Abortion Bans vs. Women's Lives

In this episode of The Ayn Rand Institute Podcast, Ben Bayer and Agustina Vergara Cid take a wide-ranging look at abortion bans since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, examining their destructive effects on the lives and freedoms of women and medical professionals.

Among the topics covered:

● 0:00 - Introduction;
● 1:12 - Ayn Rand’s distinctive defense of abortion rights;
● 9:04 - How abortion bans have impaired women’s lives;
● 16:05 - How anti-abortion laws impose arbitrary constraints against sound medical judgment;
● 29:26 - The unfortunate rise of pregnancy-related prosecutions;
● 36:44 - How abortion restrictions jeopardize doctors' freedom and careers;
● 49:02 – Why signs of resistance show abortion bans can be reversed;
● 53:57 – Evidence that the anti-abortion movement is motivated by a dark anti-sex agenda.

Recommended in this podcast are the Ayn Rand Lexicon entry on abortion [https://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/ab...], Bayer’s book “Why the Right to Abortion Is Sacrosanct,” [https://www.amazon.com/Why-Right-Abor...] and his article “The Dark Form of Control Even Anti-Abortion ‘Moderates’ Want.” [https://new-ideal.aynrand.org/p/the-d...]

The podcast was recorded on July 28, 2025 and posted on August 7, 2025. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Watch archived podcasts here: https://newideal.aynrand.org/podcasts/

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