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Tracii, head of security at a women’s health clinic in Atlanta, wears a mask and safety vest while holding a walkie-talkie in HBO’s documentary “The Devil Is Busy.”
Tracii, head of security at a women’s health clinic in Atlanta, wears a mask and safety vest while holding a walkie-talkie in HBO’s documentary “The Devil Is Busy.”
Photograph by Courtesy of HBO
Culture

HBO’s New Documentary Goes Inside A Women’s Health Clinic In The South

In 2022, the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling shifted abortion access dramatically across the United States. The overturn of Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey meant abortion rights were no longer protected by the Constitution, and the rights were handed back to state lawmakers. Now, a new documentary short on HBO, called The Devil Is Busy, is showing a glimpse of the state of repro rights in 2025.

Today, about six in 10 women live in states that ban abortion or sharply limit reproductive freedom, according to the Gender Equity Policy Institute. These restrictions keep coming — the Guttmacher Institute found that 180 abortion-related bills were enacted across U.S. states in 2023 and 2024 alone. While patients are forced to travel long distances for care, clinics that remain open and operate are facing their own set of setbacks. The National Abortion Federation reported 777 incidents of obstruction, 621 cases of trespassing, and more than 128,000 protestors outside clinics in just the last two years — along with nearly 300 threats of violence targeting providers and patients. The Devil is Busy presents these hard realities as it showcases the safety measures and challenges a clinic in Atlanta faces in a single day.

What is The Devil Is Busy about?

Directed by Emmy-winning filmmaker Geeta Gandbhir and acclaimed producer Christalyn Hampton, the film will take viewers inside a women’s health care clinic located in Atlanta, Georgia. It follows Tracii, the clinic’s head of security, as she protects patients and staff while fighting back against new legal restrictions and protesters who use graphic and angry behaviors meant to threaten patients and patients. 

The documentary shows the aftermath women healthcare clinics face in a post-Dobbs world. It captures the day-to-day precautions required to keep women’s health clinic patients safe, while also highlighting the clinic’s broader work in reproductive and preventive health care.

When Does The Devil Is Busy Come Out?

The HBO Original documentary short debuts Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025, 9:00 p.m. EST on HBO and will also be available to stream on HBO Max.

Jac Noel

Virginia Tech '26

Jac Noel is a News & Politics Intern and National Writer for Her Campus, where she covers academics, trending news, promos, and everything in between. She’s interviewed powerhouses like Symone Sanders and Lisa Leslie (and is still not over it).

Outside of writing, Jac can usually be found curled up with a book, rewatching Twilight for the millionth time (Team Edward forever), or convincing her friends to go shopping “just to look” (which btw never actually happens). She’s also obsessed with digital art and loves bringing her ideas to life through animation and 3D modeling.