This is happening in the UK, not the US. Fascism, misogyny & the desire to control women’s bodies is on the rise everywhere. Stop using period tracker apps. Consider a permanent form of birth control if you’re sure you don’t want kids. Be discrete with your reproductive health. - ThreadSky

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social • 15 days ago

This is happening in the UK, not the US.

Fascism, misogyny & the desire to control women’s bodies is on the rise everywhere.

Stop using period tracker apps. Consider a permanent form of birth control if you’re sure you don’t want kids. Be discrete with your reproductive health.

Reposted from peterkwells

"Police have been issued guidance on how to search women’s homes for abortion drugs and check their phones for menstrual cycle tracking apps after unexpected pregnancy loss"

"...police could bypass legal requirements for a court order to obtain medical records..."

observer.co.uk/news/nationa...

Comments

peterdavieson.bsky.social•15 days ago

To be fair I think the context of this story is the police trying to track the parents of several babies (all siblings) that have been abandoned (literally dumped on the street in bags) on separate occasions spread over many years ..

hpnieminen.bsky.social•15 days ago

How does spying on women's menstrual cycles and use of contraception factor into that?

nannyogg63.bsky.social•15 days ago

Unless it’s a LOT of incidents in a short time frame, it does not justify assuming any woman who miscarried should be treated like this. And even then, innocent until proven guilty.

peterdavieson.bsky.social•15 days ago

And there is a fear is there may soon be another baby suspected missing ..
https://news.sky.com/story/search-for-mother-of-three-abandoned-babies-narrows-as-police-fear-fourth-child-may-be-found-13368084

nannyogg63.bsky.social•15 days ago

Ok. So localize the search. There’s no need to harass every woman who’s recently gone through the trauma of miscarriage. Making a national policy for what is clearly an isolated circumstance is unjustified.

peterdavieson.bsky.social•15 days ago

The context is below ..

If you were the police, what would you be doing?

I suspect the police can't just shrug their shoulders, and do nothing ..

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdxvzd729xeo

queenofland.bsky.social•15 days ago

Would love to know where the safety net is because if it was there, police wouldn’t need to get involved in the first place.

Now go find how many articles there are of cops strip searching young children on the way to school.

peterdavieson.bsky.social•15 days ago

There is no functioning safety net for anything in Broken Brexitannia.

As for articles on a different topic? Probably about as many as there are about county lines drugs gangs recruiting school kids and using them to smuggle drugs and weapons into schools?

queenofland.bsky.social•15 days ago

And they're white kids..buuuuuut they don't get searched. So, when you start looking at who is being targetted in these actions, it starts to make a BIT more sense, and isn't really a different topic after all. Namely, maybe there isn't danger and crime around every corner, but desperate people

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

Does the UK not have safe drop sites? Where you can leave a baby at a firehouse, hospital, school etc no questions asked?

I realize not everyone would be comfortable using them, but curious if they even exist.

This gross invasion of privacy won’t solve the problem it’s claiming to be about though

queenofland.bsky.social•14 days ago

As far as I'm aware that is not a thing here. In the UK it's prosecution, so of course, no one desperate or vulnerable is going to do such a thing.

There's been petitions to try and start safe baby box sites but nothing has come of it so far. I think this country enjoys punishing people.

designsbymistyblue.bsky.social•15 days ago

Sick and tired of being treated worse than cattle. We're not property or objects. We deserve a right to peace and autonomy.

almahawes.bsky.social•15 days ago

Instead of persecuting women maybe the filth could do more to stop women being murdered by men. Yes?

joshua.stealingheather.com•15 days ago

FYI regarding women’s health apps, while it’s still a ways off @alluchart.com is being worked on every day. It’s the single most secure health data app ever created.

Follow the account for updates as we go.

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

I think it’s great that people are building more secure apps. The problem is the police can still take your phone, force you to show them etc. I think for many people it will be easier/safer to track offline and/or track something else (ie a meeting with a friend) instead of periods.

joshua.stealingheather.com•15 days ago

I think it’s sad that you post how bad things are for disabled and immunocompromised individuals, and your first inclination when someone tells you about a project that has been worked on for over four years, and will solve the problem, is to denigrate it.

I’m not engaging any further on this.

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

My apologies Joshua, I had no intention of denigrating it at all. I’m genuinely glad more secure apps are being built.

I just think we need to be aware of the risk and make our own choices as to whether that risk is worth taking. I fully support any attempt at more accessibility & security.

joshua.stealingheather.com•15 days ago

I appreciate you saying that. I too agree that you need to be careful when someone talks about data security. While it's still a few years off from being released, this is a design that has never been attempted before from a security standpoint, and I assure you, it going to be worth the wait.

