The fight to achieve reproductive justice has never been easy, but recently, there have been more hurdles that those in the movement have been forced to face. Many people may look at the abortion bans happening in multiple states as the only issue in the reproductive justice space. While it is a major problem, and we continue to advocate for abortion access for everyone, there is so much more being done to harm birthing people and the efforts in protecting them that people who are not involved in the movement may not even realize.
In a recent interview, Jordyn Hester, Communications Manager, interviewed Hailey Steele, Birth Equity Manager. She gives her personal perspective on the challenges she sees and how advocates are responding to federal policies that harm communities.
Hailey Steele: There are a lot of challenges! Funding is constantly a challenge, especially in the past year, since language is being policed more heavily. Organizations and institutions are nervous about losing funding due to justice-oriented language in their work; however, people are still finding ways to adapt and navigate these changes to ensure their work remains sustainable. I always say that those in this movement are experts at adaptability because the quest for reproductive justice has always been, and continues to be, an uphill battle. I mean that in the best way – RJ advocates do not back down! [The current landscape] creates so much creative space for us to keep figuring out how we can support each other.
Another challenge that has been the most apparent since Roe was overturned, outside of abortion bans, is the increased effort to criminalize pregnancy. Fetal personhood laws, which assign “personhood” to a fetus, are on the rise and threaten the agency of birthing people. Individuals across the country are faced with serious charges (murder, child abuse, manslaughter) simply because they experienced a miscarriage at home. It is vile to see someone forced into the carceral system because they experienced a pregnancy loss, which is already a deeply personal experience.
Increased technological surveillance has really worsened pregnancy and abortion criminalization. Someone should not have to worry about their phone tracking their travel to receive reproductive health care, and if that data will be used to incarcerate them. There have been more trainings and conversations around digital security and safety, which is a great immediate response.
There have also been targeted attacks towards our immigrant communities and LGBTQ+ communities, which compound the already challenging reproductive health landscape we are living in. Things such as anti-trans legislation, ICE facilities not providing menstrual products to detainees or proper healthcare to pregnant individuals, and separating families are all reproductive injustices worsened by intersecting oppressions people experience. These attacks are an orchestrated attempt to continue to chip away at our collective humanity, and each new law that is introduced to further oppress marginalized communities is a moving of the goal post of normalized harm.
Our response to that is never to accept anything less than freedom for all. We cannot allow ourselves the attitude of “this is just the way things are” or “that is just the law”. Continuing to call attention to these injustices, continuing to make those connections, and continuing to show up for our communities is what will accelerate positive change. It has been heartening to see more folks connect these different struggles within the reproductive justice movement, because they are all interconnected. We cannot achieve reproductive justice without also achieving justice across all struggles.