The left community lost one of its stalwarts on winter solstice of 2025. Judith Arcana was a writer, poet, teacher and feminist activist. She is most well known for being one of the Janes, a pre-Roe, underground collective in Chicago that provided 11,000 illegal, but safe abortions to desperate women. Judith was also a beloved figure around the KBOO studios where she hosted a monthly poetry show from 2016 to 2020 called Poetry and Everything: https://kboo.fm/program/poetry-and-everything. In this memorial to Judith, Patricia Kullberg charts her life and activities, including readings of poetry and prose in her own voice. You can find more of her work at Selected Works.
Judith is featured in four documentaries about reproductive rights and feminist activism of sixties and seventies.
The Moles recommend watching “The Janes,” directed by Emma Pildes and Tia Lessin, which is available here: https://www.thejanesfilm.com/
“She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry” can be streamed for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UB54kDZg5t0
“Jane: An Abortion Service” can be streamed for free at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_u7y09z7l4
“Our Bodies, Our Doctors” can be streamed on Kanopy: https://www.kanopy.com/en/product/our-bodies-our-doctors-0
Image: Judith Arcana mug shot Chicago Police, May 1972