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

Well keep us posted! More secure & accessible health related apps are sorely needed.

dcapto.bsky.social•15 days ago

That’s what they said about Ashley Madison too.
Nothing is 100% secure, especially in fascist times.

joshua.stealingheather.com•15 days ago

Trust the source 😉

dcapto.bsky.social•15 days ago

Sounds like something a fascist would say. 😂😅

dcapto.bsky.social•15 days ago

“C’mon Jerry, go along, go along!”

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

Omg this made me literally laugh out loud. Very solid choice!

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

This. These are exceedingly dangerous times. Obviously if you feel you absolutely can’t make do without an app, use the most secure one you can find.

Personally I wouldn’t put menstrual or fertility data into anything online anymore. It doesn’t feel worth the risk.

3k0bolds.bsky.social•15 days ago

OR, and hear me out on this: use period tracker apps to track something else entirely. Fuck up their data sets – track your most heinous shits with it.

amyastro.bsky.social•15 days ago

Billionaires are paying hackers to break into systems. Women be wise--use a paper calendar. We all did back in the day.

queenofland.bsky.social•15 days ago

Yep, I was saying a while back, as soon as Trump got in office, the UK would be steamrolling really quickly behind every single policy because the people here don't know how to fight back worth a damn. Aaaaaand, here we are.

Anyone I know who thinks fleeing to the UK is gonna save them? Yeaaaahno.

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

I wish people would realize that fascism is taking hold everywhere.

I’m incredibly grateful Canada didn’t let the mini Trump win, but we still have a growing number of MAGA people & fascist mindsets.

We have to collectively fight back because this shit is terrifying.

scarletp1792.bsky.social•15 days ago

Us too, here in Australia🇦🇺! We managed to beat back our “temu trump” in our recent federal election and a LOT of people exhaled that night I can tell you

But it is a daily battle you cannot get complacent about
We still have plenty of extremists & they are targeting women’s health too sadly 😔

marg-feuille.bsky.social•15 days ago

WTH?!?

coffeeatdusk.bsky.social•15 days ago

I'm honestly afraid of this trend creeping up over here. As well as being afraid for my friends over there. It's just so sickening - I understood that it wasn't impossible for this to return here but even then, managing it emotionally is another matter. :/

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

It’s really hard to manage emotionally. It can happen anywhere, and I think we all need to remember that.

m00psy.bsky.social•15 days ago

what the fuck!!

ffswtf.bsky.social•15 days ago

📌

mollari.bsky.social•15 days ago

I use mine… good luck to them. Never had a uterus, but have kids. This should eat up some of their time.

mollari.bsky.social•15 days ago

Oh, I'm currently "3 months pregnant", but not expected to go to full term. I can't wait to record that.

andromakie.bsky.social•15 days ago

Isn't abortion legal in the UK? It used to be.

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

Up to a certain number of weeks. I’m unsure if this is for deaths after that date has passed? There was a great thread on it… need to find it.

sophiemhistory.bsky.social•15 days ago

Abortion is only legal under medical supervision. If you buy abortion pills online, even if you are four weeks pregnant, that is illegal.

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

Thank you Sophie! I’m fairly versed in the laws in the US and Canada but not the UK. I (incorrectly) assumed they were similar to Canada but it sounds like they’re much stricter.

sophiemhistory.bsky.social•15 days ago

It’s a weird one because it’s very easy and free to get an abortion through the NHS. But if you source one outside that framework, illegal.

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

I really appreciate you sharing this information and your expertise!

adamfare1996.bsky.social•15 days ago

Up to 24 weeks, but it needs 2 doctors to sign off on it and must agree it would be “detrimental to health and wellbeing” to continue.

So it is not actually “legal” at all really.

andromakie.bsky.social•15 days ago

Thanks for that info. When I lived in the UK this never came up for any of my friends. In Canada I don't think it's so onerous.

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

Wow. I had no idea. You can’t access one just because you don’t wish to be pregnant? The health of the mother has to be at risk?

andromakie.bsky.social•15 days ago

Guess it depends on whether you could convince the doctors the keeping the baby would hurt your mental health.

adamfare1996.bsky.social•14 days ago

Yeah mostly they will approve it without issues but it’s not certain, and there are people who have been arrested and charged with offences for having “illegal abortions”. Sadly our law is still from the 1960s

broadwaybabyto.bsky.social•15 days ago

https://bsky.app/profile/sophiemhistory.bsky.social/post/3lpgoqcfaek2t

greendress.bsky.social•15 days ago

The Human Rights Act 1998, however....

gwb645.bsky.social•15 days ago

loving societies who care about women's health and reproductive prospective ask women and science what women need to attain optimal health and to honestly desire children;
hateful societies simply want to control their people beginning with women's reproductive rights and desires;