of your business. from the launcher

15:18

online shop stage to the first

15:20

real life store stage all the

15:22

way to the did we just

15:24

hit a million orders stage. Shopify

15:26

is there to help you grow.

15:28

Whether you're selling centered soap or

15:30

offering outdoor outfits, Shopify helps you

15:32

sell everywhere from their own one

15:35

ecommerce platform to there in person

15:37

Pos system. Wherever and whenever you're

15:39

selling, Shopify got you covered. Shopify

15:41

helps you turn browsers. into buyers

15:43

with the internet's best converting check

15:45

out fifteen percent better on average

15:47

compared to other leading commerce platforms

15:49

and sell more with less effort

15:52

thanks to shopify magic you're a

15:54

i powered all star shopify powers

15:56

ten percent of all ecommerce in

15:58

the us and Shopify is the

16:01

global force behind Allbirds, Rothy's, Brooklyn,

16:03

and millions of other entrepreneurs of

16:05

every size across 175 countries. Plus,

16:09

Shopify's award-winning help is there to

16:11

support your success every step of

16:13

the way because businesses that grow,

16:15

grow with Shopify. Sign up for a

16:17

$1 per month trial

16:20

period at shopify.com/Paradise, all lowercase.

16:22

Go to shopify.com/Paradise now to

16:24

grow your business, no matter

16:26

what stage you're in. shopify.com

16:30

slash Paradise. Imagine

16:34

if you could charge your electric vehicle

16:36

at the places you already love to

16:38

eat, shop, and play. Whether you're at

16:41

the movies, on your weekly grocery trip,

16:43

or running errands at your local mall,

16:45

Volta EV charging stations are built around

16:47

your day-to-day and located in your community

16:50

and nationwide. All you have to

16:52

do is check in, plug in, and go about your

16:54

day. It's EV charging made convenient.

16:56

Download the Volta app to find your new

16:58

favorite place to charge. Welcome

17:05

back to Imperfect Paradise. I'm Antonia Sudejido.

17:10

Before the break, LA's senior health

17:12

reporter, Jackie Fortier, told us about

17:14

Deanna Gomez. Deanna was

17:16

a student at Cal State San Bernardino.

17:18

She paid hundreds of dollars and missed

17:21

nearly a month of school figuring out

17:23

how to get an abortion. All

17:26

the while, she could have gotten it for

17:28

free on her campus if she had known

17:30

it was legally mandated that it be available

17:33

to her. LA's

17:35

higher education correspondent, Adolfo Guzman

17:37

Lopez, reported this story alongside Jackie

17:39

Fortier, and together they looked into

17:41

how and why this California law,

17:43

providing access to abortion for students

17:45

at public colleges and universities, hasn't

17:48

been made aware to many students and

17:50

faculty, including those who could

17:52

have benefited like Deanna. Hi,

17:55

Adolfo. Hi, Antonia. Thanks for joining me.

18:00

During our reporting, we heard

18:03

from Coney Labor, the then

18:05

state senator who authored this

18:07

law. According

18:10

to the former State senator, California

18:12

Abortion Access Law began with a

18:14

group of students. And two

18:16

Thousand and seventeen. U C.

18:18

Berkeley students came to Us and.

18:20

Said that they had thousands. Of signatures of

18:22

petition to require medicated force and

18:25

be offered at their student health

18:27

center. For. U

18:29

C. Berkeley denied the petition. so

18:31

the student government came to our

18:33

team and asked if we would

18:36

introduce a bill that would require

18:38

all use and Cs used to

18:40

provide medicated abortion on campus. At

18:43

the time before you, a row V.

18:46

Wade was overturned just because you had

18:48

a right. If you didn't have access

18:50

to that right, than you really fc

18:52

being denied that right either. And we

18:54

just wanna make sure that women had

18:57

access to whatever they needed for reproductive

18:59

rights. We. Mentioned

19:01

earlier that pregnancy is the biggest

19:03

reason women drop out of college.

19:05

This is the problem the bill

19:07

was designed to solve. Just

19:09

about a year before the law

19:11

was passed, there were some research

19:13

done that showed that each man's.

19:16

Hundreds of students, On

19:19

you see in Cal State campuses.

19:22

We're getting medication abortions and that

19:24

sometimes lead them to drop out.

