Image description for Building Power webinar graphic notes

Image description for Building Power webinar graphic notes
Image description for Building Power webinar graphic notes
Image description for Building Power webinar graphic notes

Hand-drawn graphic with purple, pink and gold tones and interspersed with small, comic-art style illustrations throughout.  Graphic was drawn to capture content from the “Building Power with Abortion Funds” webinar from the National Network of Abortion Funds on June 30, 2022.

The graphic is drawn in a map style and spans three different square graphics, which follow 6 different key takeaways. Additional context is shared under each takeaway.

We start with the landscape of abortion access: how did we get here?

  • WE make up this landscape. The legal terrain is only 1 piece of it.
  • We know that Roe was never enough
  • On Friday, June 24, 2022, SCOTUS overturned Roe vs. Wade (Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization).
  • This decision is the result of an anti-abortion movement with DEEP POCKETS
  • The decision has ripple effects across the country, impacting our whole health care system
  • Abortion bans and restrictions harm Black people, Indigenous people, people of color, people experiencing financial hardship, young people, trans people & migrants the most
  • You can still get an abortion in the United States!

 

Context setting: this work did not start with and will not end with abortion funds

  • We need multi-pronged strategies:
    • Legality: reproductive rights
    • Service delivery: reproductive health
    • Human right to maintain bodily autonomy, have or not have children & parent the children we have in safe, sustainable communities: reproductive justice. Shout-out to Sister Song!
  • This network is powerful and it’s time to make clear our trust in abortion funds.
  • Solidarity not charity
  • NNAF is building a politicized model for redistributing resources through community & outside the state.
  • No one anywhere is disposable

 

Abortion funds 101

  • Our network has a shared vision of thriving communities & values of intersectionality, autonomy, collective power, and compassion.
  • There are over 90 grassroots organizations directly supporting people.
  • In 2021, abortion funds moved $11.7 million in order to support 172,402 people! Still, abortion funds run out of money every month.
  • Abortion funds are autonomous organizations. This means they are rooted in community connections and local expertise. As organizations, they provide practical support, abortion doulas, clinic defense, & work together & collaborate.
  • For example, abortion funds NEED indie clinics to do this work. 58% of abortions are provided by indie clinics.
  • Abortion funds are funding abortion & building power. They are also fighting for cultural and political change.

 

Moving in solidarity with funds

  • Funds have been anticipating and navigating restrictions for their whole existence
  • Invest in the networks of care that have been operating within their specific communities.
  • We do not need to reinvent these networks.
  • Moments of high visibility can be overwhelming, but we need to move with compassion and follow their lead on how to support.
  • For safety, funds have a vetting and training process for volunteers and funds need long haul commitment.
  • Unless you are seeking abortion care, do NOT call helplines. Try e-mail or social media instead.

 

Taking about abortion: it’s not about perfectionism, it’s about practice

  • Use inclusive language
  • Convey seriousness without stigma
  • Use correct medical & social terms that accurately describe what is happening
  • Digital security is community care
  • So much has changed since 1973, uplift the many safe forms of abortion.
  • Saying abortion should be “rare” increases stigma
  • Specify how you will work to ensure access to abortion care
  • Fund local, independent abortion clinics and abortion funds. The people who have been doing this work are experts.
  • The phrase “Underground Railroad” is a racist co-optation
  • Go beyond promises of Roe

 

Take action we are in this for the long haul

  • Demand #AbortionWithinReach with abortion funds
  • Donate or volunteer with your local fund
  • Invite your friends or family to become an individual member
  • Engage in Heart-to-Heart conversations
  • Attend the July 17 Operation Save Abortion training
  • Save the date: NNAF Organizing Institute (Oct 3 and Nov 10)