Who is Jane’s Revenge, the pro-abortion activist group terrorizing the American far right?

The Dobbs v. The Jackson Women’s Health Organization that overturned Roe v Wade ended nationwide federalism regarding abortion rights. Because if the American political system generally works in such a way that the various states of the United States are forced to cooperate on certain legislation at the scale of the country, this has not really been the case since June regarding abortion. , explains a Lose Denis Lacorne, French political scientist specializing in US political history:

“Since Dobbs v. The Jackson Women’s Health Organization is less influenced by public opinion, because Americans are largely in favor of abortion. On the other hand, there are conservative states on the one hand, and very liberal states on the other, such as California, New York State or even Oregon, which are waging a merciless war.

However, some pro-choice activists have decided not to remain silent. Especially since May 8, 2022, the date on which a mysterious pro-abortion group began to be talked about throughout the country, under the name of Jane’s Revenge.

Acts of vandalism observed across the country

Jane’s Revenge today has nearly a hundred vandalism to its credit spanning May through July 2022 in Wisconsin, Michigan or even Minnesota. We note among the main actions the degradation of the largest anti-abortion center in Minnesota on June 14, 2022, or that of a building that served as the headquarters of a self-styled “pro-life” (thus anti-abortion) Republican in Michigan a few days after.

Jane’s Revenge would also keep her own blog. Several short press releases are published, although nothing proves at this stage that the anonymous authors of the blog have any connection with the authors, even anonymous ones, of the vandalism. Whatever, the mode of action chosen is that of violence. Not so surprising, according to US political scientist Denis Lacorne:

“The really cool thing about this Jane’s Revenge phenomenon is thatadopt the same mode of action as pro-life conservative activists, namely go straight to their opponents and resort to violence, while pro-abortion activists usually don’t use it. Where anti-abortion activists approach Planned Parenthoods to vandalize them or attack pregnant women who go there, Pro-abortion activists are now directly attacking places associated with the pro-life movement. “

Also note that Jane’s Revenge’s first official statement would be posted on a radical left-wing blogging platform in early May 2022, shortly after the proposed Supreme Court decision to quash Roe v. Wade leaked to the press. ” We are in your city We are in all cities. Medical imperialism will not have to face a passive enemy “, Jane’s Revenge would have publicly declared, according to an article in the American cultural monthly The Atlantic. The group also reportedly promised a ” night of anger ”In one of his press releases, a vocabulary taken from The march of women in one of her tweetspromising in turn a ” summer of anger “While the resurgence of vocabulary may raise doubts, no link has yet been established between Jane’s Revenge and the Women’s March.

Facts covered en masse by the far-right media

At the moment, therefore, the members of the Jane’s Revenge group have not been identified and it has not been possible to establish any connection with any other activist group. This, however, hasn’t stopped some conservatives from asking the government to step in to end these actions they describe as terrorists. However, at first glance, these seem rather disparate and poorly organized with each other.

The American press has also taken hold of the subject, particularly on the far right side. Stanislav Vysotsky, a professor of criminology specializing in social movements at the University of Fraser Valley, knows something about this:

” We have seen the information cycle on far-right news channels. While the group Jane’s Revenge has claimed only a few isolated actions and they have never appeared as an ultra-organized and therefore dangerous group, these media have taken the information as if it were the case to arouse fear. “

Jane’s Revenge, terrorist group or mere speculation for political ends?

Massive transmission of information in a loop to arouse fear is a technique that is well known to the media and has already proven its worth. No wonder, then, that some news channels still use it, especially with regard to Jane’s Revenge and on the eve of the mid-term elections scheduled for November 2022, a key issue for conservatives, Stanislav Vysotsky continues:

“The upcoming mid-term elections are a way for Conservatives to measure the temperature for the upcoming US elections. It is therefore not surprising to see the Republican camp fueling the fear of the electorate in the meantime demonize pro-abortion people “.

Whether it is a real organized militant group or simple disparate acts of vandalism as happens daily across the country, it is clear that Jane’s Revenge has not called for any action since July 2022. Indicator that the right to abortion is gradually regaining ground in the country ?

According to recent polls, strong mobilization of women’s votes should start to change the situation. In some states, the effects are already being seen: last August, during a referendum, Kansas voters finally decided to protect the right to abortion. What to remain optimistic for the future.

Front page photo credit: Twitter screenshot.