You can be a religious person and support reproductive rights

วันอาทิตย์, สิงหาคม 23, 2020 บล็อก Share


The value of bodily autonomy isn't solely held by secular people

religious views

Contrary to what you might think, there are religious communities and religious individuals working on behalf of abortion access. The value of bodily autonomy isn't solely held by secular people, but thanks to the efforts of the Christian Right, many folks have come to believe that. If you're a person of faith, you might have felt the need to suppress your religious identity in activist circles, or you might avoid them all together. You might have been told that you can't be pro-choice and religious. You might feel invisible at times, but you aren't wrong and you aren't alone. Abortion rights and religion are not at odds, and there are many folks working at the intersection of abortion access and faith  Here are some resources to tap into.

Dr. Toni M. Bond is a religious and womanist scholar and ethicist who is one of the founders of the reproductive justice movement. "There is NOTHING in the text [of the Bible] that specifically talks about abortion or says it is an abombination. Absolutely nothing. It seems to me the decision has been left up to the woman," said Bond at SisterSong's recent Reproductive Justice Summer Institute. (You can find this quote here on Instagram for all your posting and reposting needs.)

Check out Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg's important Twitter thread, which not only lays out what Jewish law says about abortion, but also why the right wing Christian grip on abortion access is a violation of the 1st and 14th amendments. The National Council on Jewish Women has developed an Abortion and Jewish Values Toolkit for folks to work on abortion access with informed Jewish values.

Faith Aloud supports people making decisions about pregnancy, parenting, abortion, and adoption with religious and spiritual counseling and other resources. 40 Days of Prayer for Reproductive Justice is Faith Aloud's response to the anti-choice movement's 40 Days for Life.

Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice is an interfaith movement committed to protecting and advancing reproductive health and rights through education, advocacy and presence in religious spaces. In addition to information about RCRC's actions, you can also find religious resources on their website, including An Islamic Prayer and information on other perspectives on reproductive rights and faith.

Advocating for abortion access means connecting people who can get pregnant with information about contraception and abortion care, and that includes abortion pills. You can read up on how abortion pills work, what to expect when you take them, how you can get them, and more on WHW's website FAQs, and pass it on.