MERJ Newsletter 9/28/22
Inspiring Quote, from Dominique Stewart (she/her) of Anti-Racism Daily, 9/16/22:
“The newfound urgency to defend abortion access and reproductive health feels one-sided when current conversations assert that these issues be centered solely as a "women's issue." The problem is it's not just a woman's issue, and to say it is, ignores how intersectionality plays a big part in who gets support, gets heard, and holds agency. People from more marginalized communities are most negatively affected. They are more likely to have care withheld or put into extenuating circumstances (poverty or survival sex work) that lead to an unplanned pregnancy (Lambda Legal). Even if most people who get abortions are cisgender* (ACLU), we need to center people of color, trans men, and gender non-conforming people when we talk about abortion because they're already harmed the most. We must recognize that these bans are not new or isolated but coordinated attacks to criminalize our bodies. Unless we become intersectional in our fight for reproductive justice, bodily autonomy will remain out of reach.”
“ *Medical research and data collection are historically biased and exclusionary, and the majority of abortion studies record trans or nonbinary people as women.”
Amazing Organization to Support — by moving money, we can make an immediate difference!
The Brigid Alliance is “a referral-based service that provides travel, food, lodging, child care and other logistical support for people seeking abortions. We prioritize clients beyond 15 weeks of pregnancy for whom it’s generally more expensive and harder to find a provider near home. We are part of an ecosystem of support organizations that is propping up abortion care access in this country in an increasingly hostile environment.”
Five-Minute Read:
“Support intersectional reproductive justice,” the September 16, 2022 issue of Anti-Racism Daily
Book/Film/Music Recommendation:
The Combahee River Collective Statement, by The Combahee River Collective (1977) (quite short)
or
How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective, by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor (2017)
Inspiring Photo:
Sign held by a man at a Utah protest against the Supreme Court’s leak of a draft Supreme Court opinion overturning Roe v. Wade, from an article in Al-Jazeera from 5/7/2022. The sign reads, “Defend Women’s: •Freedom •Safety •Health •Choice // Defend Abortion Rights”
Help and Resources to Share with Anyone Needing an Abortion: (from ifwhenhow.org)
If you have questions about your legal rights and self-managed abortion, the Repro Legal Helpline is a free, confidential source for legal advice and information. Visit ReproLegalHelpline.org or call 844-868-2812.
If you are under 18 and need information about your rights to an abortion, you can message or call our Repro Legal Helpline at 844-868-2812. You can also read more about your rights on our Judicial Bypass Wiki.
If you have been arrested, contacted by the police, or fear you may be arrested for a self-managed abortion, our Repro Legal Helpline can provide immediate legal advice and support, and our Repro Legal Defense Fund can help with bail and legal fees. You can call our Repro Legal Helpline at 844-868-2812, and for help with bail and other fees, visit ReproLegalDefenseFund.org.
