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The coat hanger is a striking and powerful symbol often used in pro-choice abortion protests. It has been used in protests surrounding the issue of abortions since the 1960s (4). One of its early uses was a protest in Washington D.C. in 1969 where more than 300,000 protesters wore wire coat hangers around their necks. They also held signs with the words “never again”. Protests since then have often recalled this one, and have used the same symbols and words.
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Coat hangers were featured in the protests leading up to the Roe v. Wade decision, and they’ve been used many times since then. There were coat hanger signs present both before and after the outcome of the Dobbs decision in 2022 as well. The reason they have been used so often and so widely is that this symbol recalls the days before Roe v. Wade when some women would terminate pregnancy using wire coat hangers. These women were desperate for various reasons, and often they had no other choice but to do it themselves. Abortion was illegal, so they did what they felt they had to do outside of the law. Such a practice is dangerous because of risk of infection and bleeding (4). The memory of these experiences is what gives the sign its power today, and some people fear that banning abortion will bring us back to that time period.
This symbol has been used in many different kinds of protest; not simply the traditional picket sign. A TikTok user named Katarina Nowack started a trend of sending coat hangers as “gifts” to the Supreme Court in May 2022 to make a statement after a draft of the court’s opinion was leaked. The draft showed it was likely that the court would overturn Roe v. Wade (6). Ultimately, the protest has not been well-remembered, so it serves mainly to reference to the memory of pre-Roe v. Wade America.
However, this image of the coat Hanger is contested even within the pro-choice movement. This contestation speaks to the way history and memory are made. There are competing visions about the usefulness of the coat hanger as a symbol. Some see it as a way of pressing the seriousness of the issue and destroying the illusion that abortion can ever truly be stopped. The reasoning goes that if safe legal abortions are not available some desperate women will opt for what they see as the only option no matter what. Others do not agree. Their argument is that we have left the era of hanger abortions behind, and it is not the method women will opt for if abortions are banned, especially given that abortion pills are now available. They think that because the coat hanger is no longer going to be the reality that using the symbol just serves to stir up the traumatic memories of those who either experienced or have family members who have experience this painful past. The argument is that they should be allowed to forget, and the coat hanger’s critics see the opportunity to replace this provocative symbol with signs that have educational value. For example, this signage might be replaced with signs featuring abortion pills to help educate people about them. The contestation is over the usability and function of those signs, and the outcome of this contestation will likely affect the way we remember abortion and Roe v. Wade.
It might be countered that coat hanger abortions are not a thing of the past. In 2015 a woman allegedly attempted just such an abortion (7). A study also done in 2015 found that between 100,000 and 240,000 Texans have attempted DIY abortions. The most common method used was a drug called Misoprostol which is considered safe and effective for the purpose (2). People who do not know about the drug might opt for riskier DIY methods, hence the activist calls to educate people about them. Nonetheless, a safe and effective drug does not have the shock value of a wire coat hanger, and those who view protests as more effective if they gain more attention have good reason to continue to use the symbol of the coat hanger.
The entire debate surrounding this image underscores a few key ideas about memory. Depending on whether or not activists find the memory useful it will continue to be remembered or it will finally be forgotten. What we are seeing now is the process by which future memories are made. Whatever comes out of this negotiation will be partial, as it will likely overlook or draw more attention to either of the two methods of self abortion. In any case, what we remember in the future will be on the basis of one of these two material objects. Protest signs and stunts are only effective insofar as they can be applied to peoples lives or communicate things about those lives. Whether we like it or not, this symbol is powerful because it invokes trauma, a trauma that many want to forget. We cannot predict what the outcome will be; collective memory is, as a general rule, unpredictable.
