Altered Photo Shows Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Dressed as Handmaids
The Claim
A viral photo shows the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders wearing new uniforms which are costumes from the TV show “The Handmaid’s Tale.”
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Emerging story
A viral photo is circulating on Twitter that appears to show the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders wearing blue cloaks and white bonnets. They’re shown dressed as handmaids from “The Handmaid’s Tale,” a TV show about a dystopian society in which fertile women are enslaved, tortured, and forced to bear children.
The image has gone viral in the context of Texas’s new abortion laws. Among notable accounts which shared it was singer and actor Bette Middler. Another user asked, “Will the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders speak up for the women of Texas?”
Misbar’s Analysis
The circulating image has been digitally altered. The original is a screenshot from a 2019 episode of The Handmaid’s Tale. It was created by Twitter user Paul Leigh, who included his username @pleightz in the bottom left corner of the image.
Numerous references to The Handmaid’s Tale have been circulating since the Texas Heartbeat Act took effect on September 1st. Pro-choice advocates have compared the new law to the extreme circumstances in the show.
The act is being called the most restrictive law on abortion since Roe vs. Wade’s decision to legalize abortion in 1973. It outlaws abortions after six weeks, which is when cardiac activity may first occur during pregnancy (though many health experts dispute this). It also allows anyone complicit in aiding or performing an abortion to be sued by private citizens.
Numerous court challenges and lawsuits are underway by pro-choice and human rights groups, including the ACLU, as well as Texas politicians. Pro-choice activists have also been organizing protests across the country.
