WASHINGTON,
Jan. 22, 2022
/PRNewswire/ -- Today, on the 49th—and potentially last—anniversary
of Roe v. Wade, activists in support of abortion access staged a
flash mob of music and dance on the steps of the U.S. Supreme
Court. The gathering, Act for Abortion, happened as the Court
prepared to rule on landmark abortion cases in Texas and Mississippi, with dire implications for the
future of reproductive freedom in this country. "The majority of
Americans support the right to safe and legal abortion," say the
event organizers. "Our freedom is on the line, and we intend to
show up for bodily autonomy and the will of the American
people."
The action—supported by a range of reproductive rights and
social justice organizations—featured approximately 50 activists
and performers, including DJs, dancers, drummers, and appearances
by the Resistance Revival Chorus, Reverend Vince Anderson and Meah
Pace, Thank God For Abortion, as well as a prayer led by
Reverend Dr. Jacqui Lewis of Middle
Church.
The flash mob wore accents of gold and green, both chosen for
symbolic reasons: The color gold represents a 50th anniversary—an
anniversary that is uncertain for Roe v. Wade. And the color green
is an homage to the Green Wave reproductive rights movement in
Latin America, in which activists
have successfully helped advance abortion access.
Act for Abortion also includes a social media campaign providing
tangible steps all Americans can take to protect abortion access.
The action steps include:
- Donating to abortion funds, via abortionfunds.org
- Saving independent clinics, via keepourclinics.org
- Sharing information about abortion pills, via
shareabortionpill.info
- Encouraging the passage of the Women's Health Protection Act
(WHPA)
- Claiming space for people of faith in the movement, via
SacredDignity.org
"Let's take this moment to pray for abortion. We must not
continue to let extremist Christians claim God only for themselves
when statistics show the majority of us who identify as faithful
are also pro abortion access. We who believe in God have had and
will continue to have abortions, and also provide abortions because
a core tenet of our faith is compassionate care for our neighbors,"
says organizer Viva Ruiz of Thank
God For Abortion. "The Green Wave/La Ola Verde movement in Central
and South America has shown us
that people across gender, generation, faith, race and class can
mass-mobilize for abortion rights, and win. We must follow them
there."
"Overturning Roe and criminalizing abortion is monstrous,
anti-family, anti-child, anti-woman, and a human rights violation
for all people who can get pregnant," said fellow organizer
Sarah Sophie Flicker, one of the
organizers of the original Women's March. "We come together, with
joy and unity, to say that we stand on the side of morality, and
that abortion is normal and a right which must be accessible to
all."
"When we control our bodies, we control our futures. I know the
future of abortion access in this country is uncertain and that at
just 21 years old there is a chance I will have fewer freedoms and
protections than my mother did," said organizer Deja Foxx, founder of Gen Z Girl Gang and a
student at Columbia University. "But on
the 49th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, I am celebrating the people
who fought before me, for me. I honor those who opened doors and
championed choice and invite all to join us in the fight
ahead."
Members of the organizing team have collaborated in the past on
highly successful and visible national campaigns, including Joy To
the Polls, Women's March, and For Freedoms' 50 State
Initiative.
This is a completely unbranded action. However, the groups
supporting thus far include: Abortion Access
Fund, Amplifier, Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family
Philanthropies, Equality Now, For Freedoms, Gays Against Guns, The
Meteor, Middle Church, National Women's Law Center, Planned
Parenthood Federation of America, The Resistance Revival Chorus,
Shout Your Abortion, Thank God For Abortion, Ultraviolet, Wide
Awakes, The Women's Foundation of California, Women's March, Working Families
Party, and a wide coalition of Musicians, DJs, Dancers, Nightlife
Performers, and Visual Artists.
For more information and interview requests, please contact:
actforabortionpr@gmail.com, 917-410-0716.
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SOURCE Act for Abortion