In 2008, Kristan Hawkins, at the age of 23, began sleeping in her office. Her organization, Students for Life of America (SFLA), would eventually become one of the largest and most influential anti-abortion groups in the United States. It was more than a decade later, outside the US Supreme Court, when she proudly announced to her supporters that the nationwide right to abortion had been undone.

At the time, SFLA was located in Arlington, Virginia, but Hawkins and her husband could only afford a house 90 minutes away. Initially, she attempted the long commute, leaving home at 5 am and returning at 8 pm. However, the drives became overwhelming and costly in terms of gas expenses.

To address the situation, she purchased a cheap loveseat from Ikea, envisioning that she could work for 30 hours over two days before driving home for the night. She relied on a nearby Gold's Gym for showers and utilized the loveseat for brief naps. When Hawkins discovered that the office was also infested with cockroaches, she bought an eye mask and resorted to sleeping with the lights on to deter them.

"It was terrible, terrible," remarked her husband Jonathan, recalling that period just two years into their marriage.

Nevertheless, Kristan Hawkins persisted. She was determined to fulfill her mission and witness the end of Roe v Wade, effectively overturning the national right to abortion that had been safeguarded for nearly half a century.

Her determination bore fruit in June of the previous year. Pro-choice advocates assert that her activism since then has already resulted in reduced abortion access for approximately 20 million women and contributed to a public health crisis in the country.

However, Hawkins now harbors a new and more ambitious objective: to make abortion inconceivable and unattainable throughout the entire United States.

Since the overturning of Roe v Wade, Hawkins has been operating at full throttle. She has expanded the size and influence of SFLA and employed her newfound power to urge state legislatures to enact increasingly stringent restrictions.

"That's the momentum thing, right? Like, okay, all of America is watching, push the gas pedal down on everything, right now," she explained. "More, more, more, more, more."

Now 38 years old, Hawkins is more audacious and uncompromising than her predecessors, epitomizing a new generation of activists who are inching closer to their ultimate goal: a federal abortion ban from the moment of conception.

"She represents the rightward shift in the movement... and how far the movement can go," stated Mary Ziegler, a law professor at the University of California, Davis, and a leading expert on the US abortion debate. "Kristan is really important to understanding what comes next."

Hawkins' aspirations clash with public opinion, as a majority of Americans support access to legal abortion. Even some Republicans argue that she is pushing too far and too quickly.

However, the reversal of Roe, too, was once considered unlikely. And now, one year after its demise, Hawkins firmly believes she will guide the anti-abortion movement to another improbable victory.

Kristan Hawkins' pro-life mission was sparked when she was 15 and began volunteering at a crisis pregnancy center in West Virginia. Exposed to the reality of abortion, she watched the controversial film "The Silent Scream," which depicted distressing images of a fetus during an abortion at 12 weeks.

Although the film has been criticized as misleading, Hawkins was deeply affected. She couldn't comprehend why society wasn't actively working to prevent what she perceived as the gravest human rights violation of our time: the routine termination of "preborn babies." This transformative experience compelled her to pursue her pro-life advocacy relentlessly.

After her experience at the clinic, Hawkins founded the anti-abortion group Teens for Life and joined local chapters of Right to Life and the Republican party. At the age of 21, she was recruited to lead Students for Life, an organization with campus groups across 180 campuses.

Seventeen years later, Hawkins remains deeply committed, maintaining a packed schedule with numerous meetings and commitments. She humorously notes that Students for Life runs on Diet Mountain Dew. Living in an RV with her husband and four children, they join her on frequent excursions for Students for Life activities.

While Hawkins possesses a sarcastic and humorous demeanor, which may seem unexpected for someone advocating for a complete abortion ban, she acknowledges that her focus on the issue may be overwhelming to her husband. She jokes about lacking traditional friendships, as conversations outside of the abortion topic seem unfamiliar to her.

Hawkins is fully aware that her mission, which originated at the pregnancy center, has become all-encompassing. To ensure effective communication, she has imparted the principle of DBW (Don't Be Weird) to her team, emphasizing the importance of not unsettling or alarming others.

"You need to gauge when it's appropriate to showcase your passion," she explained. "If you suddenly reveal a portfolio of graphic images depicting aborted children during a meal, it's likely to provoke strong negative reactions from people."