19:27

In providing medication abortion,

19:30

they're hoping to remove

19:32

that hurdle. Leave

19:34

Our and her colleagues wrote up the

19:36

bill and started trying to get by

19:38

and from the university's but from the

19:41

ghetto. The proposed bill was devices. As

19:43

you can imagine, this was very controversial.

19:45

Issue is very controversial with the

19:47

colleges are Templars officers had a

19:49

lot of questions. Many of the

19:51

student health centers word even prepared

19:53

to offer medicated abortion because you

19:55

do have to do with in

19:57

the first ten weeks of pregnancy.

20:00

That requires that you have a sonogram done

20:02

to determine where you are in your pregnancy.

20:04

So we had to make sure that each

20:06

health center had the money they needed. The.

20:09

Bill would pass through the California

20:11

Senate and Assembly, but was vetoed

20:13

by then Gov Jerry Brown and

20:15

Twenty eighteen. The lawmakers went

20:18

back to the drawing board to address

20:20

concerns. As. It was being

20:22

discussed as he was being written.

20:24

There was a strong feeling by

20:26

some campuses though. I'm gonna be

20:28

protests on their campuses against medication,

20:30

abortions, and abortion in general. The

20:33

says years and uses were afraid that they're

20:36

going have picketing on campus that people who

20:38

are going to be out in front of

20:40

the clinics that there could be a problem

20:42

with the medication abortions that they could be

20:45

sued for that. That

20:47

led. To. A

20:49

request by some of them

20:51

to allow the money to

20:53

be used for facilities. Added

20:56

security cameras, Panic.

20:58

Buttons, for example, Lever.

21:01

And her colleagues secured over ten

21:03

million in private grant funding to

21:06

dresses concerns and universities on board.

21:08

And twenty nine teen, the bill was

21:10

passed and it went into effect in

21:12

Twenty Twenty Three. Pulled

21:16

over first started. Hearing about students and

21:18

universities of not knowing about the fought

21:20

in April. Twenty Twenty three He research

21:22

with colleagues in your house reporter Jackie

21:24

Forty Eight to look into the story

21:27

Together. And they both started

21:29

reaching out universities directly. I

21:32

told all thirty three campus clinics

21:34

in the state of California. I

21:37

didn't pretend to be students. I just

21:40

said hi. A one itself.

21:42

You offer medication. abortion. That was

21:44

my question. I got a wide

21:46

variety of responses. Some

21:50

of them were very helpful. Really

21:52

wanted. To get me anything I

21:54

needed, answer any questions like connect me

21:56

with counseling. Most

21:58

of them ears. You want

22:01

love? Why? I don't know if

22:03

we offer that, You know what?

22:05

Let me check. Wow. Really very

22:07

off putting. to put it mildly

22:09

at one university I actually got

22:11

yelled at over the phone. Jackie.

22:16

Got mixed results, but she and

22:18

Adolfo knew that university students these

22:20

days might not be calling people

22:22

to. Get their information. We.

22:25

Know that people today and in particular

22:27

younger people get their information online, right?

22:30

if you have a doubt about something.

22:32

If you want to find something else,

22:34

you google. Well

22:37

when we did, google. The.

22:40

Name of a particular campus and

22:42

medication abortion. Nothing. Came up

22:44

from any campuses. It. Seems like

22:46

outreach was the part of the rollout.

22:48

Those least thought thrill when the law

22:50

passed. Campuses were provided two

22:52

hundred thousand dollars to both

22:54

to training and outreach and

22:57

buy equipment. We weren't very

22:59

clear on how that money

23:01

was used for outreach, and

23:03

as a matter of fact,

23:06

we. Didn't. Find

23:08

too many examples of

23:10

campuses using that money

23:12

to create. Awareness campaigns

23:14

for example I'm as we

23:17

started talking to people on

23:19

campus, both faculty members and

23:21

some students, we kept hearing.

23:24

I didn't know about this release. This

23:26

is happy this is. This is being

23:28

provided by my campus. I didn't know.

23:30

I wish I would have known. Did.

23:33

You see any sort of trend

23:35

between what sorts of universities were

23:37

better at offering. This information versus.

