Tag: Abortion Access

Learn About Abortion Laws In Your State, Your Country, and The World, Thanks to the Center for Reproductive Rights
Community Activism · Ethics · Fighting Bigotry, Racism, Sexism, Homophobia, Transphobia... · Health Care · Uncategorized

Learn About Abortion Laws In Your State, Your Country, and The World, Thanks to the Center for Reproductive Rights

otycd

This post originally appeared on OTYCD in February 2018.

 

Learn about abortion laws in your state, your country, and the world at large, thanks to the Center for Reproductive Rights.

 

We at OTYCD don’t need to tell you that access to abortion is under attack across America. It’s still legal, but anti-abortion lawmakers are, and have been, doing their level best to make it as inconvenient and expensive as possible, both for health care providers and for their patients.

 

The Center for Reproductive Rights, a 26-year-old global advocacy nonprofit based in New York City, has compiled a State of the States 2017 report that surveys abortion laws across the country.

 

Download the report through the link below, and also see which states attempted to pass bans on abortions at and after 20 weeks’ gestation, and which states tried to ban the dilation and evacuation (D&E) surgical procedure:

https://www.reproductiverights.org/state-of-the-states-2017

 

 

The CPR also produces and updates a map of abortion laws across the world. See the 2018 world map here (it relies on Adobe Flash):

http://worldabortionlaws.com

 

 

Subscribe to One Thing You Can Do by clicking the button on the upper right of the page. And tell your friends about the blog!

 

 

See the website for the Center for Reproductive Rights:

https://www.reproductiverights.org

 

 

Learn about its Pro Bono program:

https://www.reproductiverights.org/pro-bono-program

 

 

Donate to the center:

https://www.reproductiverights.org/about-us/donate

 

 

Like it on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/reproductiverights

 

 

Follow it on Twitter:

@ReproRights

 

 

Check out its Merch:

https://www.reproductiverights.org/shop

Help Expose Fake Abortion Clinics
Community Activism · Ethics · Health Care · Separation of Church and State · Stand Up for Civilization · Stand Up for Norms · Uncategorized

Help Expose Fake Abortion Clinics

otycd

This OTYCD post originally appeared in December 2018.

 

Help expose fake abortion clinics–facilities set up by pro-life groups that mimic abortion clinics, but attempt to pressure women out of seeking the help they need.

 

You’re going to want to sit down for this one. Fake abortion clinics have been a thing since the 1960s. Today, there are more than 4,000 of them across America while there are fewer than 800 legitimate clinics.

 

They are designed to look like medical facilities in every respect, but because they are not actual clinics, they don’t have to abide by HIPAA privacy laws. That’s right–they don’t have to safeguard any medical information that they might receive.

 

These facilities can exist and carry on with their borked mission because what they do is regarded as religious outreach, which is in turn protected by the First Amendment.

 

Activists are trying to hold fake clinics accountable by pursuing them on truth in advertising laws–making them more clearly admit that they are not abortion clinics and do not provide abortions or referrals to abortion clinics.

 

One of the ways they’re doing this is through the #ExposeFakeClinics website, which is a resource hub for those trying to spread the word about fake clinics.

 

Exposing fake clinics takes several forms. They include:

 

Liking online reviews of legitimate clinics

 

Reviewing fake clinics

 

Reporting fake clinics that engage in false advertising

 

Protesting outside of fake clinics (but scroll down for important information about this)

 

 

See the main Expose Fake Clinics webpage:

https://exposefakeclinics.squarespace.com

 

 

Learn how to spot a fake abortion clinic:

https://exposefakeclinics.squarespace.com/what-is-a-cpc-2/

 

 

Learn if there are fake abortion clinics near you:

https://exposefakeclinics.squarespace.com/cpc/

 

 

Take action against fake abortion clinics (note: if the fake clinic you want to protest in front of is physically near a genuine abortion clinic, check with the real one before you start work. If the real one asks you not to protest in person, please don’t):

https://exposefakeclinics.squarespace.com/take-action-1/

 

 

 

Subscribe to One Thing You Can Do by clicking the blue button on the upper right or checking the About & Subscribe page. And tell your friends about the blog!

 

 

Read the Expose Fake Clinics blog:

https://exposefakeclinics.squarespace.com/blog/

 

 

Like Expose Fake Clinics on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/exposefakeclinics

 

Support Medical Students for Choice
Health Care

Support Medical Students for Choice

otycd

Support Medical Students for Choice (MSFC), a nonprofit that destigmatizes abortion by training medical students to do them.

 

One of the ways in which pro-life forces have tried to curtail access to abortion is by scaring medical students and residents away from learning how to perform them.

