John Prine, Margo Price Protest Alabama Abortion Ban With ‘Unwed Fathers’ [LISTEN]
John Prine and Margo Price are putting their opposition to Alabama's controversial abortion ban into action. The two have cut a new version of Prine's "Unwed Fathers" to raise funds for the Alabama chapter of the ACLU; readers can hear it below.
"Alabama is stripping away women’s rights, and we won’t stand for it," wrote Price in a May 17 tweet about the new recording and its greater purpose. The duo recorded the song on May 16, one day after Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed into law HB 314, which classifies an abortion at any stage of pregnancy, including in cases of rape or incest, as a felony crime. The doctor who performs the abortion could receive a sentence of 10-99 years in prison, though the woman who seeks the abortion will not be punished. Exceptions will only be made if the woman's health is at risk.
"Unwed Fathers" first appeared on Prine's 1984 album Aimless Love, and takes on deadbeat dads. Prine and Price's version, which also features the Milk Carton Kids' Kenneth Pattengale and Jeremy Ivey, Price's husband and band member, is being released as The Living Room Sessions, along with a new rendition of Prine's "People Puttin' People Down" -- also originally from Aimless Love -- featuring Jason Isbell.
The Living Room Sessions is available for purchase digitally or pre-order on vinyl via Bandcamp. The vinyl versions, which are limited to 2,000 copies, are expected to ship in late August. At least $8 of the vinyl purchase price and at least $4 from every digital version will be donated to the ACLU.
Although several states have enacted similar legislation, Alabama's new law has received the most criticism, in part due to the fact that it was strategically crafted as a step towards the overturn of Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision ruling that women's rights to safe and legal abortion are constitutional. According to the Associated Press, the Alabama abortion ban is the most restrictive in the country.
Listen to John Prine + Margo Price's "Unwed Fathers"
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