♪♪ ♪♪ [ Birds chirping ] -♪ Be close to Jesus whatever you do ♪ ♪ He'll help you out if you ask Him to ♪ ♪ He's always near ♪ ♪ You are His child and the one He holds dear ♪ Yay, [indistinct]!
-[ Sighs ] -Alright, we're good.
And Samson.
Delilah, do you mind getting Samson's bottle?
[ Dog barks ] Alright.
[ Child babbling ] Bye, [indistinct].
♪♪ -The Rio Grande Valley, with a population of over a million people, this is part of the country that is so far south it is south of Mexico.
Along with that remoteness come health troubles.
And in far south Texas, those risks are compounded by it being hard to access medical care there.
-Major abortion laws being passed in the US are dominating the news cycle, and here in Texas, lawmakers are discussing several bills about the hot-button topic.
-Texas Republicans passed a sweeping new law designed to close most of the abortion clinics in Texas.
-13 clinics were forced to close, leaving just eight in all of Texas -- all of them clustered in four metropolitan areas.
-The resurrection of the body and life everlasting.
Amen.
We say "Our Father"... -Whole Women's Health in McAllen closed their doors last March.
Now, a federal judge's ruling is allowing this clinic to reopen.
-The eyes of the world are on McAllen, Texas, right now.
They're on the border town, and what we've got to give them is the Lord Jesus Christ.
-People protesting outside abortion clinics is very common.
It has been for many years.
Security guards are in place when patients are in the building.
-[ Indistinct ] Tell her "don't kill your baby."
Just scream it.
-On that side, the abortion clinic.
Over here, the anti-abortion clinic.
Only a fence physically separates the two institutions.
-Doctor, you took an oath to defend life, not destroy it.
Please, doctor.
-There is no doubt it's a divisive issue.
This clinic is the only option for women in the Rio Grande Valley looking for abortion services.
-Remember that Jesus loves you, and we're out here praying for you.
♪♪ ♪♪ [ Bells tolling ] -Brothers and sisters, the Lord be with you.
-And with your spirit.
-A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew.
And Jesus said to them... -I'm very involved in the pro-life scene.
We're usually the people that are praying the rosary outside the abortion clinic and saving babies from abortion.
And out on the sidewalk, we bring them to McAllen Pregnancy Center where we counsel them.
And some of them, you know, they're -- they're still struggling with addiction.
So that's where I come in.
I work with the mothers that are, you know, chose life.
-♪ Every hour, I need you ♪ My whole life, I've just been trying to find myself.
-♪ My righteousness ♪ ♪ Oh, God, how I need you ♪ -I didn't know where I belonged.
Yeah!
-♪ My one defense ♪ ♪ My righteousness ♪ -My son was saved from abortion.
-♪ Oh, God, how I need you ♪ -Not only was my son saved, but my soul was saved as well.
[ Group praying indistinctly ] -Take the information.
Share it with somebody else that might need it.
Please consider other options, mijita.
You're going to regret walking in there, please.
I'm in the alleyway, sir.
-But you're blocking the entrance.
You're in the alleyway, but not in the entrance.
You can block the alleyway somewhere else.
Please not in the entrance.
I don't want to argue today.
I don't want to let you guys -- I mean, you guys get away with a lot of stuff.
Please, just don't block the entrance.
[ Woman praying in Spanish ] -Free services just two blocks from here, ma'am.
-You're on private property, Yolanda.
-No.
-Yes, you are.
-No.
Where's the sign?
-I am the sign, Yolanda.
I am the sign.
I'm telling you you're in private property.
[ Cellphone ringing ] -Hello?
-[ Speaking in Spanish ] -[ Speaking in Spanish ] I'll be there like in 15, 20.
[ Both chuckle ] Shut up.
I'm driving.
I'm actually driving.
[ Women praying in Spanish ] I call this the "supporting Whole Woman's Health and also to I'm too poor to afford prescription sunglasses" look.
-We pray that all will look upon human life as a great gift from God and not an unwanted burden to be destroyed.
Kindness is, of course, love in action.
So we beg You, dear Lord, to fill us with love.
You have told us that the greatest commandment you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.
-You can change your mind.
It is not too late.
I don't know if you knew this, but this clinic has multiple health violations.
If you want to talk about it or you want to see for yourself, please... -Yes.
Hi, good morning.
This is Denisse.
I'm a clinic escort at Whole Woman's Health.
We have some protesters using a microphone.
They're being overly loud, though.
We can hear them inside the clinic.
-...particularly the unborn.
This we ask... -Okay.
Thank you so much.
I appreciate it.
Bye.
-...nurses will have the courage to refuse to assist in abortions, we pray to the Lord.
-Hi, yes.
Nice to meet you.
I'm Denisse.
I mean, we know they can use it, but it's too loud and it's bothering our patients inside, so they just need to turn it down.
-...we may go quickly to support women with child.
-I went inside.
It wasn't terribly loud or anything.
I could hear it a little bit.
It doesn't seem to me that is causing a disturbance.
-Yeah.
Okay.
Alright.
-Those who escort mothers to have their children killed will be given the wisdom to see that their support of abortion results in the violation and degradation of women and mothers.
We pray to the Lord.
-♪ Your point of view is medieval ♪ ♪♪ ♪ [Bleep] you, [bleep] you very, very much ♪ ♪ 'Cause we hate what you do, and we hate your whole crew ♪ -That all doctors will be kept from the temptation... -Yeah.
-You are the rock on which this nation was founded.
You alone are the true source of our cherished rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Reclaim this land for Your glory and dwell among Your people.
Send Your spirit to touch the heart... -I started volunteering with South Texans for Reproductive Justice four years ago.
-This is not your only option.
-They're intentionally closing on Denisse.
-We love you and we care -- -Just capturing that on camera.
