“No, You’re Not Going to Shut Me Up”: The Day Rep. Renitta Shannon Wouldn’t Sit Down for Georgia’s Abortion Ban

Rep. Renitta Shannon (Democrat) represents Georgia’s 84th District. She is a reproductive justice advocate who has spoken about her personal abortion experience and sponsored bills on improving maternal health, among others. She is also a cofounder of Her Term, an initiative to elect progressive women in Georgia. Visit her website at www.renittashannon.com.

Dr. Cynthia R. Greenlee is a historian, writer, and editor at Colorlines. In 2020, she won a James Beard Foundation Award for food writing, and she’s coauthor of The Echoing Ida Collection, an anthology of Black writing about reproductive and social justice (forthcoming January 2021). Read more of her work at cynthiagreenlee.com.

This interview has been edited and condensed for publication.