Elizabeth Banks on Infertility, Surrogacy, Marriage, and Women's Rights

Early Life and Career Path

• 💡 Elizabeth Banks grew up in a working-class family in a small town, driven by a desire to live in a city and make her own money.
• 🎓 She attended UPenn on scholarships, working throughout college and summers, which instilled a deep respect for the dignity of work.
• 🚀 Banks didn't initially plan an acting career, emphasizing that it's okay not to have everything figured out early in life, and encourages others to dream bigger.

Enduring Marriage and Partnership

• ❤️ Banks met her husband on the first night of college at age 18, and they have been together for 30 years.
• 🤝 Their relationship evolved through college and beyond, requiring honest conversations about their future and a balance between individuality and shared life goals.
• 🔑 She highlights fidelity ("don't cheat") and recommitting to the relationship as key to its longevity, along with appreciating time apart.
• 💍 Her husband's proposal was a surprise during a trip to Kentucky, after years of building their life together.

Journey to Motherhood

• 💔 Banks openly discusses her experience with unexplained infertility, having never been pregnant despite multiple IVF procedures.
• 🤰 She made the decision to use a surrogate, initially finding the idea "crazy" but ultimately grateful for the path to motherhood.
• 💖 Banks grieved the loss of her fertility, feeling shame and self-blame, but reframed her goal from "being pregnant" to simply "being a mom."
• 🌟 She emphasizes the importance of supporting women through diverse paths to motherhood and overcoming societal judgment.

Advocating for Women's Rights

• 🎬 Banks starred in "Jane," a film about a collective providing illegal abortion care before Roe v. Wade, playing a character who seeks an abortion to save her life.
• 🗣️ She addresses power imbalances in male-dominated industries, drawing on her own experiences as an actress and the importance of feeling safe to speak out.
• ⚖️ Banks asserts that women's political and economic power is historically new, and rights like abortion access are constantly fought for, not given.
• 🚫 She advocates for bodily autonomy, stating that individuals should not dictate others' choices, and views abortion as an an "insurance policy" for consensual sex.

The Power of Feminism

• ✅ Banks believes being a feminist has not hurt her career, as she makes decisions from a place of positivity and a desire for a more equitable world.
• 🌍 She sees feminism as honoring the women who came before and paved the way for current opportunities.
• 🌱 Encourages women to find solidarity and mentors, recognizing that isolation is a tool of the patriarchy.
• ✊ Feminism is about paying it forward and ensuring future generations have even greater opportunities.