By Felipe on November 16th, 2021. Posted under: 2021, Blog Post, Featured Article
First published in September 8, 2016.
As a first year medical student, I let my doubts get in the way of my education. I was intrigued by the idea of abortion education, but I missed out on Medical Students for Choice’s 2014 Conference on Family Planning (CoFP) because I wasn’t confident enough to make the trip alone. I worried that I would be judged for going and that my safety might be compromised.
That changed after becoming president of my school’s MSFC chapter. I felt compelled to learn more about abortion and family planning. I didn’t want to just say that I supported a woman’s right to choose; I really wanted to understand the issues surrounding reproductive healthcare. Together with my fellow leader, Claire Meikle, we dove head first into the world of Medical Students for Choice.
The author and her co-student leader.
We began the year by attending the 2015 Conference on Family Planning in Philadelphia, PA, and it was such an amazing experience! From the moment we arrived, we were greeted with open arms and were already known by name from our previous MSFC leadership involvement. We heard from amazing speakers from all over the world (we even made our moms attend so we could attend *every*single* breakout session!). We connected with leaders of other chapters and learned some amazing content that we then brought back to improve our own chapter. At the conference, I was able to not only learn more about reproductive health care, but also gain a better understanding of my own beliefs. I was encouraged to push myself out of my comfort zone to continue my abortion education. I took all that I had learned from the conference and all of the questions that I still had and carried them with me to the Abortion Training Institute later that year. Since then, I developed an entire Family Planning course for our school and am currently leading a research project on family planning education for medical students.
No matter how far you are into your medical education, you will gain so much from MSFC’s conference! From the guest speakers to the hands-on training sessions, there is something for everyone. No matter your hesitation, fear not—the CoFP is a safe and welcoming place to start or expand your family planning education. (Plus, it’s a great excuse to travel!)
While I know that medical school can be overwhelming and there’s never enough free time, attending MSFC’s Conference on Family Planning is a valuable experience that is worth the time away from campus.
Are you convinced yet? Ready to register? Sign up here!
By Felipe on November 08th, 2021. Posted under: 2021, Blog Post, Featured Article
Last month, we heard from Kizza Blair, a fifth-year medical student from Gulu University his account of the East African Regional Meeting. “We were trained on legal aspects of reproductive health, the life of an advocate, primary health coverage, healthcare in a resource-limited setting, and dynamics of family planning and safe abortion. Lastly, we had an opportunity to have a hands-on experience with Manual Vacuum Aspiration (MVA) for surgical abortion using melons and pawpaw role-playing for female reproductive organs.”
The student-led planning committee hosted this regional meeting for students from 5 countries to come together and learn from sexual and reproductive health experts from throughout Africa. All participants were asked to complete a survey before the conference, recording their self-assessed knowledge on SRH topics and their attitudes towards abortion and patients seeking abortion. After the completion of the regional meeting, participants filled out another survey. The changes in participants’ knowledge and attitudes were astounding!
Attitudes were measured on a five-point scale (strongly agree to strongly disagree) using the value statements from IPPF’s “How to Educate about Abortion: a Guide.” We asked five questions to measure their attitudes. Responses on the post-meeting survey indicate that through education and conversation about abortion, participants moved toward a more accepting outlook on abortion on all five questions.
The East African Regional Meeting was a great success and we are so proud of the students who organized and administered this program!
By Felipe on October 25th, 2021. Posted under: 2021, Blog Post, Featured Article
Medical Students for Choice wrapped up another successful Abortion Training Institute (ATI) season earlier this fall. These virtual ATIs allow highly motivated students to learn many aspects of abortion in an intense, small group learning environment. Students learn about the clinical aspects of first-trimester abortions, examine their own biases and values, and hear from abortion providers about their experiences, challenges, and motivations. Fifty students from 46 schools were accepted. Each student received a training kit in the mail to participate in an Manual Vacuum Aspiration (MVA) workshop to gain facility and familiarity with the equipment.
