What We're Reading: The South’s Not Done Fighting for Abortion Rights. Donors, Don’t Abandon Us.
"In the year since the Supreme Court ruled in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization to overturn abortion rights, millions of people have lost access to the procedure. Most of them live in the South," said Kwajelyn Jackson and Zaena Zamora for The Chronicle of Philanthropy. "We’re the leaders of an abortion clinic in Georgia (Kwajelyn) and abortion fund in Texas (Zaena) — two states with some of the country’s strictest abortion bans. The Dobbs decision and subsequent abortion bans have severely affected our work. While we can’t provide the level of abortion care we previously offered, organizations like ours are doing everything possible to connect abortion seekers with out-of-state care, expand services to meet changing health needs, and win back basic reproductive rights."
"Across the South, and in all places where the right to an abortion is compromised, those who provide abortion care or seek to expand access are engaged in difficult but invaluable work. They manage the emotional weight of turning people away who are too late in their pregnancies to treat and face threats and harassment from the moment they enter the clinic’s parking lot. Donors must provide the funds organizations need to ensure these talented and loving people don’t leave the reproductive-health field."
"It’s possible to protect and expand abortion access across the country while also defending reproductive equity in the South. Sending resources only to states where abortion is fully legal further ensures people living in 40 percent of states in this country will have limited or nonexistent abortion care — now and in the future. Consistent financial support is essential to secure long-term access to comprehensive reproductive care in Texas, Georgia, and other restricted states."
"The Dobbs decision left us with one glimmer of hope: States and voters hold the future of abortion in their hands. We have the power to create a new reality in which access to abortion care isn’t dependent on race, income, sexual orientation, immigration status, or ability. We can achieve something better than Roe. But in the meantime, we need to help the people in our community who are up against systemic barriers and have no access to reproductive and gender-affirming services without organizations like ours."