-Joseph Ellis
Bibliography:
[1] Baez, Christina, These Photos Show How Abortion Protests Have Evolved Since 1973 https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/christina_baez/photos-roe-v-wade-demonstrations-1973
[2] Khazan, Olga, Texas Women Are Inducing Their Own Abortions https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/11/texas-self-abort/416229/
[3] Logan, Nick, The wire coat hanger symbolizes a dark era of abortion rights. Advocates say it’s time to retire it https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/us-abortion-coat-hanger-1.6508897
[4] Morrison, Patt, The coat hanger, symbol of dangerous, pre-Roe abortions, is back https://www.latimes.com/opinion/la-xpm-2014-mar-25-la-ol-the-coat-hanger-symbol-of-dangerous-preroe-abortions-is-back-20140324-story.html
[5] Rosen, Rebecca J., Consider the Coat Hanger https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/08/consider-the-coat-hanger/261413/
[6] Sung, Morgan, TikTokers are sending hangers to the Supreme Court. Abortion rights activists say that goes too far. https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/viral/people-are-sending-coat-hangers-supreme-court-tiktok-abortion-protest-rcna27195
[7] Taylor, Alan, Photos: Protests Against the Overturning of Roe https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2022/06/photos-protests-against-overturning-roe/661399/
[8] Valenti, Jessica, Abortion by wire coat hanger is not a thing of the past in America https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/dec/15/wire-coat-hanger-abortion-stories-united-states
I find it very interesting how the image of the coat hanger has persisted throughout the pro-choice movement. In my research about abortion rights in North Carolina, one of the articles I read drew attention to this symbol as well. In the NYT article “How the Fall of Roe Turned North Carolina Into an Abortion Destination”, a nurse in a Planned Parenthood stated that she wore a coat hanger pendant around her neck as an homage to her grandmother, a pro-choice activist in the 1970s. I agree with the perspective that the coat hanger is an evocative symbol of DIY abortions in the past, even if it may be a bit anachronistic to the modern pro-choice movement.
I think you did a really good job connecting the symbol of the coat hanger to Zelizer’s premises of cultural memory, as well as discussing how there’s currently a debate over whether the symbol should continue to be part of cultural memory. The coat hanger is often used as the butt of insensitive jokes about abortion, so it was interesting to read more about its origins/the history of its usage. I also really appreciated how this post connected the past to the present *and* the future, which showed that history is never really left in the past and is instead ongoing/always relevant.
I love the specificity of this post and how you analyzed a specific symbol that has such a large impact on the pro-choice community. The coat hanger has become an implication of the danger to women that would arise from the ban on abortions. I like the way this brings up the history of the symbol while also relating its future uses to its present impact. This is similar to how groups around the country are referring to practices created by the original groups that protested the ban on abortions before 1973, like the Redstockings. Returning to these practices is a great example of the usability of memory and its processual components.
The symbol of the coat hanger is powerfully evocative in the debate over abortion. As we have learned throughout the semester, the most memorable events are emotionally poignant, and leave a lasting impact on the people present for them. The coat hanger sends a violent message to people about the reality of illegal abortions. It represents death, brutality, desperation, and danger for women. It shows legislators that their whatever their decisions may be, people are dying either way, but when abortion is illegal, more die. Though the coat hanger might not be the most literal form of “DIY abortion” nowadays, it still represents the despair that women face in light of limited access to safe terminations of pregnancy. In terms of memory, it is the most effective way that this message can be sent due to its visual pathos and universal reputation in relation to this debate.
The many motifs of the clothes hanger make it a very complicated item. For as long as I can remember, this item, in the context of abortion, is often used in a joking context. I’m glad to know that there are some who are using it to bring awareness of the safety issues that many in our past faces while looking for an abortion under laws making it illegal to do so. Being almost a material form of memory, it’s well known that these coat hangers represent shady circumstances surrounding abortions that have led to many deaths. However, the numbers you shared about how many individuals undergo or attempt at home abortions is very shocking data. The meaning behind the coat hanger is not singular and a very multifaceted facet of our cultural memory, as illustrated by your article. I think rather than the coat hanger be a plausible solution to abortions today as stated by some critics of the movement it should be seen in the many ways that you mention in your article: as a stand in for the alternate methods that endanger the health of those seeking abortions. As someone who has never looked that much into this piece of the cultural memory of abortion in America, this was a very informative article about the many uses of this item by pro-choice initiatives.
Symbolism behind the coat hanger can be onerous to discuss, but this post does a great job of analyzing the complexities behind it. The coat hanger represents the despair that banning abortions could bring upon people. It also acts as a reminder of how policy/decision makers’ decisions affect peoples’ lives in ways they may or may not even realize. I think you created a cogent post that really shows the multitude of layers behind this one symbol and its connection to the abortion rights movement. I also appreciate that you included how social media has played into this symbol and the ways it shapes sociocultural perceptions of this topic.