-[ Speaking in Spanish ] -Go away.
-So you're scaring people.
-We'll shut this place down.
I'll get every Christian in the valley to come over here, stand in front and block these doors.
-Leave her alone.
Back away.
-Mijita.
-Get away.
Go away.
Thank you.
-We had all of this... -Denni and Melissa are clinic escorts who founded STRJ.
They're the ones who stepped up and provided clinic defense when the protesters started really amping up their tactics.
Get out of the way.
Rey, call the police.
-Please, no one can take life but Him.
Don't do this.
-Outta the way.
♪♪ -I beg you, don't do this to yourself!
-Okay.
We're out here praying for you.
-What keeps us going is that, well, this is what the patients have to face and they should not face this alone.
So we do try to spread the word, you know, that we're here and we're here to stay.
We're not going anywhere.
We recently found out that the McAllen Pregnancy Center, which is where protesters come from, bought the building three doors down to us.
And it's just going to get worse now that they're going to have that much more access to the clinic.
-My name is Yolanda Chappa, and I stand here in front of the abortion mill.
Five months ago, we were able to move to this beautiful building three doors down.
The location is truly magnificent.
I cannot thank God enough for the opportunity that He gives me to come here and stand at the foot of His cross.
-Look.
Who's that?
Who that?
Yeah!
-How are you?
-Hi.
Hola.
[ Speaking in Spanish ] -Mwah.
-Mwah.
-Time to go home.
-Hi, baby.
-Good afternoon.
McAllen Pregnancy Center.
How may I help you?
The center was started nine years ago, and we've seen close to 8,450 women and saved well over 4,500 children from the horrible, horrendous death of an abortion.
I mean, like Mercedes, obviously.
You wouldn't be seeing this beautiful child if it weren't for this center.
Doctors save lives every day.
But they use their education to help them.
But we truly, truly are educated by the Holy Spirit.
Of course, that's our window to the womb.
That's our sonogram.
Many lives have been saved because of that screen.
It's an amazing, amazing instrument in saving children's lives.
-That was where I was at when I was going to abort Samson.
He was fully formed in there.
-[ Babbling ] -You've done so much for me.
If you hadn't stopped me that day outside the abortion clinic, I wouldn't have given my life to God.
I wouldn't -- wouldn't have had that little Samson.
Now I just want to be like you.
I want to do what you do.
I want to help other moms.
Does that make sense?
-Of course it does.
-[ Chuckles ] [ Indistinct ] You have no idea.
-And, my God, I just come before You to glorify You and to thank You for the gift of Mercedes.
For the gift of her, yes.
For the gift of her courage.
We always make mistakes, but You never do.
In all these things that I'm asking You, my Lord, I ask in Your holy name, Jesus.
Amen.
-Amen.
[ Flute playing ] Hi, ma'am.
Congratulations on your pregnancy.
You look beautiful.
I just wanted to give you a couple of gifts if you have a little time.
I wanted to give you, first of all, a rosary and -- Yes.
-Oh, thank you.
-And I wanted to let you about to -- let you know about this special place called McAllen Pregnancy Center.
We help with counseling, with free pregnancy tests.
We also help with free ultrasounds.
[ Speaking in Spanish ] I'm a prayer warrior, first and foremost.
I pray my rosary outside the clinic.
If the clinic were to shut down, we would save so many babies.
It's what we're fighting for.
♪♪ If you would have looked at me in my old life, you wouldn't have thought anything good.
[ Speaking in Spanish ] [ Speaking in English ] My mother had 11 children, 5 different fathers.
I was always a loner even in my own family.
I always looked for a way out.
So when I turned 18, I left the home and I turned to drugs as a coping mechanism.
I started hanging out with the wrong crew.
I joined a gang because they treated me like family and stuff... and I wanted somebody to be there for me.
♪♪ I'm actually still in the gang.
You can't get out of it.
I just don't run with them anymore.
♪ Have mercy on us and on the whole world ♪ ♪ For the sick ♪ And now that I have Jesus in my life, I see the light.
I'm not in a dark place anymore.
I feel like I have a purpose now.
♪♪ [ Rustling ] -I started working security because I was trained in the army and all that, you know?
It's easy -- easy work, except for where I'm at right now.
I didn't know it was this kind of clinic.
And when I found out, I told my boss he should've gave me a heads up and, you know, to be prepared for this.
Like, you just threw me to the lions like, "Oh, here.
There it is."
I'm Catholic.
I pray every day before I come here.
Mostly, that's how I deal with it.
Praying.
[ Birds chirping ] [ Game playing softly on cellphone ] [ Speaking in Spanish ] -[ Speaking in Spanish ] -[ Speaking in Spanish ] -...what I'm doing here.
I'm here to extol the messages of Christ again.
The Bible says we're supposed to go out into the world.
Jesus Christ gave us a commandment.
-What I see here, sometimes they cross the line.
I see it every day.
People come here to insult these girls and make it worse.
Make it -- Make them go deeper into depression by the things they say.
-Okay.
[ Speaking in Spanish ] -I don't like to speak my mind because my mind is not that good.
I like to speak the word of God.
-Yeah.
-And getting back to our conversation, there is only one judge.
-Yeah.
And so my my conscience is clean with Him.
I have -- My conscience is clean.
-Let's examine that if -- -Examine?
Because I'm not doing anything wrong.
-So you consider yourself a good person.
-I'm a Catholic.
How come they threw me out of the church?
Since I was seven or eight years old, I've been going to the church and now I can't go there because -- but it proves it's two-faced.
-Well, that's the problem, sir.
-That's a problem.
It's a big problem.
Religion.
-The problem with religion.
-Here it is.
I usually hear country music.
It's lot more soothing than other kind of music, and I'm -- I'm just tired of hearing this guy talk about the Bible he don't know nothing about.