Reproductive health is a vital part of medicine (and life), no matter what specialty you go into. Unfortunately, most medical school education is still very limited on reproductive health, despite how often it is encountered in practice, which leads to confusion and misinformation, even amongst health care professionals. These classes have been phenomenal in bridging that gap.ATI Participant
Students walk away from the ATIs feeling more knowledgeable about abortion-related topics. Based on the results of pre-ATI and post-ATI tests, students reported being significantly more knowledgeable around the techniques of first-trimester procedural and medical abortion, identifying products of conception, and legal restrictions in the U.S.
When looking at the proportion of students who rated themselves a 4 or 5 on a 1-5 knowledge scale (1 being not competent and 5 being very competent), all changes in knowledge were statistically significant with a p-value of <.0001.
Even among this highly self-selected group of participants, the ATI clarified and solidified these students’ intention to provide abortions in their future careers. For students that indicated future provision was unlikely, their desire to enter a specialty further removed from reproductive health care was the main reason given.
We asked participants to indicate how much of an impact the factors would have on their ability to provide abortions. Below are the percentages of respondents who indicated factors would have a high impact. As you can see, anti-choice legislation was the factor students believed would have the highest impact on their careers.
For me, a big part of medicine is social justice. Becoming an abortion provider is an incredible way I can fulfill that mission. MSFC is helping me reach that goal by providing clinical training, tools, and resources not included in my curriculum.ATI Participant
By Felipe on October 18th, 2021. Posted under: 2021, Blog Post
In 2021, MSFC continued to experience a wave of interest, with new chapters popping up in new areas across the world. We asked two student leaders some questions to gain their insight into why they decided to start a chapter at their university. Here’s what they had to say:
What made you want to start an MSFC chapter at your university?
There was a gap in access to reproductive health services and information including abortion care. There was no student-driven kind of arrangement available to enhance mentorship, leadership, and service provision for reproductive health, including abortion. So, when I was informed by the late student leader Rossette about MSFC and what it does, I fell in love with the idea and wanted to engage in MSFC in my time as a medical student to apply reproductive health knowledge in my practice. Most importantly, it looked like a grand opportunity for me to exercise my potentials in leadership, organization, and networking here at home and abroad.Henry, Student Leader, MSFC Chapter in Soroti, Uganda
I attended the Reproductive Justice Leadership Program offered by AMSA last semester; it was an enlightening experience. I couldn’t believe that my education had been lacking so much that the stigma around Family Planning, being in control of our bodies no matter our race or gender, is being dictated by people who aren’t educated on what each community needs and is biased towards what they believe. I wanted to bring MSFC to my university and region so that we could start the conversation so that we could become more open-minded to any future patient’s needs.Olivia, Student Leader, American University of the Caribbean
Why is it important that sexual and reproductive health (SRH) advocacy and education be brought to your campus (or region)?
My university is a community with over 90% of its students in their reproductive age. This implies a necessity for access to reproductive health information, education, and services. Although many university students are not minors, I mean they have their beliefs and rights. So, it is important that they are empowered to be able to come up with informed decisions on aspects such as abortion, Family planning, and belonging to LGBT community or not.Henry, MSFC Chapter in Soroti, Uganda
It’s important to have this level of advocacy and education in my region because a lot of us want to learn, but we don’t have access to the resources, and a lot of hospitals don’t offer the training provided by MSFC. Even if the training is never used, it’s important to have it so that we can guide our future patients to what is best for them, even if that is outside of our personal comfort zone. I think that this should be a part of our school curriculum so that we are able to help any patient we have.Olivia, American University of the Caribbean
How does being an MSFC student leader align with your future plans (Career, Interests, or other)?
I am a medic, and my life will be medicine as I want to pursue being a medical specialist in Obstetrics and Gynecology and public health. I realized being an MSFC leader puts me at the forefront of all the activities which are a reflection the experience needed in those fields.Henry, MSFC Chapter in Soroti, Uganda
My future plans include being a trauma surgeon or disaster medicine ER physician. So, while I might never encounter a patient that needs guidance about sexual and reproductive health or an emergency abortion, I don’t want to limit my education on something that may benefit the one patient out of a hundred. I want to be able to provide the best care I can to any patient that I encounter and make them feel heard and understood.Olivia, American University of the Caribbean
If you or someone you know is interested in starting an MSFC chapter at your school, visit our Get Involved webpage for more information.