 

MSFC combats this on several fronts. It advocates to make abortion a standard part of the medical school curriculum; it hosts conferences; it has chapters at more than 200 medical schools around the world; and it educates almost 1,000 medical students in abortion and family planning annually.

 

Visit the MSFC web site:

https://www.msfc.org

 

Read its blog:

https://www.msfc.org/ourblog/

 

Read a December 2017 Guardian piece on the work of Medical Students for Choice:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/dec/22/why-medical-students-are-practicing-abortions-on-papayas

 

Like its Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/MSFChoice/

 

Follow it on Twitter:

@MSFC

 

Donate to MSFC:

https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/MSFC

Support the Center for Reproductive Rights
Community Activism · Health Care · Read, Educate Yourself, Prepare · Separation of Church and State · Stand for Science · Stand Up for Civilization · Stand Up for Norms · Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) · Vote with your Dollars

Support the Center for Reproductive Rights

otycd

Support the Center for Reproductive Rights, a global advocacy organization that defends and champions the idea that reproductive freedom is a basic human right.

Founded in 1992, the New York City-based non-profit doesn’t just defend access to abortion. It fights to improve access to birth control and prenatal care, it fights to decrease maternal mortality, and it fights efforts to take away public funds for reproductive health care. It champions the rights of those afflicted by HIV and AIDS.

The center fights the global gag ule, a favorite of Republican administrations, which restricts recipients of U.S. aid money from mentioning abortion to their patients. It combats female genital mutilation (FGM) as well as attempts to inflict incomplete, inaccurate, or just plain lousy sex education on young people. It wages these battles on six continents and at the United Nations. And its lawyers often fight for these all-important rights pro bono.

Basically, if it has to do with women and healthcare, the CPR is on it, and it’s probably on your side.

 

See the website for the Center for Reproductive Rights:

https://www.reproductiverights.org

 

Learn about its Pro Bono program:

https://www.reproductiverights.org/pro-bono-program

 

Donate to the center:

https://www.reproductiverights.org/about-us/donate

 

Like it on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/reproductiverights

 

Follow it on Twitter:

@ReproRights

 

Check out its Merch:

https://www.reproductiverights.org/shop

Support Americans Who Need Late-term Abortions
Community Activism · Health Care · Stand Up for Civilization · Stand Up for Norms · Vote with your Dollars

Support Americans Who Need Late-term Abortions

otycd

Support Americans who need late-term abortions.

 

No one gets an abortion after 20 weeks on a lark. You get an abortion after 20 weeks if you were raped and couldn’t get help earlier, or the baby is dead, or will die soon, or the pregnancy will kill you or end your fertility if you try to carry to term.

 

Obtaining an abortion after 20 weeks is an exceptionally expensive ordeal. Only a handful of doctors in the United States accept patients who need late-term abortions.

 

Only a handful of doctors do this work because of constant harassment from both pro-lifers and legislatures, which takes a toll on even the most thick-skinned and stiff-spined. Also, pretty much every other form of medicine is easier and better-paid than specializing in late-term abortions.

 

Read the June 2016 Jezebel story Interview With a Woman Who Recently Had an Abortion at 32 Weeks, by Jia Tolentino. Warning: It’s graphic, emotionally wrenching, and utterly unforgettable. You’ll need time to decompress afterward. There’s also no reason to think anything has changed for people in this situation since the story was published.

https://jezebel.com/interview-with-a-woman-who-recently-had-an-abortion-at-1781972395

 

 

Once you’ve done that, consider donating to the George Tiller Memorial Abortion Fund, which helps people who need late-term abortions but don’t have the money to cover the procedure and associated costs.

https://org2.salsalabs.com/o/6713/donate_page/tillerfund?okay=true

 

 

Subscribe to One Thing You Can Do by clicking the button on the upper right of the page. And tell your friends about the blog!

Help Expose Fake Abortion Clinics
Community Activism · Ethics · Health Care · Separation of Church and State · Stand Up for Civilization · Stand Up for Norms

Help Expose Fake Abortion Clinics

otycd

Help expose fake abortion clinics–facilities set up by pro-life groups that mimic abortion clinics, but attempt to pressure women out of seeking the help they need.

 

You’re going to want to sit down for this one. Fake abortion clinics have been a thing since the 1960s. Today, there are more than 4,000 of them across America while there are fewer than 800 legitimate clinics.

 

They are designed to look like medical facilities in every respect, but because they are not actual clinics, they don’t have to abide by HIPAA privacy laws. That’s right–they don’t have to safeguard any medical information that they might receive.

 

These facilities can exist and carry on with their borked mission because what they do is regarded as religious outreach, which is in turn protected by the First Amendment.

 

Activists are trying to hold fake clinics accountable by pursuing them on truth in advertising laws–making them more clearly admit that they are not abortion clinics and do not provide abortions or referrals to abortion clinics.