23:39

Those that were less

23:42

effective. What we did

23:44

find his different levels

23:47

of engagement with. Health

23:50

Issues Reproductive health issues are different

23:52

universities at a research one university

23:54

which is why you seal is

23:56

called You know very high level

23:58

of research you have. Public

24:00

Health researchers studying this and

24:02

you've got graduate students interested

24:04

in this step. Microcosm of

24:06

our people interested and reproductive

24:08

health is very sophisticated. At

24:10

a place like you see

24:12

a late at smaller universities

24:14

may be like to tell

24:16

state San Bernardino that is

24:18

not as well funded that

24:20

does a have a Public

24:22

Health ah type of program.

24:25

You. Don't have those discussions are you don't have

24:28

people. communicating. Back and forth

24:30

and saying hey, we need to do this How we gonna

24:32

do this? Yeah and what's coming up for

24:34

me right now is thinking about how Ghana

24:36

talked a lot about how for her like

24:39

San Bernardino with a place else of us

24:41

help students like her who have to work

24:43

a part time job and it seems like

24:45

you know email list of things that get

24:48

brought up as problems like. Having more

24:50

access to. Resources hired

24:52

tech, equipment, better buildings, etc. Like

24:54

this is another way. In which

24:56

a gap in quality of education comes up,

24:59

Exactly. I think one

25:01

of the questions that I have is. Is.

25:03

This something that the universities were

25:05

fighting or was this like a

25:07

bureaucratic. Oversight. I've.

25:10

Heard the suspicion students have told

25:12

me. well if I didn't know

25:14

about it, That to me says

25:16

that my university doesn't. Want.

25:18

Me to know about it, Right answer.

25:20

I've heard that. Connie.

25:24

Labor of the then state

25:26

senator who authored this law.

25:28

She said that it was

25:30

very remarkable that this law

25:32

passed to begin with. Former.

25:35

Senator Labour Things at the breakdown

25:37

in awareness around the saw some

25:39

sense each individual college or university.

25:42

She suggested this element of promoting

25:44

it, informing students and everybody on

25:46

campus that this was available. That

25:49

was going to be left up to the universities

25:51

and the leadership there. And

25:54

that room for discretion is where

25:56

the inconsistency come from. Here is

25:58

plenty. Leave again. I think

26:00

that they're still somewhat stigma around abortion. Universities

26:02

were afraid to listed and are afraid that

26:05

people might be judgmental or they might come

26:07

and pick it up their campus up which

26:09

I think is to bed. until we make

26:11

this a normal part of women's reproductive health,

26:14

I think the stigma of Southern to be

26:16

out there. When.

26:18

Jackie at least senior health reporter

26:20

spokes a better term are scheme

26:22

the clinic director at Chelsea Seem

26:24

Bernardino Deanna Gomez School. The director

26:26

didn't seem to view awareness of

26:28

the law as an urgent issue.

26:31

We. The to work harder if there is

26:33

a sudden to needed the service and

26:35

wasn't aware that they couldn't access. It

26:37

through us and not have to pay for it

26:39

but. When students. We

26:42

have been providing a service very long.

26:44

It's been to about a year now.

26:48

Before their meet up in the park,

26:50

Jackie first spoke to Deanna on the

26:52

phone Around a month earlier, Deanna was

26:54

driving her white pickup truck as always,

26:56

getting something in between her work and

26:58

classes. Towards the end of their call,

27:00

Deanna revealed to Jackie she was facing

27:02

another big problem because of all the

27:04

challenges. You face to get an abortion. Deanna

27:07

didn't know if she was gonna be able to graduate

27:10

or nine. She. Missed almost all of

27:12

her classes in the month. Of October.

27:14

She wasn't sure she was going to pass a class. And

27:16

she didn't asset class she wasn't gonna

27:18

graduate. says like easily. Get some by

27:21

design like nonsense and adding that

27:23

to me and and we learn

27:25

what happens when Adolfo and Junkies

27:27

reporting becomes public. Stay.