By Felipe on October 11th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
With in-person events ramping up this fall, the University of Utah SOM MSFC leaders wanted to keep Medical Students for Choice and reproductive health topics at the forefront of our classmates’ minds. We also wanted to raise additional funding to use to help us put on events throughout the year, as well as to send members to the MSFC conference. To accomplish both of these goals, we decided to host a fundraiser at a local brewery to give students and healthcare professionals an opportunity to socialize and relax while also learning more about joining and/or supporting MSFC.
Salt Lake City is home to a variety of microbreweries, and we felt hosting our event at one would be an effective way to both support a local business while providing an interesting event for our classmates to attend. The brewery agreed to donate 20% of their sales from the evening to our cause. We made the event more appealing by also emailing local businesses to collect raffle donations (MSFC has sample letters here you can use to ask for in-kind donations). Their enthusiasm for our cause was refreshing and several businesses donated amazing prizes, including $100 equipment rentals, enormous gift baskets, and unique artwork. To boost our direct donations, we asked people to pay $2 per raffle ticket to increase their chance of winning a prize. We also asked for direct, private donations to our MSFC account for people that couldn’t attend. To boost attendance, we used Facebook, Instagram, and class time to promote the event to the entire UUSOM student body (use MSFC’s design resources to create social media posts).
University of Utah SOM MSFC Chapter leaders at the fundraiser table.
The turnout for the event helped us realize how many amazing healthcare professionals in Utah understand the need to protect organizations that promote reproductive justice. We estimate that over 100 medical students, physicians, and nurses attended the event leading to over 100 in person donations and several private donations. Because of the great turnout, we were able to raise almost $3,000 for our chapter! We’ve already used some of the money to organize a patient abortion panel featuring one of our MSFC leaders, which 60 students attended. This month, we have plans to host several IUD insertion workshops, sponsor a rural reproductive health talk, and discuss racial disparities surrounding reproductive health. People who attend our events have been discussing the impact learning about abortions has had on them and how that changes their perspective on reproductive rights. We already feel we are making progress to help our community.
I encourage other MSFC chapters to investigate unique ways to fundraise money and promote MSFC’s mission. For some quick advice:
- Set a target dollar amount that you are trying to raise. This helps you figure out how much needs to go into planning the event—a smaller goal will likely require less work than a larger one. Our target goal was $1,500.
- If you choose to hold your fundraiser at a local restaurant/brewery/etc., let the owners of the business make most of the decisions regarding timing of the fundraiser. I gave them a range of dates that worked for us, and they decided on a time. 4-7 PM on a Saturday worked well. They know when their business is busy and when sales will be high.
- Incorporate multiple streams of income into the fundraiser. The brewery donated 20% of the sales from the night to our group. This was only about $600. Most of our donations came from the raffle and private donors.
Good luck and get out there!
By Felipe on October 04th, 2021. Posted under: 2021, Blog Post
Medical students from different parts of gathered for a regional meeting to harness their abortion service delivery and advocacy skills.
Medical Students for Choice (MSFC) is a non-profit student-led organization that has tirelessly, through the numerous grassroots chapters worldwide, extended not only equipment and materials necessary for safe abortion training but also created a safe space where young people like me with a dream of becoming pro-physicians can go ahead achieve it. For over two decades, MSFC has been dedicated to generating a pool of safe abortion service providers and advocates worldwide, and amazing work has been done in the marginalized parts of the world, particularly sub-Saharan Africa, where I come from. My country of origin is Uganda. I’m currently in my final year pursuing a bachelor’s degree in medicine and surgery at Gulu University, where I happen to serve as the chapter leader of the MSFC Gulu chapter. I attended the East African regional meeting on the 4th of September 2021, where the majority of chapters from East and central parts of Africa were represented both physically and online. Students at the conference came from Uganda, Tanzania, Somalia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, and Burundi. In this regional meeting, we were trained on legal aspects of reproductive health, the life of an advocate, primary health coverage, healthcare in a resource-limited setting, and dynamics of family planning and safe abortion. Lastly, we had an opportunity to have a hands-on experience with Manual Vacuum Aspiration (MVA) for surgical abortion using melons and pawpaw role-playing for female reproductive organs.