 

One of the ways they’re doing this is through the #ExposeFakeClinics website, which is a resource hub for those trying to spread the word about fake clinics.

 

Exposing fake clinics takes several forms. They include:

 

Liking online reviews of legitimate clinics

 

Reviewing fake clinics

 

Reporting fake clinics that engage in false advertising

 

Protesting outside of fake clinics (but scroll down for important information about this)

 

 

See the main Expose Fake Clinics webpage:

https://exposefakeclinics.squarespace.com

 

 

Learn how to spot a fake abortion clinic:

https://exposefakeclinics.squarespace.com/what-is-a-cpc-2/

 

 

Learn if there are fake abortion clinics near you:

https://exposefakeclinics.squarespace.com/cpc/

 

 

Take action against fake abortion clinics (note: if the fake clinic you want to protest in front of is physically near a genuine abortion clinic, check with the real one before you start work. If the real one asks you not to protest in person, please don’t):

https://exposefakeclinics.squarespace.com/take-action-1/

 

 

 

Subscribe to One Thing You Can Do by clicking the blue button on the upper right or checking the About & Subscribe page. And tell your friends about the blog!

 

 

Read the Expose Fake Clinics blog:

https://exposefakeclinics.squarespace.com/blog/

 

 

Like Expose Fake Clinics on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/exposefakeclinics

 

 

 

Help American Women Obtain Abortion Care
Community Activism · Health Care · Save These Tools · Stand Up for Civilization · Stand Up for Norms · Vote with your Dollars

Help American Women Obtain Abortion Care

otycd

Help American women safely obtain abortions through these organizations and networks.

 

This is a landing page for organizations that help American women who need abortions and which defend access to the procedure.

 

The National Network of Abortion Funds helps walk women through the process and  helps point them to regional and local abortion funds.

 

 

Visit the NNAF webpage:

https://abortionfunds.org

 

 

Obtain an abortion:

https://abortionfunds.org/need-abortion/

 

 

Like the NNAF on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/NationalNetworkofAbortionFunds

 

 

Follow the NNAF on Twitter:

@AbortionFunds

 

 

Donate to the NNAF:

https://org2.salsalabs.com/o/6713/p/salsa/donation/common/public/?donate_page_KEY=14288&okay=true

 

 

 

The National Abortion Federation (NAF) works to keep abortion safe, legal, and accessible. It also serves as a professional organization for abortion providers, setting standards of care, writing protocols, and offering clinical education.

 

 

See the NAF website:

https://prochoice.org

 

 

Follow it on Twitter:

@NatAbortionFed

 

 

Donate to the NAF:

https://prochoice.org/about-naf/support-naf/

 

 

 

The Texas Equal Access (TEA) Fund helps North Texas women who need an abortion and cannot afford one.

Visit the TEA Fund web site:

http://www.teafund.org

 

 

Follow it on Twitter:

@TEAFund

 

 

Donate to the TEA Fund:

https://texasequalaccessfund.nationbuilder.com/donate

 

 

 

The Lilith Fund helps Texans obtain abortions and fights to remove obstacles that stop them from accessing this vital care.

 

Visit the Lilith Fund website:

https://www.lilithfund.org

 

 

Follow it on Twitter:

@lilithfund

 

 

Donate to the Lilith Fund:

https://www.lilithfund.org/portfolio/donate/

 

 

 

The DC Abortion Fund (DCAF) helps people in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia access abortion care.

 

Visit its web site:

http://dcabortionfund.org

 

 

Like it on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/DCAbortionFund.org/

 

 

Follow the DCAF on Twitter:

@DCAbortionFund

 

 

Donate to the DCAF:

https://salsa3.salsalabs.com/o/2082/donate_page/donatenow

 

 

Subscribe to One Thing You Can Do by clicking the button on the upper right of the page. And tell your friends about the blog!

Find Out If Your State Has Abortion Trigger Laws and Make Sure They’re Pro-Choice
Call Your State Legislators · Fighting Bigotry, Racism, Sexism, Homophobia, Transphobia... · Health Care · Read, Educate Yourself, Prepare · Use Your Power, Recruit Friends · Vote with your Dollars

Find Out If Your State Has Abortion Trigger Laws and Make Sure They’re Pro-Choice

otycd

This OTYCD entry originally posted in July 2017.

Does your state have abortion trigger laws–laws that instantly go into effect if Roe vs Wade is overturned? Find out, and urge your state legislators to pass pro-choice laws if need be. 

Trump and the Republicans are hell-bent on overturning Roe vs. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court (SCOTUS) decision that ensured that women will have safe, reliable access to abortion on demand. Trump announced his intention to appoint anti-choice SCOTUS judges and, well, just look at the nonsense that so many Republicans have pursued lately on this front.

If Roe vs Wade is overturned, the power to regulate abortion access goes back to the states. It makes eminent sense, then, to see what laws your state has on its books. Many have put so-called ‘trigger laws’ in place–laws that will ban legal abortion instantly should Roe vs Wade disappear.

Is your state one of them?

First, you should learn how accessible abortion services are in your state right now. NARAL Pro-choice America has created an interactive map that will show you (scroll down a bit to find the map).

https://www.prochoiceamerica.org/laws-policy/state-government/

Mouse over your state to see if it offers strongly restricted access (red); restricted access (pinkish); some access (purple-pink); protected access (purple); or strongly protected access (blue).

Once you have learned how things are now, while abortion is legal on the federal level, go to the link below, find your local chapter of NARAL, ask whether your state has anti-choice trigger laws on the books, and ask what you can do to get them overturned.

https://www.prochoiceamerica.org/about/state-affiliates/

 

You can also use a nifty tool created by the Our States web site that shows you at a glance whether your state is considering anti-choice legislation right now. Click the link below and click on ‘Reproductive Justice’:

https://www.ourstates.org/#ourstates

 

Like NARAL Pro-Choice America’s Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/naralprochoiceamerica

 

Follow NARAL Pro-Choice on Twitter:

@NARAL

 

Donate to NARAL Pro-Choice America:

https://secure.actblue.com/contribute/page/homepage_maindonate/?refcode=mainbutton

 

 

Call Your Senators and Tell Them to Vote NO on the 20-Week Abortion Ban Bill
Action Alerts · Call Your Senators · Health Care · Senate Bills, Federal

Call Your Senators and Tell Them to Vote NO on the 20-Week Abortion Ban Bill

otycd

Call your senators and tell them to vote NO on a bill which would ban abortion after 20 weeks. 

 

This per our friend Celeste Pewter (@Celeste_Pewter), who urged folks to take action on this matter on January 25, 2018 (the day this post goes live).

 

Called the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, the bill would make aborting a fetus after 20 weeks punishable by five years in prison, a fine, or both.

 

In the Senate, the bill’s number is S. 2311. The House version is H.R. 36.

 

The GovTrack page on H.R. 36 gives the bill a 34 percent chance of passage, and gives its Senate counterpart a 26 percent chance of passage.

 

The bill needs 60 votes to pass the Senate. It is unlikely to succeed. Even still, Pewter has solid reasoning for raising the alarm now, as she details in these January 24 tweets:

 

Ok, all: remember this? Yeah, red alert time: I CANNOT stress this enough. You need to be bombarding your Senate offices, beginning NOW.

 

Please RT this. This is one of those situations where I was hoping the bill would just die after being introduced, never to be heard from again, but 2018 is apparently deciding to try my patience.

 

Here’s the legislation in question. Yes, it needs sixty votes (thank god). But seriously, bombard your Senate offices with calls. We need to send a clear-cut message that we do not accept the Senate screwing around with this.

 

At some level, this is also McConnell daring Dem Senators in red states to take a stance on this in advance of midterms, which is as exactly as asinine and calculated as it sounds. So. Call and give them the numbers to vote NO.

 

(If I’m swearing a lot, it’s because 2018 has been really trying my patience, and we’re barely three weeks in.)

 

Here’s the link to the Graham version of this bill. Note the 7% Skopos rating: I normally shrug for anything under 15% – 20% – which is why I don’t always mention every bill – but given the repeated attacks on abortion from all sides, important to call.

 

Regarding that last tweet–we found higher Skopos ratings than seven percent on GovTrack for both versions of the bill. And, again, this bill needs 60 votes to move ahead, and it is unlikely to get that many votes.

 

Still, it is important to raise our voices NOW to our Senators and make it clear that we don’t want this, and they should not fiddle around with such nonsense.

 

Subscribe to One Thing You Can Do by clicking the blue button on the upper right or checking the About & Subscribe page. And tell your friends about the blog!

 

 

See a January 24, 2018 story from The Hill that discusses the impending vote:

http://thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/senate/370613-mcconnell-tees-up-vote-on-20-week-abortion-bill

 

See the Congress.gov page on H.R. 36:

https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/36

 

Here’s the GovTrack page on H.R. 36 (the Skopos Labs assessment is on this page):

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/115/hr36

 

Here also is the GovTrack page on S. 2311 (this page also has a Skopos Labs assessment):

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/115/s2311

 

Follow Celeste Pewter on Twitter:

@Celeste_Pewter

 

Check out The Road to 2018, which Pewter is involved with, and which defends vulnerable Democratic Senators:

http://www.roadto2018.com

 

And check out It’s Time To Fight, an awesome pro-Resistance resource that dispenses daily advice for pushing back against Trump and his ilk:

http://itstimetofight.weebly.com