AMHERST — One woman escaped a psychologically abusive relationship. One felt stupid after making a mistake with birth control methods. And another was finishing up an academic degree with a partner uninterested in being a father again.
Although their experiences vary, all three Hampshire County residents have one thing in common: They have all had an abortion.
Even though the medical procedure which ends a pregnancy tends to be a common occurrence — reproductive health research group Guttmacher Institute, an agency that supports rights to an abortion, estimates that 25% of worldwide pregnancies end in abortion every year — the stigma surrounding abortion continues to linger.
But if Amherst photographer Isabella Dellolio has any say in the matter, that’s something that has got to change.
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s June reversal of the 5-decades-old Roe v. Wade decision, which strips away federal constitutional protections that guarantee the right to an abortion, Dellolio put a call out for participants for a documentary project about reproductive justice, and picked up her camera and began capturing a portrait of abortion in the Valley.
“There’s a power in photography and visual images,” Dellolio said. “This is particularly important to me because I have a daughter, she’s 20. And, you know, I don’t want her to grow up in a country where having an abortion is illegal — it should always be her choice. And with the (Supreme Court reversal), it’s just so unbelievable, that I had to do something. And this is my way.”
With her project, Dellolio is photographing people who have had an abortion and allowing them to share a few words about their experience.
Dellolio, a native of Bologna, Italy, has never has an abortion, and said it was important for participants to share their stories in their own words.
“I don’t ask questions. It’s not about me knowing what happened to them. It’s not about me or satisfying my curiosity. It’s about really being able to say those words, ‘I had an abortion’ out loud and not be judged,” she said. “It should be as easy as saying ‘I had a root canal.’ There shouldn’t be a stigma.”
Each person’s portrait and minute-long audio recording are shared publicly on her website, isabelladellolio.com, and on Instagram @idellolio and Facebook.com/isabelladelloliophotography. Participants decide whether they want to share their name or keep it hidden. The session is free and participants receive a free digital portrait.
“My hope is to show that abortion is something that affects people of all ages and backgrounds, and to normalize abortion as something that people in all different walks of life experience need access to,” she said.
“I want to create a feeling of connection among people who have had an abortion and create opportunities for people to feel a connection with each other … It’s important that everybody see the right to an abortion in the context of full and nuanced lives.”
During the session, participants select a location and a preferred position to be photographed. While Dellolio provides her expertise in capturing the image, she said it was important to let participants call the shots with two exceptions: participants must show their hands and they must look at the camera.
“I think it’s important that they look at my camera because I think it’s important, that they look straight at the viewer. And they all do,” she said.
Since putting her initial call out, she has photographed eight women. What she didn’t realize when she started the project is the need that exists for people to talk about their abortions.
“Some people have reached out to me knowing they weren’t interested in having their faces shown or voices heard, but just needed to tell me their story. They wanted to be heard. It was therapeutic,” she said.
Among those sharing their experiences was 40-year-old Jamie Rowen of Amherst.
Rowen, who is an associate professor of legal studies and political science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, had an abortion the same month she had hoped to finish her doctorate degree.
“As a child of divorce, I was told to never be dependent on a man. The man in question did not want to be a father to my child, another child. With or without him at that time I did not believe I could raise a child in safety and dignity,” she said.
“I look at my two biological daughters now, well aware that my abortion is the reason they exist. I look at my two stepdaughters, well aware that the hardest time in my life made way to a time that I can raise four children with the love and care that all children deserve.”
The recording of Rowen is not the first time she’s shared her story, but talking about it with her was healing, she said. After learning about Dellolio’s project on social media, she reached out because she feels the stigma surrounding abortion is part of the problem contributing to the lack of access.
“The more people normalize abortion, which is the most common medical procedure in the country, the better off we’ll be and increasing access,” Rowen said.
Talking about her own experience has been revelatory for Jacqueline Haney of Easthampton. The now-59-year-old was 20 years old when she learned she was pregnant. After returning home from Christmas break with her grandparents, who were particularly devout Southern Baptists, she had an abortion. Afterward, she learned that her boyfriend at the time had joined the Army.
“I had felt stupid because I had made a mistake with the birth control I was using,” she said.
Reflecting back, she often felt embarrassed by the circumstances, but more recently, her perspective changed after having a affirming conversation with a colleague. Since then, she has continued to speak up and share her story with others.
For the project, Dellolio captured Haney holding a photograph of a younger Haney, who was close to the age when she had her abortion.
“It was the first time that I really realized that my own experience could affect other people’s thoughts on the matter,” she said.
For Julie Rivera of Leverett, a college artist, printmaker and art educator, her decision to share her experience with abortion for Dellolio’s project was one motivated by wanting to affect change. Rivera said she had been deeply affected by the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
“I feel like our rights are being stripped away so fast, and it’s affecting people in our country in such significant ways. It feels really scary to me right now,” she said. “So I felt like, well, I’m gonna grab this opportunity, even though it felt uncomfortable. For me, I’ve always felt really private about the decision that I made many years ago … And I haven’t shared it with the world. And you know, so there was some discomfort there. But I also feel like it’s important, and there’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
Rivera discovered she was pregnant after she managed to escape from a psychologically abusive relationship.
“Having that connection to my ex-partner was out of the question. There was no way I could navigate my life with an unwanted pregnancy, so I had an abortion,” she said. “When I think of my two adult daughters not having the freedom to determine the course of their own lives, because of someone else’s concept of morality, it infuriates me. When I think of the adverse effects that the removal of fundamental women’s rights will have on countless women and families, there are no words to describe how that injustice makes me feel.”
Those interested in participating in Dellolio’s project should email, isabella@isabelladellolio.com.
