EverThrive Illinois has been a leader in advocating for health equity for individuals, families, and communities. For the last three decades, we have also recognized abortion care as an important and necessary component of high-quality, comprehensive pregnancy care. Reproductive Justice, the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities is at the core of our work.
Recently, the state of Texas implemented an extreme abortion ban causing an acute and devastating crisis for people who live there and disproportionately impacting Black and Brown people, young people, queer folx, immigrants, and poor people. This is not an isolated decision. “According to The Guttmacher Institute, “more abortion restrictions have been enacted by U.S. states in 2021 than in any year since the U.S. Supreme Court legalized abortion in the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.” While Illinois has been a beacon for sexual and reproductive freedom in the Midwest, we know there are folks in every state who struggle to receive abortion care.
EverThrive Illinois is as committed to ensuring all people receive the supporting and affirming pregnancy and sexual health care that they need. Over our history, this commitment has been backed by action.
- We have been leaders in addressing the Black maternal mortality crisis, leading community-engaged research to improve the quality of care for pregnant and postpartum people.
- We succeeded after a year-long policy campaign to make Illinois the first state in the nation to provide Medicaid coverage throughout the 12-month postpartum period.
- We have supported key legislation to advance abortion access in Illinois, including HB40, which allowed for Medicaid coverage of abortion care, and the Reproductive Health Act, which established a constitutional right to abortion care in Illinois and improved insurance coverage of abortion care.
- We have continued to advocate for the repeal of the forced parental notification of abortion act, which needlessly limits access to abortion care for young people.
- We developed the concept of Contraceptive Justice, which centers 13 domains of high-quality, person-centered contraceptive care aligned with the Reproductive Justice framework.
To truly achieve Reproductive Justice, we must first affirm and center the experiences and voices of Black, Brown, and LGBTQQIA+ communities who have been directly impacted by reproductive oppression. EverThrive Illinois is committed to working in solidarity with and being accountable to these voices through community-driven partnerships, policy action, and systems change. This collective effort advances our shared priorities of eliminating racial and gender disparities in care, promoting bodily autonomy, and creating a health care system that is deserving of trust from those most affected by injustice.
We invite you to join us in the fight for Reproductive Justice and become an advocate by signing up to become a member of our Policy Action Network today!
Help is available for people seeing abortion care in Illinois. Please share the following resources.
ReAdjust Coalition – Provides Reproductive Justice resources to define and make decisions about our bodies, health, sexuality, families, and communities so that people can live with dignity and self-determination.
Accessing Abortion – IL Rights – Accessing Abortion With Your Health Care Coverage provides information on how to advocate for your health care rights in Illinois.
Chicago Abortion Fund – they can provide financial, logistical, and emotional support to folks seeking abortion care and you can also donate to their Texas Abortion Fund.
Midwest Access Coalition – they provide practical support to people travel to and within Illinois for abortion care, including travel, lodging, food, medicine, and emotional support.