[ Country music playing softly through earbuds ] There.
"I love this life."
[ Sighs ] ♪♪ [ Singing along indistinctly ] -The enemy's up ahead.
Just the power to slaughter you.
Well, that's what hell is.
It awaits us if we do not repent and turn to the Lord Jesus Christ.
-Most of the protests I see they're, from a church.
I've been going to the church since I was a little boy.
But ever since I started working here, the church turned me away.
-Adam was given... -[ Sniffles ] -...but he disobeyed God Almighty.
He disobeyed him.
-[ Sighs ] -One sin cost Adam his eternal life.
♪♪ ♪♪ Now that Yolanda's not here, it's been kinda dead.
I hope it stays like this, but you never know.
With these people, you never know.
And there's Yolanda right there coming in.
So, she's back.
It's gonna get worse now.
-Aw.
-Were there a lot of protesters?
-Just and her sidekick and another lady.
You know, when I see her, my stomach gets, like, butterflies when like you get nervous because I know something's coming behind it.
[ Woman praying in Spanish ] You only can take so much sometimes.
[ Women continue praying in Spanish ] [ Leaves rustling ] Yeah.
This right here doesn't even look like me.
That's my brother, Frank.
And this one, went on leave.
The enemy was always around you anyway, so you never were safe.
[ Laughs ] Brings back memories.
♪♪ I don't like to remember.
I don't like to even talk about this.
♪♪ I feel there is some reason for me to be here.
It could be me being at the clinic.
I get involved too much, which I shouldn't, but you can't help it.
If you're there, you can't help feeling for these women.
I feel like I have to just keep them strong and keep them safe.
♪♪ ♪♪ -Oh, my Jesus, forgive us our sins.
Save us from the fires of hell.
[ Praying in Spanish ] -Free sonograms right now.
Our services are free.
You're beautiful.
God loves you.
Pray before you make a decision.
Pray before you make your decision.
There's other options.
-Yeah, like this?
-Right.
You got to do the pose.
-Like, butt?
You got to see butt?
Okay.
I don't have any butt.
I don't know where it went.
[ Laughs ] There.
Now you.
There you go.
That's -- All you need is an eye patch, girl.
[ Laughs ] -Despite everything, there's still a big sense of community and things to do.
I don't know.
It's just -- This is my home.
♪♪ It's not Mexican culture, because, I mean, I wasn't born there.
We don't live in Mexico.
And at the same time, it's not US culture, you know, because we're not white.
It's neither here nor there thing, but our own.
♪♪ ♪♪ -Here, 'cause you never know.
Can you turn around?
-Okay.
I got to go.
-You telling me you stuck with the lipstick you stole for Mama?
[ Laughs ] -I'm gonna go wash it.
-It's purple.
Don't wash it.
You look pretty.
-No.
-You look pretty.
-[ Indistinct ] -Yeah, I know.
That's why Nana's taking care of you.
Uh, bring me my phone for a second.
You know, people will tell me they no longer want to associate with me.
People have unfriended me on Facebook.
I had one family member private messaging people that were talking to me and saying, "Well, do you know she stands for abortion?
Why do you still talk to her?"
-What?
-Slip.
-Sliver?
-No.
Slip.
-[ Chuckles ] You're funny.
-Okay.
I love you too.
Okay.
[ Children laughing ] -Yay!
Contrary to popular belief, people don't just wake up one day and say, "Oh, I'm gonna have an abortion day."
-Lily, can I have it, please?
-There are certain situations that had to have happened for a person to make such a decision.
-Can I have it, please?
-Look.
She's closing her eyes.
-I've they've been there, though with especially with my third and fourth pregnancy.
David was unemployed.
I'd been a stay-at-home mom.
We were so [bleep] poor, getting food from a food pantry.
[ Baby crying ] And I remember thinking, like, "I should have an abortion," but, A, I could not afford it, and, B, I just could not get the courage to do so.
Look at you.
A little further.
I remember even praying for God to give me a miscarriage so that I wouldn't have to make that decision.
[ Indistinct ] Say yes.
[ Laughs ] I don't know how the patients do it, but I know what that desperation feels like.
I just wasn't strong enough to make the choice that they did.
♪♪ -I like blue, red, and I like green.
-What is it?
-And I like Mom.
There.
Thank you.
You like it?
-Yes, I love it.
♪♪ [ Child babbling ] -Sammy.
Are you serious right now?
Come on.
Look.
Here.
Oh, look, look, look.
It's on.
You need to stop pressing buttons.
Look.
Here.
There you go.
Okay.
-No.
-Oh, come on!
I don't really get much rest.
I'm up thinking all the time about random stuff like bills and how I'm going to pay them and you know... -Did you try the spinning tornado move?
-It wouldn't work.
-I started working because my husband is incarcerated.
He picked up a DWI charge and two counts of endangerment of a child.
I don't think I want him to come anywhere near the kids.
-[ Indistinct ] -And I don't want him to come back here.
I took him off the lease and everything.
And I just -- I don't know how to tell my daughter that her dad's not moving back in.
-[ Babbling ] I haven't talked to Yolanda either because it's just...
I don't.
I shut down.
Like I'm just in my little zone of getting working, you know, taking care of the kids and just getting by.
Okay.
Check in.
Mr. Samson.
Alright, we're good to go.
I got to go.
Bye.
-Samson.
-[ Fussing ] -Come on.
Oh, man.
Bye, my love.
[ Indistinct conversations in distance ] [ Insects chirping ] Samson!
-[ Babbling ] -Hi.
-Say hi to your godmother.
Say hi.
-[ Fussing ] -Oh, he's pretty upset because we took away the phone from him.
Go over there.
-Honestly, I -- I -- Yolanda, I haven't talked to him on the phone.
I just pass the phone to Delilah.
Like, I don't -- I'm still upset with him.
Right now, I don't need -- I don't need to get upset.
I'm just working at my jobs and I'm taking care of my kids and I have no childcare for the weekends.
So even if I -- Yeah.
So even if I wanted to go out to the sidewalk, I can't.
Samson doesn't let me do absolutely anything at all.
You see, he doesn't even let me have -- He doesn't even let me have a proper conversation with you, you know?
-[ Fussing ] -[ Sighs ] Yes!
Yeah.
Yes, of course.
Of course.
I mean, I'm trusting in Him.
I love you more!
[ Chuckles ] Thank you.
Bye, Mama.
-Talk to you soon.
Okay.
Bye-bye.
-[ Fussing ] -Girls, please stop torturing the cats.
♪♪ Oh, you first.
-Bye, Mom.
-[ Chuckles ] Bye.
-A Democratic congressman in Texas is looking to unseat reigning Republican Senator Ted Cruz.
-For a state that is at the epicenter of the maternal mortality crisis, I will only vote to confirm a Supreme Court justice who believes in a woman's right to make her own decisions about her own body.
-I believe that every human life is a gift from God.
It should be protected and cherished.
I'm pro-life.
♪♪ -Hello.
-[ Chuckles ] We brought a sewing machine.
-Okay.
[ Indistinct conversation ] -I brought an extra one, so... -Oh, okay.
Cool.
-More hands on deck.
-This needs to be gathered and attached to a hood, so that's what we're working on right now.
-We're making a "Handmaid's Tale" costume.
We have Ted Cruz coming to our Fourth of July parade, so we thought it was a perfect opportunity to show that, yes, you're here for Fourth of July, but there's a lot of things that you're doing that hurt our community.
-And this is something that affects everybody, whether you are pro-choice, whether you're not pro-choice.
-Yeah.
-If they, you know, defund even more than they've already done so, it'll be even harder for people in the Rio Grande Valley and the surrounding areas to access reproductive care and abortions in particular.
But we want to show him that we're here and we're paying attention to what he is doing.
-Our hair is going to go in here, so we'll be completely covered.
Women are not to be seen, nor should they see, you know, in Gilead, in "Handmaid's Tale," which is what we're representing.
-We want to look sharp for Ted Cruz.
[ Laughter ] ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ [ Cheering ] ♪♪ -One, two, three.
[ Cheering ] ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -Shame on you!
-Shame on you!
-Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
Shame!
-To have our state run by people who cannot support reproductive health, it's frustrating.
You're not talking about life, because if you were, you would be pushing for a lot of things to continue life, like food stamps, like Medicaid, like helping people still living in the barrios here.
There's a lot of things you could be doing if you really, really cared about life.
But you're not.
-We're all very angry.
Which is good because it's anger that moves us.
It's anger that gets things going and get things changing.
♪♪ [ Fireworks exploding ] ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ [ Train horn blowing ] [ Birds chirping ] -When you come here at least 5 or 10 minutes, you'll feel better.
♪♪ Because of people, it's been a long time I don't go to this church.
You can hear them whispering in the side over here.
They started saying that, "Look, he kills babies."
So I just rather just go on my own.
They try to make me quit.
They call me a murderer.
These two guys tried to beat me up.
He was threatening my life.
Now, as I get older, I'm scared.
I'm thinking about dying and when it's gonna happen or how.
Protect my girls, escorts and patients that go to the clinic, please, for me, and my family.
Thank you.
♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ [ Bell tolling ] -No, they're they're locked.
Latecomer's door.
[ Gasps ] How embarrassing!
Thank you.
-[ Indistinct ] -The people in the church pass judgment on me all the time.
[ Indistinct singing ] I definitely got a lot of dirty looks, especially from the older ladies.
Peace be with you.
-Peace be with you.
-Peace be with you.
Even when I'm trying to offer the sign of the peace, they don't want to shake my hand.
That always happens.
-...and the Holy Spirit.
The body of Christ.
-♪ I need You, I need You, oh, how I need You ♪ -I know it's the tattoos.
[ Indistinct singing ] People just don't understand me.
-♪ I need You, oh, I need You ♪ ♪♪ -Thank you so much.
-[ Indistinct ] You can bring it towards you anyway.
-I've been wanting to bring one for the clinic.
-Yeah.
-Yeah.
♪♪ ♪♪ [ Woman singing in Spanish ] ♪♪ -This kind of... ...is really huge in our culture.
We mix the good... ...with religion especially.
It does mesh a lot with Catholicism, as much as the Catholic Church likes to deny it.
♪♪ I did grow up very Catholic, and then I had my baby at 19 and I did what I was supposed to do.
I had her, but yet I was now the Whore of Babylon.
♪♪ Everything that the church does and the way that they pretend to be so Christian and help and yet send these people to the clinic to harass and to threaten... why do you go out of your way to try to break someone?
[ Woman continues singing in Spanish ] ♪♪ I'm very thankful for the cleansing you have given us.
We really needed it.
[ Chuckles ] We really, really did.
And I feel very safe in this space and very peaceful.
[ Insects chirping ] [ Car horn honks in distance ] [ Tattoo gun buzzing, indistinct conversation ] -I want it to look like it's more realistic, like it's tearing flesh and oozing blood.
-If you want it to be like if it's oozing blood, that's completely different than the tearing of the flesh.
-Well, maybe not oozing blood, but just look like I just barely scratched it in and it's like irritated and it's... -Okay.
-...ripped.
I love it.
I miss it.
I kind of want to draw.
[ Chuckles ] I want to borrow the pen and draw on myself.
♪♪ I miss tattooing, but I made a vow not to tattoo anymore.
It goes against my faith, so I can't do it.
In all honestly, that's what I would rather be doing.
It's what I know.