Amidst bustling crowds of school trips and tour groups, six members of Students for Life arrived at Capitol Hill on a humid June day, ready for their lobbying efforts. Sporting red attire, some with SFLA branding, their outfits displayed the message, "The Pro-Life Generation VOTES." One member wore tiny gold feet earrings, symbolizing the humanity of a 12-week-old fetus. Similar groups can be found across the nation, with SFLA expanding to over 1,400 campus groups in all 50 states under Hawkins' leadership.

Over 160,000 anti-abortion activists have received SFLA training since 2006. Known for her ability to mobilize supporters, Hawkins has guided this trained army to effectively advocate for anti-abortion legislation. With the reversal of Roe v. Wade, the army has been instrumental in advancing numerous state-level abortion bans, leading to a significant reduction in access to abortion services for a substantial portion of American women.

According to Angela Vasquez-Giroux, vice-president at NARAL Pro-Choice America, organizations like SFLA and other anti-abortion groups advocate for policies that are the most harmful, damaging, and criminalizing. She views Kristan Hawkins as a representation of the extreme nature of the movement and believes that their actions make pregnancy unsafe in the United States.

With Roe v. Wade overturned, the future direction of the anti-abortion movement remains uncertain. While Hawkins and other leaders share the belief that a fetus has rights and strive for a federal abortion ban, there is a lack of consensus on the specifics of such a ban and the strategies to achieve it. The movement is currently characterized by fragmentation and differing viewpoints.

SFLA has adopted an "early abortion model" and actively promoted legislation that aims to ban abortion at the moment of conception or, at the latest, after detecting early cardiac activity, typically around six weeks of pregnancy. This approach marks a departure from the incrementalism favored by some other anti-abortion groups.

One such organization, Susan B Anthony Pro-Life America (SBA), advocates for a 15-week national ban and has stated that they will oppose any presidential candidate who does not support this benchmark. However, Hawkins and SFLA go even further, demanding a federal ban at six weeks as a condition for their support. This creates a tension between Hawkins and SBA's leader, Marjorie Dannenfelser, with Hawkins considering herself more uncompromising and focused on doing what she believes is right.

Hawkins is also outspoken on other abortion-related issues, opposing exceptions for rape and incest, as well as certain forms of birth control, which some in the anti-abortion movement find unhelpful. This shift towards openly expressing extreme views is acknowledged by advocates on both sides of the abortion debate.

Hawkins' unwavering approach raises concerns among some Republicans as well. Politicians are faced with the dilemma of either disappointing Hawkins and her allies or alienating a more moderate electorate. The 2022 midterms saw a clash between the predicted red wave and a surge of support for abortion rights, leading to unexpected victories for Democrats in high-profile races. Pro-choice voters prevailed in all six abortion-related ballot measures, even in conservative states like Kansas and Kentucky.

Nancy Mace, a House Republican advocating for more flexibility on abortion, warns that the Republican party needs a compassionate strategy to regain support from suburban women and swing voters, or else it risks setbacks for the pro-life movement and the party as a whole.

However, Hawkins doesn't see the Republican party as her concern. She has little patience for politicians she deems insufficiently pro-life and is willing to threaten primary challenges against Republicans who do not support early abortion bans. Her aggressive and uncompromising approach has solidified her dominance among anti-abortion activists who are now leaning further to the right in the absence of Roe. This shift towards more extreme bans is attributed, in part, to Hawkins' influence in the movement.

The extent of Hawkins' success in achieving her goal of abolishing abortion remains uncertain. Mary Ziegler, a professor at the University of California, believes that there is no indication of a time in American history when a complete ban on abortion would be widely supported.

However, Hawkins and others are exploring alternative approaches to bypass public opinion and political resistance. One potential avenue is to seek recognition of foetal personhood under the Constitution from the conservative-leaning Supreme Court.

Although this may seem unlikely, Hawkins is no stranger to facing challenging odds. She remains determined and encourages her team to envision victory, emphasizing the importance of a winning mindset. Despite skepticism, Hawkins continues to double down on her messaging, expressing confidence that Roe v Wade will eventually be relegated to the "ash heap of history."