AFTER A DENIED ABORTION

These photographs follow a woman forced into a life-threatening pregnancy after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and Tennessee’s total abortion ban took effect.

When Mayron Michelle Hollis became pregnant at 31, she was three years sober after a childhood marked by addiction. The state had already removed three of her children and she was fighting to keep custody of her fourth, an infant daughter. Soon after, doctors warned that her new pregnancy was extremely dangerous: the embryo had implanted in scar tissue, with a high risk of uterine rupture and death. If she survived, the baby would likely be born months early, facing serious medical complications. Under Tennessee law, Mayron was denied an abortion.

This work shows what daily life looks like inside a system that compels birth while offering little material support. Mayron has struggled to secure food, diapers, and housing while caring for a medically fragile child and facing the constant threat of eviction.

The project was originally commissioned by ProPublica as an investigative report and received a Pulitzer Prize for public service. It will be published as a book with support from the FotoEvidence W Award.