27:30

With us. A

27:43

lot of people spend a lot of

27:45

money on things like skincare, fast fashion,

27:48

and even surgery. All in the

27:50

name of self improvement. But as

27:52

the price of perfection rises. And

27:54

as a time to call it quits. I'm

27:57

remember a host of this is Uncomfortable

27:59

a podcast. The Marketplace. This he

28:01

Then we dig deep into the

28:03

financial trappings of self care and

28:05

the real motivations behind are spending

28:08

choices. Listen to this is uncomfortable

28:10

wherever you get your podcast. Welcome

28:17

back! I'm Anthony City He though and

28:19

you're listening to Imperfect Paradise. Las

28:23

Higher Education Correspondent alone for was

28:25

my Lopez and Senior Help Reporter

28:27

Jackie Forty Eight release their investigation

28:29

into the lack of. Awareness about

28:32

abortion Access on California Public

28:34

University campuses at the beginning

28:36

of this year see you're

28:38

putting came out in late

28:40

January. We are recording this

28:43

in March. What has happened

28:45

since. Since. Are

28:47

reporting has come out. Universities

28:49

have been putting this information

28:51

on their web sites. So

28:55

several universities that didn't have

28:57

the information U C. Santa

28:59

Cruz tell states and Bernardino

29:01

were doing Gomez attended put

29:03

it on their website. There's

29:05

also been taught from Cal

29:07

State Northridge Women's Center. After

29:09

reading our report after seeing

29:12

what was happening at other

29:14

universities women centers now going

29:16

to create an awareness campaign

29:18

about medication abortions that's going

29:20

to use students themselves to

29:22

get the word out to

29:24

create. Postings on

29:26

Instagram which was one of the ways that

29:28

they say is the most effective to get

29:30

information out. There

29:34

are some stragglers you seem

29:36

or said does not have

29:38

it on it's website and

29:40

there a couple of other

29:42

campuses that still don't have

29:44

it on their website. Aside

29:47

from you see more said. other

29:49

stragglers include Chico, Fresno, and San

29:51

Diego State Tell state Universities East

29:53

Bay and Monterey Bay and the

29:56

California Maritime Academy. For

30:00

nearly a million students and California

30:02

public universities, as we noted earlier,

30:04

it's the biggest network of public

30:07

universities in the country. We

30:09

don't know how many of those students

30:12

are aware or not the medication abortion

30:14

access is available to them on campus,

30:16

or whether even searching online would lead

30:19

them. they're. Made

30:22

me think how over time,

30:24

specially over the certainly twenty

30:26

years I've been looking at

30:28

different aspects of education and

30:30

that doesn't remember how. in

30:32

the early two thousands in

30:35

public schools in L A

30:37

unified it was controversial Four

30:39

high schools to have condo

30:41

in the nurse's office, right?

30:43

And how you know, talking

30:46

about birth control was a

30:48

very controversial thing in public

30:50

settings. So.

30:52

I'm wondering to what extent we

30:54

still find ourselves in that sort

30:57

of situation where you know something

30:59

like abortion rights to and a

31:01

woman's right to choose is still.

31:04

Very controversial topic but will change over

31:07

time. Former.

31:09

Senator Leave are also believe that opinions

31:12

over access to abortion will change. But

31:15

she. Worries and may become more

31:17

controversial. I think that now this.

31:19

Bill. This law is more important than

31:21

ever to make sure that women are

31:24

and students especially have access to medicated

31:26

abortion. But you know, we live in

31:28

troubling times here in the United States.

31:30

We're lucky in California. We did pass

31:32

a bill on that was ultimately put

31:34

on the ballot for voters to vote

31:37

on to in stride a woman's all

31:39

Right to choose of a woman's right

31:41

to ah a have an abortion because

31:43

things can change very quickly in an

31:45

election. When

31:50

I have seen Health Reporter Chassis Forty

31:52

A met Deanna Gomez in Rancho Cucamonga,

31:55

They have been talking for a. Month.

31:58

During. That month. You know

32:00

what you meant Ugly. Trying to balance for two

32:02

jobs and make up her college coursework she had

32:04

missed out on while she was figuring out how

32:06

to get an abortion. I walked

32:08

far as I'm an Mls. Finally

32:10

a say so gradually say here

32:12

that Syria is graduate. Luckily

32:15

enough only reason why that is because I

32:17

communicated with my professors were really others and

32:19

in i did like one from has earned

32:22

a time because I was really scared or

32:24

like any like this negative backlash because you

32:26

don't know what the blazing can you not

32:28

know what side people. Are on. The.

