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This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.

Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

FACT BRIEF

Has there been a spate of property damage to anti-abortion organizations following the overturning of Roe v. Wade?

Thursday, June 30, 2022

By Austin Tannenbaum

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YES

Certain pro-abortion individuals and groups have made a coordinated effort to damage the property of churches, crisis pregnancy centers and other anti-abortion organizations following the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion and eventual overturning of Roe v. Wade. On June 14, the militant pro-abortion organization Jane's Revenge, which has claimed responsibility for numerous attacks, declared "open season" on "anti-choice groups."

Estimates of the number of incidents vary. In a June 15 open letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland, 126 members of Congress requested that the Justice Department treat such attacks as acts of domestic terrorism, citing 14 examples from the past two months. In a more expansive list, the National Catholic Register documented 49 such acts of vandalism as of June 30.

Anti-abortion individuals and groups, for their part, have a history of attacking abortion clinics, including "11 murders, 42 bombings, 196 arsons, 491 assaults, and thousands of incidents of criminal activities directed at patients, providers, and volunteers," according to the National Abortion Federation. The federation noted a "significant increase" in "violence and disruption against abortion providers" in 2021.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

Rep. Daniel Webster The Honorable Merrick B. Garland

The Anarchist Library Jane's Revenge: Another Communiqué

Family Research Council Attacks on Churches, Pro-Life Organizations, Property, and People Since the Dobbs Leak on May 2, 2022 (as of 6/30/22)

National Abortion Federation National Abortion Federation Releases 2021 Violence & Disruption Report

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Gigafact

Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

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Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.