What did I learn from this regional gathering as a future pro-physician in Africa?
First and foremost, I learnt how to confidently use an MVA to initiate termination of a pregnancy or complete an underway process (Comprehensive Post Abortion Care), a lifesaving skill that the majority of our universities have denied us through our medical school training. Secondly, I learnt how to strongly advocate for curriculum reform in my university and advocate for safe abortion care to be adopted in the constitution as part of healthcare because, truth be told, it is. Events like this as so pivotal in our careers as service providers, Did my life change?! Definitely it did!
By Felipe on September 24th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
Health care professionals share personal accounts, correct misconceptions about abortion advanced by Mississippi’s 15-week ban
On September 20, 2021, on behalf of a diverse group of health care professionals, leading medical organizations filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. The case, brought by the Center for Reproductive Rights on behalf of Jackson Women’s Health Organization — the last abortion provider in Mississippi — challenges a blatantly unconstitutional ban on abortion care after 15 weeks of pregnancy that seeks to overturn nearly 50 years of precedent since Roe v. Wade. The Supreme Court recently announced it will hear oral arguments in the case on December 1, 2021.
The groups are Abortion Care Network, Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health, Medical Students for Choice, National Abortion Federation, Physicians for Reproductive Health, and Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP is serving as pro-bono counsel.
The brief corrects misconceptions about abortion and includes first-hand accounts from trained, expert health care professionals who provide abortion — including physicians, clinic administrators, and medical students — on the devastating consequences abortion bans and restrictions have on patients across the country, including today in Texas. The brief was filed on the 20th day that Texas’s S.B. 8 — the radical “sue thy neighbor” law that has made abortion virtually inaccessible in the state — has been in effect.
Excerpts from health care providers featured in the brief are below.
Bhavik Kumar, M.D., M.P.H., Texas; Planned Parenthood provider“When Texas banned abortion in the spring of 2020, claiming falsely that abortion was a non-essential service, our clinic was forced to shut down four different times. I remember one patient who came to our clinic four times—we had to turn her away twice because of court orders that were issued while she was in our waiting room. I had patients who had to travel, in the middle of a pandemic, to as far as Chicago or Colorado, to access the care that we could have provided right here. And I had other patients who didn’t have the means or ability to travel out of state.”
Amna Dermish, M.D., Texas; Planned Parenthood provider“Just today, I had to turn away several patients who were too far along to obtain an abortion in Texas, including a patient who was less than six weeks pregnant. One curled up into a fetal position and started bawling hysterically. The others reacted more calmly but with no less devastation. I’m already dreading tomorrow, where I will yet again be forced to inflict pain on my patients as I deny them the care they need.”
Lori Williams, M.S.N., A.P.R.N., Arkansas; National Abortion Federation board chair“For me, abortion care is natural. It is a calling. It is my passion. People in the abortion community— people who feel just as passionately about their work as I do—have said to me, ‘You’ve chosen such a hard place to provide this care. You could do this in places where it wouldn’t be so stressful and difficult. Why Arkansas?’ But I always knew that I needed to do this work in Arkansas. And I still feel that way.”
Ying Zhang, M.D., Washington“I provide full-spectrum primary care. That includes taking care of babies, children, adults, and older people. And it includes taking care of people who are pregnant and want to be pregnant, and people who are pregnant and don’t want to be pregnant. With that perspective, it’s easy for me to see that abortion care should be a regular part of healthcare. It is care that people need to live their fullest and best lives.”
Ghazaleh Moayedi, D.O., M.P.H., Texas and Oklahoma; Physicians for Reproductive Health board member“The biggest obstacle is a lack of access to abortion clinics. In Texas, there are far more places that deceive people about how far along they are and what their options are than there are facilities providing abortion care.”
