Lena Dunham and Shonda Rhimes among over 400 TV creators calling for abortion protection from execs-Robert Oliver-Entertainment – Metro

They’re calling for better abortion protection for TV creators in the US (Picture: Vince Bucci/Dia Dipasupil/Getty)

Lena Dunham and Shonda Rhimes are among over 400 TV creators and writers who have called for better abortion protection from executives.

The Girls creator, 36, and Shondaland founder, 52, are part of a 411-strong group of writers who have penned an open letter to industry bosses.

In the letter, the group of 411, which also includes TV writer Mindy Kaling, comic Amy Schumer, and singer Sara Bareilles, have noted their ‘grave concerns’.

The letter says that staff, in the wake of the overturning of Roe v. Wade, have been taking the ‘grave risk’ to work in a country that has outlawed abortion.

Roe v. Wade was passed in 1973 and gave women the constitutional right to terminate their pregnancy, but was overturned by the Supreme Court earlier this year.

The letter, shared by Variety magazine, said: ‘We, the undersigned, are 411 show creators, showrunners and head writers who currently work across every network and streaming platform in the industry today.’

Biden signed an executive order earlier this month (Picture: Samuel Corum/AFP/Getty)

‘We have grave concerns about the lack of specific production protocols in place to protect those at work for Netflix in anti-abortion states.’

Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri and South Dakota are among the states to have already banned abortion following the Supreme Court’s decision.

Earlier this month, Joe Biden solidified his pro-choice stance by signing an executive order with an aim to protecting reproductive health services.

Ava DuVernay at the 2022 Oscars (Picture: Momodu Mansaray/Getty Images)

The letter continued: ‘It is unacceptable to ask any person to choose between their human rights and their employment. This situation raises basic matters of equality, health, and safety in the workplace.

‘Many of us would not have the careers and families we have today if we had not been granted the freedom to choose what was best for ourselves.

Amy Schumer has also signed the letter (Picture: Jemal Countess/Getty/Peabody Awards)

‘We are committed, as a group, to protecting our fundamental human rights and those of our colleagues.’

Though the letter revealed to the public was directed to Netflix, many other TV production companies have had copies sent to them as well.

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Others were sent to Disney, Warner Bros., Apple, Paramount, Amazon, AMC, Lionsgate, Discovery and NBC Universal, calling for an ‘abortion safety plan’.

The group of writers, which also contains Russian Doll’s Natasha Lyonne and filmmaker Ava DuVernay, have requested a response within 10 working days.

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