32:34

Viewed known that you could have gone. To the

32:36

Campus Clinic And.does the

32:38

three medication abortion. How

32:40

would that have changed

32:42

years experience. As I said

32:44

no, not like I would have taken

32:46

advantage of it. This is Annette Freeze

32:48

adipose pain like almost like a pocket

32:50

for at. How

32:53

do you feel about Cc San? Bernardino

32:55

Now knowing that. They.

32:58

Chose not to. Spend

33:00

any of the grant money that they have to

33:03

communicate that they. Have the service they don't

33:05

have it on the website and does

33:07

that make you feel differently about see

33:09

I see it as I just think

33:11

a really. Painted. Them And

33:13

like a really horrible picture because. They.

33:16

Focus on linked. To

33:18

been a school for minorities and

33:20

this analysis like how he did

33:22

not identify that you are. For.

33:24

The minorities but you're not gonna give them

33:26

things that are accessible to them, you're aiming

33:29

some the other way and panel pocket for

33:31

it. Why you not going to advocate? were

33:33

into yeah you know. Publicize.

33:35

It like to do everything all think

33:37

you want to publicize, linked to some

33:39

random things like coffee with the dean

33:41

and I'm making friendship bracelets. I. I

33:44

saw any friends I need them in.

33:47

an excellent service to me like a

33:49

family fortune and I had the money

33:51

to do it. though would have liked

33:53

to have done it for free at

33:55

a school that I'm paying. Firefox is

33:57

absolutely. Humming Birds had a job.

34:00

Because they can continue onto the got

34:02

pregnant. Do

34:04

agree to be interviewed for the story

34:07

because she wants other students to know

34:09

about the opportunity she didn't get. This

34:11

law was made because students advocated for

34:13

it and students like Deanna are continuing

34:16

to advocate. What are you going through

34:18

to make a right? not even failing

34:20

now like pass Didn't like me that

34:23

are featured seen as as well. Thanks

34:30

to L, A, a senior health reporter junkie for

34:32

the A and higher. Education, courses on and other

34:34

for with my lopez for sharing the reporting

34:37

with us. You can learn

34:39

more about abortion access. I fell for

34:41

your public universities as early as.com and

34:43

will include a link in the shown

34:45

else. Next

34:52

week on Imperfect Paradise, A very

34:55

special redraw of the forgotten. Revolutionary

34:57

from our twenty twenty two season

34:59

and investigation into the mysterious death

35:02

of She gonna. Student activist

35:04

Oscar Gomez. He was

35:06

fire. Current

35:08

political climate ya he would

35:10

have been some one second

35:12

walk alongside to such august

35:14

there needs to be some

35:16

rest are needs to be

35:18

some. Closure.

35:22

What's happened to Austin as

35:24

next week And implicit paradise.

35:32

And the show's host and funny a City

35:34

He Does This episode was written and produced

35:36

by me and oven Jacoby reporting by Jesse,

35:38

Forty Eight and other for with. Multiple.

35:42

Halford Mail House is the executive producer of

35:44

the show and seen any on the clock.

35:46

Mom is or vice president a few. Additional

35:49

editing for most frightening and Dean

35:52

Liddell feel mixing by our engineer

35:54

he sought Kelly and Oven Jacoby

35:56

in addition engineering say Donald. Either

36:00

production coordinator The Imperfect Paradise team

36:02

includes Emily guarantee now deleted nasi

36:05

and a my Alabaster. Support for

36:07

this podcast is made possible by

36:09

Gordon and Donna Crawford who believe

36:11

that quality journalism make Los Angeles

36:13

a better. Place to live. This

36:32

program is made possible that part by

36:34

the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private

36:37

corporation funded by the American. People.

36:45

Pay Its Prime, the host of How

36:47

To Elect a podcast that is a

36:50

love letter to Los Angeles independent movie

36:52

theaters are having a glut moments. City

36:54

it's and Eagle Rock. Amazing! And we

36:57

have our friends at the American Cinema

36:59

Tat. The Vista just reopened. In

37:01

Er new series, Revival House will take

37:03

you inside the spots and share their

37:05

history. because movie history is L A

37:07

History Lesson: Survival House on how to

37:10

L A: Where were you listen to

37:12

podcasts?