Chelsea Handler Opens Up About Her Abortions in 'Playboy' Essay

Last Friday, Playboy published Chelsea Handler’s candid essay on the two abortions she had at age 16. In the piece, the Jewish comedian and actress takes a firm political stance by thanking Roe v. Wade for making her current life possible. Predictably, the essay has gotten a flurry of responses.

Handler starts the essay by painting a very empathetic portrait of herself as a teenager in an unhealthy relationship. She says that she even considered having the baby, but she “wasn’t really playing with a full deck of cards” and that option didn’t seem practical. Her parents took her to Planned Parenthood where she received the care she needed. When she got pregnant by the same boyfriend again later that year, she went back to Planned Parenthood.

She writes: “I’m grateful that I came to my senses and was able to get an abortion legally without risking my health or bankrupting myself or my family. I’m 41 now. I don’t ever look back and think, God, I wish I’d had that baby.”

Handler’s essay comes just in time for the momentous decision SCOTUS made regarding a controversial abortion clinic law in Texas. Yesterday’s ruling ending up being a pro-choice victory that falls exactly in line with Handler’s thinking that “we’re too far ahead of the game” for Roe V. Wade to be “in danger.”

Can we ask?

It's important to us to keep the warm, joyfully Jewish community on Kveller accessible for all. Reader donations help us do just that. Can you spare a few to keep Kveller free? (We'll love you forever.)

Support Us

Here’s a sampling of what readers have tweeted about the essay thus far:

@chelseahandler thank you for being brave enough to share your abortion story. Until the stigma ends, we will continue the battle.

— Misty Corrales (@KelticKitten) June 28, 2016

So grateful my 16-year-old birth mother wasn’t #ChelseaHandler. Wow. #AdoptionIsTheOption https://t.co/EwfhSV08Aq

— Timothy E. Rodrigue (@tmerodrigue) June 28, 2016

I respect @chelseahandler more and more every day. Just read her essay on pro choice and abortion laws.

— Michelle Simpson (@OfficialMichele) June 28, 2016

@chelseahandler LUV YOU! We need more smart, progressive woman like you <3 #abortion #smartdecisions #responsibility https://t.co/whzKqlekpL

— ✨LV✨ (@MexicoSweetHart) June 28, 2016

You can read the essay entitled, “My Choice,” on Playboy’s website.

Yes, I’m a Bisexual Jewish Dad… But No, My Sexuality Didn’t Cause My Divorce

I Flushed My Grandmother’s Mezuzah Down the Toilet

Christine Stoddard

Christine Stoddard is the author of Hispanic and Latino Heritage in Virginia (The History Press) and the founding editor of Quail Bell Magazine. Her art and writing have appeared in Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Bustle, The Brooklyn Quarterly, the New York Transit Museum, and beyond. She currently works as the weekend editor of Vivala. Learn more at WordsmithChristine.com.