DeShawn Taylor, M.D., M.Sc., FACOG., Arizona; owner, founder, and physician at Desert Star Family Planning clinic and Abortion Care Network board member“Abortion saves lives. … The state talks about demeaning the medical profession. But what is the black eye on the profession? It’s not giving that person the procedure she needs and letting her die.”
Colleen McNicholas, D.O., M.S., Missouri, Illinois, and Oklahoma; Planned Parenthood provider “We are already seeing patients six days a week for nine hours a day. If we have to absorb even more patients from other states, that means longer delays. It is ironic that the politicians who are trying to restrict second trimester abortion procedures are the ones who will be responsible for pushing abortion later into gestation, including well into the second trimester.”
Jessica Mecklosky, medical student, Medical Students for Choice board of directors“These patients desperately need accurate information about their reproductive health, from sex education to abortion counselling, and they aren’t getting it.”
Dr. Kristina Tocce, M.D., M.P.H., Colorado; Planned Parenthood provider“In April 2020, after Texas banned abortion, our clinic in Colorado saw a massive increase in patients from Texas. Patients were literally fleeing the state to obtain the care they needed, in some cases driving 12 hours each way. … Many—in particular patients of color and patients I perceived to be undocumented—not only had to get time off work, find a ride, coordinate childcare, and arrange for housing and food while on the road.”
Yashica Robinson, M.D., Alabama; Physicians for Reproductive Health board member“As an abortion provider, I strive for integrity and to maintain the ethics of the profession. That means providing patients the care that they need. Like many abortion providers, that is one of the reasons I fight to provide this care. It is unethical to withhold care that a patient needs, sometimes so desperately. That is especially true with patients who have the fewest financial resources, the least amount of social support, and very little meaningful access to healthcare in general. They are the ones most affected by restrictions on abortion.”
Amy Hagstrom Miller, Texas, Maryland, Virginia, Indiana, and Minnesota; president of Whole Woman’s Health and Whole Woman’s Health Alliance“How people obtain abortions in this country is day and night depending on where they live, even though the abortion procedure and safety outcomes are the same everywhere. In some states, government-imposed barriers make it exceedingly difficult for people to access abortion and delay their care. In states where Medicaid and private insurance do not cover abortion, where patients must make two trips to the abortion facility, and where few clinics remain because of state restrictions, patients are more likely to be pushed into the second trimester. And for some patients, these state-imposed barriers make it impossible for them to access an abortion at all.”
Mugdha Mokashi, medical student, past-president of Medical Students for Choice board of directors “It means that where someone resides will directly impact their ability to live their lives on their own terms. And it will deepen inequities in our society.”
Mona Reis, Florida; founder of Presidential Women’s Center“We are about to put people into crisis—especially people with the least resources. I cannot believe this is still not settled, that women still don’t have access to comprehensive healthcare. To me, it is the most fundamental right we have. Having an abortion can be one of the most important decisions a woman will ever make.”
By Felipe on September 20th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post
Misinformation continues to be a complex issue that creates unseen barriers to access and quality care in sexual and reproductive health (SRH). Finding ways to break down science-dense language and reproductive legislation in general terms was a challenge that one of our West Africa chapters decided to take on. In collaboration with the Population Reference Bureau, the MSFC chapter in Benin created a resource for a medical student on abortion and family planning. Our student leaders developed an infographic pamphlet to assist future healthcare workers in understanding why the gap for comprehensive sexual and reproductive healthcare needs to be filled. We are excited to share this new guide with you all!
The guide details a call to action to major leaders and key health agencies in Benin to increase support for safe abortion care, reduce abortion stigma, and implement programs that secure and support the equitable distribution of sexual and reproductive health preventative medicine. Most importantly, the guide uses data and statistics to raise awareness on the commitments to bodily autonomy, and women’s SRH outlined the keystone Maputo Protocol of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa.
