Governor Walz Opens Up About Infertility Struggle at DNC

Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz emotionally shared his personal experience with infertility on Wednesday night, becoming perhaps the first prominent American male politician to do so publicly.

"I remember praying each night for a phone call," said Walz, who is also the governor of Minnesota. "The pit in your stomach when the phone would ring and the absolute agony when the treatments hadn't worked. It took Gwen and I years, but we had access to fertility treatments, and when our daughter was born, we named her Hope."

For years, the slogan "My body, my choice" has been a rallying cry for Democrats advocating for abortion rights, and it was rare for men to openly discuss how abortion and reproductive rights affected them.

This year's Democratic National Convention, however, marked a notable shift, with several men sharing their personal experiences and the emotional toll of reproductive health issues.

"You have this football coach — a serious piece of male iconography in this country — talking about the importance and the emotional toll that infertility can take on you as a man," said Sean Tipton, chief policy and advocacy director at the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, in an interview with the American-Statesman.

The inclusion of men's experiences is seen as both a political strategy and a contribution to a larger shift that recognizes men's roles and stakes in reproductive health, especially since the U.S. Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade in 2022.

On the first night of the convention, Austin resident Josh Zurawski shared his personal story about how his wife nearly died after being denied an abortion in Texas. "I'm here tonight because the fight for reproductive rights isn't just a woman's fight," he said, receiving roaring applause.

Men Speaking Up About Reproductive Health

Governor Walz and Josh Zurawski added their voices to a growing list of men who have come forward with personal experiences related to reproductive health since the reversal of Roe v. Wade.

In 1973, the face of the abortion rights movement was Jane Roe (aka Norma McCorvey), a single mother and the plaintiff in Roe v. Wade. Today, the plaintiffs in major lawsuits over abortion are largely married women who faced complicated pregnancies, with their husbands standing alongside them.

Kate and Justin Cox, a Dallas-area couple, made national news when they faced legal hurdles in terminating a nonviable pregnancy. Similarly, Ryan Hamilton of North Texas has spoken openly about his wife's medical crisis during a miscarriage, highlighting the severe limitations of Texas' abortion laws.

Increased Involvement and Cultural Shift

Dr. Brian Nguyen, a University of Southern California professor who runs the Expanding Male Engagement in Reproductive and Gender Equity Lab, noted a cultural shift where men are increasingly willing to discuss abortion and its impact. "It's not as if these cases weren't around previously; restrictions on abortion have been around for decades," Nguyen said. “What we're seeing here is just this cultural shift to men talking about how abortion and the lack of abortion impacts their situation. ... That is going to lead to change.”

Travis Edwards, an Austin resident, has also become more vocal about reproductive rights. He and his wife, Taylor, learned their child had a fatal diagnosis and left Texas to seek an abortion in 2023. "There's a lot of men out there who consider themselves to be pro-abortion, but when it comes to it, they just don't think about it that much, they don't really think it affects them," Travis Edwards said. "And so, men, if we're going to be having a stronger voice in the conversation, we need to make it a more important topic and realize that it's going to affect people close to you, it could affect your family.”

Taylor Edwards supports her husband's decision to speak out. "Travis telling our story from his perspective shines a light on how other men would perceive themselves in that situation," she said.

However, the shift has not been without resistance. Ryan Hamilton has faced backlash for speaking about his wife's experience. "There's been some backlash for the fact that I'm a man, which is just insane to me," Hamilton said. “The question shouldn't be, ‘Why am I getting the attention?’ The question should be, ‘Where are all the other men?’”

State Sen. Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas, encouraged more men to speak up at a Texas Blue Action event. "There are women in everyone's lives. We love them. ... And there are other rights that will fall. Get the men involved in this, don't give them a pass."

Tipton hopes the increased involvement of men will translate into political change. "As somebody who has been working in this space for over 20 years, I've never seen anything like this — the attention that reproductive medicine in general, and infertility care specifically, is getting in the popular spotlight and in the political world," Tipton said.