I think this is a cogent tactic in the debate between sides. It’s a symbol that reflects the message “you can only ban safe abortions.” That argument to me is one of the most powerful and influential, because of its truth. If a woman doesn’t want to have a child, she won’t, whether it’s safe or not. Those that you mentioned who believe the hanger (& other methods of DIY abortions) has been left behind for good, I believe are incorrect. Replacing the sign as you indicated, I think wouldn’t have the same effect that the hanger itself does. This is because the hanger represents a dangerous side to a world without legal abortions and it should be symbolized as such. Changing the symbol to something more “educational,” like the pills, rids the representation of desperation and risk.
I think you did a fantastic job of elaborating on the symbolism that the coat hanger holds in the battle over abortion. I found it extremely surprising that between 100,000 and 240,000 thousand Texan women attempted such an abortion tactic in 2015. It still shocks me to an extent that the use of a coat hanger to symbolize a lack of women’s abortive rights still prevails today even with its rather repulsive story. However, I think at the same time it’s an extremely effective tool for pro-choice supporters to use as it brings to light the awful truths that occur when abortions are made unavailable to women. Overall this article really built on the symbolism I already understood about the coat hanger in addition to opening my eyes to new views as to what that symbol means for abortion culture.
Thank you for your post Joseph, this was incredibly well detailed and well said. Regarding the section where you talk about the dissonance within the pro choice movement, do you believe that anyone has the right to tell someone what symbols they are allowed to use? This question really dives into essence of collective memory. Who gets to decide what memories are held, and what gives them that power?
As someone who is very grossed out by many things from the medical field. The thought of what was done with a coat hanger really scares me and makes me cringe. For this reason I was actually very interested in this topic. What you talked about hit hard for me. Specifically, to summarize what I gathered from this; The coat hanger became a symbol of the pro-choice movement because before abortion was legalized in the United States, many women resorted to dangerous and often deadly methods to terminate their pregnancies, including using coat hangers. The coat hanger came to represent the risks and desperation that women faced when seeking abortions, as well as the need for safe and legal access to abortion.
Reading this shocked me because I did not know that woman had to use a clothes hanger to have an abortion. seeing the clothes hanger and thinking and picturing a person would have to go through something like that is not okay. seeing the word “We wont go back” and “Never again” makes you think of all the people who have had to go through such trauma. These words also show how that trauma is still a part of women collective memory so much that the clothes hanger is a symbol that is used by pro choice protesters.
This post provides an insightful analysis of the symbolism of the coat hanger in the pro-choice movement and its role in shaping collective memory. It skillfully explored the historical context and the ongoing debate within the movement, highlighting the different perspectives on the symbol’s relevance and effectiveness. Discussion of alternative symbols, such as abortion pills, contributes to the conversation about the future of protest and how we remember abortion and Roe v. Wade.
Choosing to address the symbolism of the coat hanger was a fantastic way to illuminate the collective memory of Roe v. Wade. Since, for some, the coat hanger has such a traumatic memory connected to it, it emphasizes that the courts decisions could possibly inflict more trauma on women looking for an abortion. Also the words “never again” indicated that women should have a safer option for abortion since the hanger was such a horrible task done to the female body. Some women relied on the coat hanger because they had no other option. Protestors flaunting a hanger shows that the court is giving women no other option in our democratic society.
Your post is a fascinating analysis of the significance of the coat hanger as a symbol in the pro-choice movement and how it has influenced our collective memory. You provided a thorough examination of the historical context and the ongoing discourse within the movement, shedding light on the various viewpoints regarding the effectiveness and relevance of the symbol. Additionally, your exploration of alternative symbols, like abortion pills, adds to the dialogue about the future of protest and how we remember the issue of abortion and the landmark decision of Roe v. Wade.
This is a huge staple in the Memory of Roe v. Wade because of Gen Z’s involvement with the coat hanger symbol. I would have never known that coat hangers could be used in this way if it wasn’t for TikTok. I have seen countless Tik Tok videos joking about the use of hangers for abortions. But, this then leaves two sides to the argument. Are the people on the pro-choice side in the wrong for going through these dangerous means of abortion if it’s illegal or is the law in the wrong for not providing safe means for abortion so that this will not be an issue? This strikes up even more debate and makes these issues all the harder to talk about. However, I struggle to figure out where this symbol stands as it can be a symbol for both sides of the debate as mentioned before. The narrative can be flipped to defend whatever side deems it necessary.