We asked Bachirou, a student at the chapter, to share their thoughts on the deliverable. Here’s what they had to say:
“This booklet takes stock of abortion in Benin currently and traces all the laws on abortion in Benin; the disadvantages of clandestine abortion, the advantages of safe abortion, and some calls to action from each reader to commit to the reduction of mortality linked to clandestine abortion by clearly understanding the legislation on safe abortion in Benin.”
*Please note that this guide was made within the context of a Francophone population and is therefore only available in French.
Email students@msfc.org if you would like access to the PDF version of this deliverable.
By Felipe on September 07th, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post, Featured Article
One aspect that makes Medical Students for Choice unique—and amazing—is that our Board of Directors is required to be at least 51% medical students. Our Board president is always a medical student! This means that our constituency is driving the vision of the organization at all times. Here, three of our new Board members—Rose Al Abosy (US), Dango Mwambene (South Africa), and Hadiza Philippa Balaraba Thompson (Nigeria)—, and our new President, Kalin Gregory-Davis (US), share their passion, goals and dreams for MSFC.
Why is advocating for safe abortion and reproductive justice important to you?
Kalin
Before medical school, I worked at an abortion clinic and saw firsthand the incredible lengths that people had to go through to get an abortion in this country. I saw patients travel 15 hours by bus to get the care they needed. And it made me wonder what those who couldn’t travel were doing. When access to safe abortion is restricted, the most destitute are hit the hardest. As a future abortion provider, it feels incredibly important to change a medical system that preferentiates the most privileged. With the current political landscape and the foundations of racism in this country, I see my role as a future physician to be inextricably linked to advocacy for safe abortion and reproductive justice. It wouldn’t feel just to practice any other way.
Rose
Reproductive Justice, and, more generally, bodily autonomy, eludes those who are denied social, political, and economic power and resources. The most oppressed and marginalized among us experience the most barriers as they try to make decisions about their bodies and families, for themselves and their communities. This has a far-reaching impact: when individuals are denied the ability to exert reproductive agency, entire communities are denied the ability to determine their futures. That is why advocating for safe abortion and Reproductive Justice is so important to me: it is a profound way to push against structural oppression, and return to people the power to live in their bodies and within their communities on their own terms.
Dango
I’m a young, Black, bisexual, immigrant, African ciswoman. Reproductive Justice isn’t a concept I’m working towards for my future patients but for myself and my larger Black and Queer community. This work is deeply personal. As a domestic violence survivor, I can attest to the fact that feminism saved my life.
Hadiza
This is not a fight that started with me. It is one that has been happening long before my existence. Women forced against their will to keep pregnancies they felt incapable of keeping, shutting their mouths and nodding in humble submission to the patriarchs of their day to “keep the peace”. And we still suffer such in the present day. In desperation, many women lose their lives while seeking a way out—the unsafe way. I say, “my body, my choice, my life”. Advocating for safe abortion and Reproductive Justice is important to me because it’s more than a movement for me. It’s the way to do what my ancestors didn’t do, liberate the generations to come. The God I serve gave me a choice on whether or not to love Him. Who am I then to decide for another human being?
What goals/visions/wildest dreams, do you have for MSFC?
Kalin
My wildest dream is simply that MSFC remains open to growth, and changes with the world’s needs. I want us to not just be reactive but proactive as landscapes shift. We have the opportunity to keep our finger on the pulse and be visionaries in how to provide and expand abortion education across the globe. We have incredible student leaders who are committed to supporting one another and keeping abortion safe, legal, and accessible. I want students to feel inspired, to continue understanding their physician role as advocates, and to keep building movements committed to reproductive justice worldwide. This can look a lot of different ways, and my goal for MSFC is to keep an open and innovative mind for how to shift with what is most needed in any given context.
Rose
My wildest dream for MSFC is that we, as an organization, can fully embody and demonstrate exactly how impactful medical students can be at this level of training. To even be admitted into medical school is an immense privilege that comes with power, the extent of which is hard to imagine when the journey ahead is so daunting, and the sheer amount to learn is so humbling. But we do have a lot of power! Our experiences give us so much insight into how medicine can be improved to better serve the patients we care for, and further support a politics of liberation for all. My vision for MSFC is that we empower medical students to begin that difficult work early in their training, and strengthen their advocacy skillset throughout their training, to create providers that can bring an emancipatory practice of medicine into being.