♪♪ -Eat, girl.
Eat.
-I can't... [ Laughter ] -[ Speaking indistinctly ] [ Laughter ] -They say that Trump lies 30 times a day.
-He lies 30 times a day.
-I think that's a conservative estimate.
-I don't know who voted for that guy.
You guys voted for Trump?
-No.
-Rey, why would we do that?
[ Laughter ] -The first time I voted in my life, I voted for Hillary, and he still won.
-You're gonna vote for Beto, Rey?
-Huh?
Beto?
No.
My sister did.
-And you?
-Eh... -Rey, I'm gonna go and pick you up and take you.
I'm gonna take you to the polls.
-It's not gonna help me.
-It is gonna help you, Rey.
-What's gonna benefit me?
-I mean, more than Cruz is right now.
-Yeah.
Exactly.
They already took half of it.
They took my medical away from me.
So why vote for ass[bleep] like that for?
-Rey, I'm gonna pick you up on Tuesday.
-Ah.
Okay.
Okay.
-And you're gonna go vote.
-Ask yourself, what would Yolanda do?
And then do the opposite.
[ Laughter ] -And She loves Ted Cruz.
-When in doubt.
-Oh, that guy.
Oh, man.
-Two, three.
-♪ Happy birthday to you ♪ ♪ Happy birthday to you ♪ ♪ Happy birthday, dear Rey ♪ -You're gonna make me cry again.
-♪ Happy birthday to you ♪ [ Cheers and applause ] -Happy birthday!
-Hey.
Thank you.
-Happy birthday, sir.
-Aww.
[ Laughter ] -I made a wish.
-Alright, guys.
I got you something.
[ Click, bell chiming ] -♪ You say you a hitman, but you ain't hit [bleep] ♪ -♪ You say you a lick man, but you ain't hit no licks ♪ ♪ I do what I want, you do what you can ♪ ♪ I stashed away a mill just if [bleep] don't go as planned ♪ Yeah.
-♪ I do what I want, you do what you can ♪ ♪ I stashed away a mill just if [bleep] don't go as planned ♪ -My husband got out of jail.
We were physically fighting.
Like, I'm poppin' like three bars just to pass out 'cause I don't want to be awake because I don't want to be around him.
So...going back to drugs.
♪♪ Orly has my children right now.
He's financially stable and stuff.
I mean, it is not the situation I wanted to be in, but the courts will always see me as the bad guy.
♪♪ [ Rock music playing ] ♪♪ Check the stash pockets.
-Oh, yeah.
[ Both laugh ] -Got it.
Whoo!
See?
You're slippin'.
That was a tip that I told you I got at [bleep] Popeyes, dude.
They don't even tip at Popeyes, but to get a tip -- -There can be.
Who the [bleep] tips at a -- -Well, people that love you.
♪♪ I don't know.
It took a lot for me to, like, leave my kids behind.
I couldn't, but I also knew that I couldn't freaking bring them here.
Cheers.
Cheers.
[ Heavy-metal music playing ] ♪♪ -What was my pickup line to you?
-"Hey.
You look stupid like me.
Here's my number."
[ Both laugh ] [Bleep] dumb.
-♪ You're bringin' me down ♪ ♪ You're bringin' me down ♪ -No, babe.
-No.
-Because you don't know how to do it.
You do it like this.
-Ah.
Fine.
-Right now I slipped, but -- You made me slip.
-Yeah.
I mean, you're doing way better than how I met you.
You know?
-Yeah.
Well, this is me, dude.
Like, I like tattoos.
I, like -- I'm [bleep] sitting here.
Like, I'm still -- I'm God-fearing, but... -Yeah.
-Ugh!
It's understandable.
What?
Gimme a kiss.
-No, no, no.
-[ Laughs ] -[ Smooching ] I'm saying cover up that tattoo because it's very sacrilegious.
[ Hip-hop music playing ] ♪♪ Mercedes!
-What, Gabriel?!
What, Gabriel?
-What is it called, that place?
McAllen Pregnancy Center.
-I don't know why you want to do this there.
-I need to go, and you're gonna send me -- you're gonna send me by myself, and I don't like that.
That's, like, going to piss me the [bleep] off.
-I know.
I want to be there.
-I am here as a patient.
-You are?
-I need to get tested.
-Okay.
That's okay.
-Yes.
Yes.
Of course.
I'll sign anything you ask me to sign.
[ Scribbling ] And I've been thinking of you, and I just didn't know -- Okay.
[ Gasps ] -Mm-hmm.
-That's so frickin' ridiculous.
-Okay.
-Okay.
Urine cup.
[ Door closes ] -Mm-hmm.
-I'm not?
It's saying I'm not?
Aww.
I know.
I wanted the baby.
[ Mercedes sighs ] -I love you so much, Yolanda.
[ Crying ] -I'm coming back.
♪♪ -If it wasn't for that woman, I wouldn't have Samson.
♪♪ Two years ago, I was targeted.
It was pretty much a hit by a rival gang.
♪♪ I was a victim of sexual assault.
♪♪ I fell into a suicidal depression after that happened.
♪♪ I hid in my mom's house for two months... and I find out I'm pregnant.
♪♪ And I ended up at the abortion clinic.
Yolanda, she was the one that stopped me at the sidewalk, and she was calling me beautiful, and I listened because no one ever said that to me before.
♪♪ I thought that maybe by being pregnant I was gonna change again.
I was gonna use this baby to get back into the church and get right and bring Gabo with me.
♪♪ -We're going to vote!
For the first time.
Well, no.
The second time.
-You've only voted twice?
-Yeah.
-For real?
-Yeah.
For Hillary and now this Beto.
-We'll see what happens.
-All -- All those people that, you know -- They run for office and [bleep].
Like, once they're in office, they'll forget about everybody and they forget about what they promised and [bleep].
Damn.
-Rey, these are the voters right here, okay?
We'll be fine.
-This old man.
What the hell you -- You're almost gone, man.
What are you voting for?
-Rey!
They can vote.
As long as they're alive when they cast their vote.
-There's one right there.
-[ Chuckles ] [ Indistinct conversations ] -We voted.
-We voted.
[ Laughter ] -I had a dream.
And now it came true.
I came to vote.
-Alright.
-Alright.
Let's see what happens.
-I'm proud of you, Rey.
-[ Laughs ] -If he don't win, I ain't coming back.
-Rey, I'm gonna drag your ass next time, too.
[ Indistinct conversations ] -Well, it was expected.
-Mm-hmm.
-No right to abortion.
What the [bleep]?
Ban public abortion funding.
-Look at this comment.
"In addition to banning all abortion care if Roe v. Wade is overturned, this amendment is so far-reaching that it would allow the state to prosecute women for using IUDs, emergency contraception, and IVF, or even for missing prenatal care appointments or not being able to leave an abusive partner."
-Damn.
-That's [bleep] up.
-I ain't even heard of that one.
-So they're looking at straight-up death.
What do you do?
What do you do in an emergency situation?
Just gonna die?
-Just gonna focus on, like, the [bleep] that we can control.
-Which is not a lot.
-Which is not much.
♪♪ -What we're seeing in just about every other clinic is the antis, they're amping everything up.
♪♪ Something's gonna go down.
I don't know what it is.
And I've been saying that for months.
But I can't shake the feeling that something really bad's gonna go down.
♪♪ [ Birds chirping ] [ Speaking indistinctly ] Ohh!
-Bye!
-Say bye... Ohh!
-Where's Daddy?
-No.
Daddy, he's gonna be back in a little bit, okay?
And it's gonna be Mommy -- It's time for Mommy and Chubby, okay?
Okay.
Stay right here.
As far as my children go, My ex, Orly, he's really petty.
-Mommy!
-[ Speaking indistinctly ] He doesn't even know about Gabriel because he's gonna go out of his way for me to not see my children.
Come on.
Was school good today, Delilah Mercedes?
-Mm-hmm.
-Yeah?
Alright.
Samson!
Come on.
Come eat.
[ Dog barking ] I'm gonna put this biscuit here so you can have it for breakfast in the morning, okay?
-Oh, you're gonna be here?
-Hm.
You want me to be?
-Well, it depends if it's okay with Dad.
-I don't think Dad -- Dad can't tell me anything.
If I want to be here, I'm gonna be here.
The question is, do you want me to be here?
-It's okay, Mom.
-If you do, it's a done deal.
Just say it, little one.
-I don't want to stop you.
-I'm just happy to be here with you.
-[ Speaking indistinctly ] -Yeah.
-Aah!
-So, that mop that...
I never opened it 'cause I wanted to have it for my new place.
And that was, like, my -- Like, most people would get, like -- I don't know -- money or some shoes.
I got a mop.
-Right.
What makes you think you need more shoes?
-I mean, that's normal.
-Getting you a Mom gift isn't normal enough?
-No, I don't want that, and I don't want you growing up to thinking that domestic things are gifts like that.
-He said that you asked for a mop or you started -- -Delilah Mercedes, do not get in your father and I's arguments.
Okay?
Dad can fight his own battles.
You're just 10.
-Aw.
No, you didn't.
Come over here, Spider-Man.
-[ Speaking indistinctly ] [ Laughter ] Put me down!
-She's been giving me a lot of attitude, Orly.
-No, I haven't!
-And you've been giving me [bleep] attitude the whole night, and I'm done with it.
-Delilah.
-Like, nah.
This is [bleep].
Like, why does she think she can talk to me like that?
She's [bleep] 10.
Shut your mouth.
You're 10.
-St-- Stop.
-No, Orly.
-Delilah, you stop -- I told you.
Talk to her.
-It doesn't matter.
I can talk to her, too.
I'm her -- I'm her mother.
It doesn't matter how you put it.
Mnh!
-You can be a little respectful.
-They're your headphones.
-Apologies for being on the phone.
-Thank you, Delilah, for apologizing.
That means a lot to me.
Okay?
I'm doing everything in my power to make sure that she has a good childhood, even if that means that I'm not in the picture.
I accept that.
I know that I'm not a positive role model.
♪♪ I love you.
-Love you, too.
[ Cellphone ringing ] [ Ringing stops ] -I'm gonna put it in with the other things.
I'll leave this right here.
Hmm.
♪♪ ♪♪ [ Hip-hop music playing ] -I thought you were gonna home to sleep.
No, no, no, no, no, no.
No, don't -- No, no.
Don't -- Don't go there.
Stop.
I'm just -- Okay.
If you're gonna be drinking, then why would you come pick me up, is what I'm saying.
-I don't know.
-Because you said, "Do you want me to pick you up?"
I mean, if you're gonna be drinking, I mean, don't drive.
And it's not gonna be that late, Gabriel, and I'm not gonna take that long.
-Okay.
Cool.
Cool.
-Alright.
-Should I go straight?
-You could turn in.
You could go straight, babe.
-Yeah, I'm gonna go straight.
-And go into downtown.
What are you doing?
-I'm gonna buy cigarettes.
-Okay.
-Alright?
-Okay.
[ Breathes deeply ] [ Door opens ] -Like, I ask a question, and I'm scared that [bleep] nuts and bolts are gonna, like, hit me in the eye and [bleep].
I'm serious.
♪♪ The fights don't stop.
It first started verbal.
It's getting physical.
♪♪ Every day, I'm accused of cheating, of talking to guys, of everything under the sun.
♪♪ Like, I thought that this was my break.
It's not.
He thinks that by impregnating me, the relationship's gonna get better and I won't leave.
In his head, impregnating me and having a baby is a way to seal the deal.
♪♪ ♪♪ It's like -- what are you doing, Mercedes?
You know, I don't even know what I'm doing anymore.
[ Telephone line ringing ] [ Click ] ♪♪ -Hello, friends.
Hi.
I prayed with you one time.
I don't know if you remember me.
I'm Samson's mom.
-Oh!
I do!
-I am Samson's mom.
How are you?
[ Speaking indistinctly ] [ Speaking Spanish ] To the Catholics, we frown upon birth control because it's like playing God, and we don't believe in that.
I turn to God.
I always turn to God.
Amen.
But when you're faced with a with a relationship like mine...
He's making me doubt my beliefs.
♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ Uh, condoms for a whole -- I don't know -- I don't know.
A week, I guess.
Uh, Plan B.
And a whole year worth of birth-control pills.
Now I need to find somewhere to hide that.
I don't know.
Dig a hole in the house.
[ Chuckles ] I don't know.
♪♪ [ Cellphone ringing ] Hmm.
Hey, Gabriel.
-You told me you were at the doctor's office.
What happened?
Are you pregnant?
-No, I'm not pregnant, Gabriel.
-Are you sure?
-No, I'm not pregnant.
-Well, maybe it's too soon.
-Yes -- -Maybe it's too soon for you to have, like, gotten a pregnancy test.
Maybe you should give it, like, a few more weeks.
-Okay.
-Well, I'll call you later.
Okay?
-Alright.
-Bye.
[ Line beeps ] -Adamant that I'm pregnant.
I'm kind of rooting for Gabo to change his mind.
He's not gonna.
And I can't help him there.
But I can help myself.
So that's where I'm gonna start.
Dude, they help me with everything.
And I'm just like, amazed.
I'm like, "Wow."
There's a lot of low-income people that need this.
That's what the defunding is, right?
It's not just -- It's not just late-term abortions.
It's this too, right?
Yeah.
I don't even know how to feel anymore.
Like... [ Sniffling ] Imagine, like, girls that are in my situation having babies with guys like Gabo.
Like, [bleep].
I'm, like, in the middle, dude.
♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -[ Yawns ] My last day.
They don't want me to leave.
Like...I got to do what's best for me.
Know what I mean?
[ Engine idling ] I'll be missing it... because I care about the people that come here, the patients.
Because I know that anybody else, any other person they send over here, they're not gonna do what I do.
I saw what they needed -- somebody to talk to, to listen to what they got to say.
♪♪ Been working here for years, but after the two young men that attacked me, I couldn't take it anymore.
So I'm leaving.
it's the best thing to do.
♪♪ My view changed.
[ Group speaking Spanish ] -Amen.
-Amen.
-I'm not against abortion.
I'm against people that come here and pretend they're Catholics or holy or -- you know?
♪♪ I haven't had a vacation for so long.
I don't know how many years.
I plan to go fishing.
I've been trying to go fishing since before my wife died.
♪♪ -[ Rey speaking indistinctly ] -That's it?
-That's it, Rey.
-Bye.
♪♪ ♪♪ [ Rooster crows ] -Gabo has no idea that I'm leaving him today.
Yeah.
Did you miss Mama?
Ohh.
♪♪ I only have like about an hour to get out of here.
Until Gabo gets out.
Then my time's up.
Honestly, I'm scared to go.
I don't know what he's gonna do.
This is like the fourth one that I've opened, and I've been taking them, but he finds them and he just throws them, like... Why does he want to have a baby with me so bad?
♪♪ ♪♪ We are headed over to my mother's house where I am safe -- my safe house.
He's not welcome there.
♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ [ Cellphone rings ] -[ Ringing stops ] -Yes.
-What have you been doing?
-I told you.
I'm doing stuff.
Okay?
-Stop being [bleep] shady, dude.
-I'm not being shady.
I'm not being shady.
I told you what I did.
I told you what I did.
I told you what I did.
I told you a million times what I did.
It doesn't matter, Gabriel.
It really doesn't.
I don't need to put up with your -- with your -- -Oh, my God.
Shut the [bleep] up.
-Okay.
Whatever.
You're gonna start some [bleep].
Bye, Gabriel.
[ Beep ] I'm so done, man.
It's over, done.
It's over...Stormy.
Ooh.
♪♪ Just being with this guy, I have to question my stance on things because I'm definitely not having a child with him.
I'm scared that he's gonna come and hurt me.
♪♪ Sometimes I feel like I can't turn to the church because of what it is.
Catholic Church is always gonna be there, right, during the day.
Once the light goes away and the darkness comes out, who's gonna be there?
[ Grunts ] Mom.
Mami?
[ Conversing in Spanish ] -Okay.
-Okay, Mami.
♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -From Nissan Stadium, the winner gets a chance to take on Mexico in the 2019 Gold Cup Final at Soldier Field in Chicago on Sunday.
What's been really impressive for the U.S., especially with so many question marks... ♪♪ -When I go fishing, there's nobody around except fishermen.
♪♪ No people, no noise, no nothing.
♪♪ I have a great time.
♪♪ ♪♪ The only thing I am glad of is all the people I met at the clinic.
♪♪ I would've given my life for those women.
♪♪ I'm nobody special.
I just care.
As long as they're happy, I'm happy.
♪♪ I think I made a difference.
♪♪ -...I want to be back with my children.
I don't care.
I want to be single with my children in my own little place and just doing the -- Monday through Friday, school night, they're in bed by 9:00, and I'm cooking.
And I just want to do that.
That's all I want.
♪♪ I just want a normal life with my kids.
[ Fireworks popping and whistling ] ♪♪ I've already been through a lot of [bleep].
I just want to be stable and happy.
♪♪ I'm just finding myself.
That's all.
♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -You look like a frickin' Barbie doll!
-Yeah.
-Aah!
♪♪ -I found a group of friends that I feel like I fit in with.
They're pro-choice and they're anti-Trump.
But I don't feel like I have to be a certain way.
I can just be myself around them, and they just don't care.
♪♪ I may contradict myself a lot.
I grew up one way.
I'm just trying to find the answers.
I don't know what I am.
But I do know that this is my body, and at the end of the day, it's my decision.
♪♪ -I'm doing nursing to pursue midwifery, which has been, like, my dream for the longest time.
-So this helps us... -Haven't really ever done anything big in my life, so if I can manage this, it'd be the biggest accomplishment in my life.
I want to change the culture surrounding birth, especially here.
[ Alarm beeps ] ♪♪ ♪♪ Every day after school, I come by this way to pick up the girls.
♪♪ I mean, this whole battle, everything that we're doing really is life-and-death, so stopping by the cemetery just kind of puts things into perspective because, I mean, what happened to Rosie just should not happen to anybody else.
And the reality is that it has happened to thousands and thousands of women.
♪♪ ♪♪ Rosie was a woman who in 1977 was a single mother seeking an education.
Her dream was to become a teacher.
♪♪ She became pregnant.
Being a single mother, she didn't want to stop studying, so she decided to have an abortion.
♪♪ The Hyde Amendment prohibited federal funding being used for abortion, so Medicaid would no longer cover abortions.
♪♪ Unfortunately, because of the Hyde Amendment, she couldn't afford an abortion and instead sought out a midwife here in McAllen to perform basically an illegal abortion.
And as a result, she got an infection and became septic, and after a few days, she passed away.
♪♪ Rosie is the first known person to pass away as a direct result of the Hyde Amendment.
♪♪ We've been fighting to end the Hyde Amendment and to, you know, kind of increase access to abortion.
Just because abortion is legal, that doesn't mean that there is access to it.
♪♪ She wanted to make life better for her daughter.
She wanted life for herself.
That I can relate to.
So, I mean, her story could be any of our stories.
It is our story.
♪♪ ♪♪ [ Indistinct chanting ] ♪♪ [ Indistinct chanting ] RGB, stand up and fight!
Our bodies, our rights!
RGB, stand up and fight!
Our bodies, our rights!
-You don't care if people die!
-Shame!
Shame!
[ Chanting fades ] -Reproduction is the right to continue your life, whether that is making other life through you or not.
That is what reproductive justice is.
[ Crowd cheering ] -[ Speaking Spanish ] [ Cheers and applause ] ♪♪ -People seek abortions for a multitude of reasons.
And all of them are right reasons.
It should be safe, legal, and accessible.
[ Indistinct conversation ] So we protect that access as much as we can.
[ Indistinct conversation ] ♪♪ That's what we're fighting for.
-[ Telephone rings ] -Thank you for calling Whole Woman's Health.
Yes, we can still help you here this office, hon.
♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -♪ Nothing to be ashamed about ♪ ♪ Nothing to be ashamed about ♪ ♪ Wouldn't you like to hear ♪ ♪ That there is nothing to be ashamed about?
♪ ♪ These are the words that are worth listening to ♪ ♪ Pero tu voz me levanta ♪ ♪ En este mundo dividido ♪ ♪ Si me dejó la esperanza ♪ ♪ Tu sálvame del olvido ♪ ♪ Aquí no hay pena ♪ ♪ Aquí no hay dolor ♪ -Although there have been many films about abortion, not many of them have really focused on a Latinx community and the complexities and nuances around abortion within this community.
We always led with the question, what do you feel like the mainstream media misrepresents or ignores about your community or the work that you do or who you are as a person?
-Maya and I wanted to reach outside of echo chambers and to create a film that wasn't just talking heads and experts, but people who are really impacted by lack of abortion access on the ground and outside of the clinic walls.
We wanted our three protagonists to be able to identify and label themselves within this abortion debate that may not necessarily be technically pro-life or pro-choice.
There is a space for you to feel like your voice and your perspective is valid and heard within this abortion debate that may not necessarily be within the two choices of the dichotomy that we have right now in the news media.
-So, given the fact that there are a lot of abortion restrictions happening in this country right now and that the courts are even currently arguing the potential overturn of Roe v. Wade, it's really important for people to see on the divide and see the people who would be impacted the most if Roe v. Wade was overturned.
While this is a political issue, it is a personal issue, as well, and choice is very necessary for people's survival.
♪♪ ♪♪ -What was it like for you to come here to the U.S.?
-I didn't know besides "good morning" and "what's your name" when I came here.
And when you were baby, I used to read to you the Dr. Seuss books like "One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish," and that's how I learned English, reading to you.
-You know, I never really put in much thought that you were an immigrant.
I just thought that, you know, you're my mom, and I never thought that you would have to leave.
I was at school when my phone buzzed and I just saw the notification that TPS was going to terminate.
And I remember I started crying.
-When you called me, I tried to calm you down.
I am like, "Okay.
This is happening.
It is really happening."
So I put myself together because I knew that I have to be strong for you.
And I didn't promise something that I cannot keep.
So I didn't promise you that everything will be okay.
But I promise, I'm going to make sure that you are okay.
-What are you most afraid of?
-I'm terrified... of missing you growing up.
[Voice breaking] It's terrifying.
I think that I'm more afraid of that than to go back to my country.
-Yeah.
I'm scared that I'm gonna have to do everything by myself.
-You're not going to be alone.
I promise you that.
And I'm very hard to get rid of.
So I'm going to be on the phone all the time.
-What are your hopes for the future?
-That I'm going to die of an old age and be the pain on your neck all the time... [ Laughter ] ...and make sure that you find strength even in a bad moment.
♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪
