The American Abortion War

In Texas, abortion is already banned. For some activists, that is still not enough.

Directed by Minna Pye for Yle, this Finnish documentary follows Mark Lee Dickson, one of America's most prominent anti-abortion campaigners, as he pursues a further ambition: preventing women in Texas from travelling to neighbouring states to access terminations. Dickson and his supporters hold that abortion is always murder, a position that extends to rejecting hormonal contraception on the grounds that life begins at fertilisation.

The film tracks the consequences of Texas' legislation across state lines. Abortion clinics, forced to relocate, have established themselves in New Mexico, and it is here that the documentary visits practitioners and patients navigating a landscape shaped by political pressure and legal jeopardy. We also see the crisis pregnancy centres backed by anti-abortion groups, where women are steered away from termination.

Minna Pye brings a clear journalistic eye to the material, granting space to those on both sides without softening the stakes. The result is a close, grounded account of a conflict that continued to shape American political life through the 2024 presidential election, and that shows no sign of resolution.