Dango
My wildest dream for MSFC is global feminist takeover *mwahahahaha*. Jokes. My vision is a global feminist alliance that aims to institutionalize sexual and reproductive justice. I hope to be part of a generation of young doctors that takes back the evidence and narrative around sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and influences local policy and public perception around SRH. My wildest dream is creating a world that is fundamentally rooted in choice/autonomy, psychological and bodily integrity, and equitable access to the highest standard of living.
Hadiza
My biggest dream for MSFC is to penetrate the most restrictive countries of the world with our movement. And to ensure that at some point, they can see what we see and share our vision and goals. It is my hope that MSFC and its chapters will produce more healthcare professionals equipped to cater to their patients’ reproductive needs irrespective of their own moral values.
By Felipe on August 31st, 2021. Posted under: Blog Post, Featured Article
Italia Aranda Gonzalez, representing the Mariposa Fund based in New Mexico, generously presented to MSFC membership about the intersection of reproductive justice and immigrant rights. Italia Aranda Gonzalez is a DACA recipient and has worked tenaciously as a community organizer for over ten years addressing the various health disparities impacting undocumented communities across the country. Italia currently specializes as a pregnancy options counselor and abortion doula at a local reproductive health clinic. The Mariposa Fund provides financial support to pregnant people seeking abortion care who do not have access to other funding. Although New Mexico is one of the fifteen states that allows Medicaid recipients to use their coverage for abortion care, not all people living in New Mexico can access Medicaid. For example, undocumented immigrants cannot, but neither can legal non-citizens during a 5-year waiting period or Native Americans using the Indian Health Services (IHS) due to the Hyde amendment’s ban on federal funds for abortion services. The Mariposa Fund also provides funds for family planning services, giving more than $10,000 in long-acting reversible contraception (LARCs).
Italia taught us about how Immigrant justice is deeply rooted in racial justice, “fighting for equitable power, access, opportunities, treatment, impacts and outcomes” (Uprooting Racism). Undocumented immigrants have the right to live in peace, without fear of deportation. People have a right to migrate and deserve to seek better opportunities. Often, people are migrating because they are being displaced. All people have the right to choose if and when they parent and to raise their children in safe and healthy environments. Here is the crux of the intersection between immigrant rights and reproductive justice.
There are many reasons why undocumented immigrants may eschew seeking medical care. First, the medical system has a long history and continued medical abuse and coercion, resulting in forced sterilization and other trauma. Additionally, women and trans and gender non-conforming (GNC) peoples face heightened scrutiny of decisions they make for themselves, and this scrutiny is compounded for people of color.
Italia illustrated several areas within reproductive health and rights that need to be tackled to better align with reproductive justice.
Within the reproductive health framework (which focuses on service provision):
- Immigrants – especially undocumented women, are less likely to receive SRH services, including screenings for breast and cervical cancer, STI testing, family planning services
- GNC people face higher discrimination and higher rates of negative healthcare experiences
- Less access to culturally and linguistically appropriate care
- Less likely to report hostile work environments or unsafe working conditions
Within the reproductive rights framework (which focuses on the legal system):
- A lack of comprehensive laws that detail the rights of all individuals to access reproductive health services
- Politics and existing regulations are based on gendered, sexualized, and radicalized acts of dominance that occur everywhere, every day
- Reproductive rights need to address more than abortion. We need rights that protect and expand access to health education, family planning, safe and healthy living and work environments, right to be free from torture and violence
How can you help? Italia has some great suggestions!
- Learn about the policies in your state that support or prevent undocumented people from accessing care
- What policies are in place at your clinical sites and future practices to support people who can’t afford care?
- What policies are in place that would prevent someone from accessing care? Interpreters, language on consents forms, acceptance of federal IDs only?
- Is your clinical site a safe space for undocumented people? How would undocumented people know it is a safe space?
- Connect with local, state, and national organizations who are leading this work to access resources, training, and support:
