On November 14th, I attended an event co-hosted by AKA, Connor House, and PPGA titled “My Body, My Choice, My Voice.” I went to this event partially to fulfill an education credit for my eating house, as it fit in the health and wellness category of the requirement, but it was incredibly informative about abortion and abortion access in North Carolina. I have attended some PPGA meetings and consider myself to be relatively informed about how abortions work, and the about the work of Planned Parenthood and other organizations do to to increase access to safe abortions across the country. However, when we did a Kahoot to test our knowledge, I was surprised that there were some questions I had no idea how to answer. One of these questions was about what percentage of counties in North Carolina have an abortion clinic. I figured that the number was low, maybe around 30-35%, but in reality it was closer to 13% if I remember correctly. This was shocking to me, and shows how I had taken for granted our proximity to Charlotte, a major city with a Planned Parenthood. The presenters also talked a bit about anti-abortion organizations that disguise themselves as abortion clinics. I find it unbelievable that such organizations are allowed to operate legally, and force their anti-abortion rhetoric onto pregnant people seeking an abortion, without their consent.
The presenters also talked about different ways to circumvent abortion bans in states like Texas, in lieu of the recent overturn of Roe v. Wade. I had no idea that there are volunteers who will mail abortion pills across state lines, or shuttle people over the border into Mexico to receive safe abortions. This type of work is incredible, and shows how we can resist unjust government restrictions that control pregnant people’s bodies. This talk inspired me to get more involved in pro-choice advocacy, with organizations like Planned Parenthood. There are so many things we can do as citizens, like volunteer to work as an escort at a clinic, that can improve people’s access to safe abortions, but we need to continue to vote and fight against legislation that seeks to control our bodies.
I also attended this talked and experienced a lot of similar feelings to the ones you illustrated here. The part about the begin shuttled to Mexico for abortions was also very interesting to me. I listened to a Podcast around the time the Roe vs. Wade decision came out that discussed the methods and intricate network they have created to circumvent the existing abortion laws in Mexico. It really demonstrates backwards progress regarding abortion access in the U.S.