Reproductive Justice Action of Immediate Witness: July 1, 2022
One of the Actions of Immediate Witness (AIW) passed at the UUA General Assembly last week was “We Do Not Consent: Rejecting Legal Challenges to Abortion.” This AIW is a clear statement that our Unitarian Universalist faith affirms that our bodies are sacred, that we are each endowed with the twin gifts of agency and conscience, and that each of us should have the power to decide what does and doesn’t happen to our bodies at every moment of our lives because consent and self-determination are holy.
The AIW also points out how the change in law will cause greater hardship for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color), people of low financial resources, those with disabilities, and those in the LGBTQAI+ communities, who are most harmed by legal and systemic barriers to comprehensive reproductive health care. This AIW calls upon us to act individually and collectively to organize, advocate, witness, support, educate and fundraise.
Here are some of the many ways to live into this AIW and our UU values:
VOTE! If you want to get involved with UUtheVote, please contact Shirley Adams through Realm or at admin@ucevanston.org.
Get involved in conversations with your legislators! If you want to work with our Legislative Action Team, please contact Jane Bannor through Realm or at admin@ucevanston.org.
Go March or Get Trained!
- July 12, 26, August 9, 23 at 7:00 pm, participate in the ACLU People Power’s Abortion Activist Services, Know Your Rights: Digital Privacy and Abortion Access.
- July 17 at 10:00 am, participate in Abortion Access Front’s training on abortion activism. Register here.
- July 21, 28, and August 4 from 7:00-8:30 pm CT, participate in UUA Side with Love’s Reproductive Justice Congregational Organizing Series. Register here.
Donate to one of the organizations helping people who are pregnant have abortion access as an option!
Healthcare providers with abortion access:
Abortion funds, which remove financial and logistical barriers to abortion access:
- Chicago Abortion Fund (CAF)
- Wisconsin Women’s Medical Fund
- Indiana Hoosier Abortion Fund
- Missouri Abortion Fund
- National Network of Abortion Funds
Direct service providers (help with travel coordination and costs, lodging, food, medicine, and emotional support):
Educating medical providers on a wide range of comprehensive reproductive health care topics that improve access:
Finally, one of the best ways is to talk with others about your values and your support of self-determination, abortion access, and privacy rights! At UCE, we have formed a Reproductive Justice Ad Hoc Group. If you would like to be engaged with this group, please contact Rev. Susan at sfrances@ucevanston.org. Knowing this is a long-haul issue, we are already partnering with our sister congregations through the Unitarian Universalist Advocacy Network of Illinois, our local interfaith colleagues, and abortion access providers in the Midwest to determine how we, as a congregation, can support reproductive justice for all.