Blegging for a good cause

Hi everyone. I just have a quick request today. Please help me honor the life and work of one of our own.

Ryan Goskie's death earlier this month was a blow to many of us who worked in this field, and I for one am still trying to get my head around the idea that someone with so much energy and heart is just gone and won't be coming back.

His partner let us know that donations are being raised to build a small memorial in Ryan's favorite park. It's no substitute for the man himself, but it will be a nice way to mark his existence in the world. I donated last week and am happy to see the fund has nearly reached its goal, so I hope our readers can be the ones to help push it over the top. Please contribute whatever little bit you can!

You can also donate toward abortion care for a woman who can't afford the whole cost on her own. Consider giving in Ryan's honor to the local fund for Missouri, the state where Ryan worked as a volunteer patient escort, an administrator, and a clinical assistant.

Guest post: Just go balls out, already

On Friday we hosted Steph's guest post about discovering that non-profit pro-choice organizations are not 100% enthusiastic about the prospect of having employees who engage in activism or community organizing outside of work. Sure, Steph could've just happened to interview with an unusual number of control freaks. Or, just maybe, she's found one limitation of a system that forces would-be agents of change to rely on the goodwill (and coinciding self-interest) of granting foundations whose endowments come from fundamentally change-averse corporations. Call it the nonprofit-industrial complex. 
A grassroots organization, called INCITE! Women of Color Again Violence, edited a book on this very subject and entitled it "The Revolution Will Not Be Funded." But if it won't be funded -- if we can't rely on billionaires to solve poverty (we can't even rely on employers to employ us!) -- how will we make any progress in ensuring that women facing problematic pregnancies can actually use the rights they supposedly have? Our Monday guest blogger, WentRogue, has plenty of good reasons for you to join her in grassroots fundraising. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Putting the fun in grassroots fundraising!

Last night as I was mulling topic options for my fifteen minutes of honorary tangential abortioneer fame: hmm, do I want to rail about the class warfare being waged, right now, on the bodies of the poor? (Seriously? How pedantic can I be?) About the darkest of language arts used so skillfully against us all by the likes of Frank Luntz? (What do I think I am, a semiotician?) Maybe I should just steal someone else's words, someone like Lynn Paltrow, who sums it up so perfectly that I tried to use this paragraph* as my defining Facebook profile quote for a while? WAIT, JUST WHAT AM I TRYING TO GET AT IN ONE PITHY BLOG POST ANYWAY? an email from a friend came in, a distraction amidst distractions:

Subject: Do you know of any resources for this woman?

And you KNOW what kind of resources she's going to be asking about.

And no, I DON'T know of any resources for this woman, who it turns out is majorly screwed by geography and circumstance. She's in a town on the far western side of South Dakota, smack in the middle of the country a good six hour drive from the only abortion clinic in her state and a little further still from the nearest clinics in Montana, Wyoming or Colorado. And even though she's only a couple of weeks into a pregnancy that she tried to prevent with a dose of emergency contraception she could barely afford—giving her a couple more weeks' time to scramble for $500, fast—how the hell is she going to get time off from the job she just started and who the hell is going to watch her three kids while she's gone on her twelve hour odyssey (not including pit stops or the entire day at the clinic)? And oh yeah, she doesn't have a car.

All of that is BEFORE her state's 72-hour "cooling off period" takes effect.

I HATE these emails. I HATE them. As an honorary tangential abortioneer, I don't directly provide abortion care but I do know that the abortion fund in Minnesota is nearly dry. I know that the abortion fund in South Dakota is, too. I've answered the phones at my local abortion fund hotline and I've heard the resignation in women's voices when the most we can pledge just isn't going to be quite enough. It is, as you can imagine, a horrible sound.

I work part time for the National Network of Abortion Funds. That may be what earned me an honorary tangential abortioneer post, and it may be why my friends forward emails like these, with the glimmer of hope that I just might know about a secret stash hidden somewhere in the supply room. But the only stash I know about is the one we're padding right now: the get-your-friends-and-lace-up-your-bowling-shoes stash.

A bowl-a-thon for abortion access?

Is that really the single answer to the wealth inequality gap? No! But it is a way to DO SOMETHING TANGIBLE, NOW. Last year, grassroots activists, including the beloved Abortioneers, bowled their hearts out and raised $180,000—that would pay for a lot of twelve-hour car trips—in the first ever national abortion access bowl-a-thon. And this year, we're aiming even higher, because the stakes are even higher. The beauty of it is that EVERYONE CAN BE A PART OF THIS EVENT, by joining a local, on-the-ground bowl-a-thon, or pledging to raise $100 in a virtual bowl-a-thon, or simply contributing to the event itself. And, well, it's the most fun you'll ever have in rented shoes!

*Today's highly politicized and polarizing abortion debate creates the false and destructive illusion that there are two kinds of women—women who have abortions and women who have babies. The reality is that they are all the same women and they are all increasingly facing state control, as well as limitations on access to care as a result of conflicts with professional organizations, imposition of religious directives in health care institutions, anti-abortion/fetal rights laws and rhetoric and issues concerning health care financing that interfere with their ability to make decisions regarding their pregnancies, birthing options, the childbirth process, their lives and their families' well-being.
Lynn Paltrow, National Advocates for Pregnant Women

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

WentRogue is more than an "honorary tangential abortioneer": in offering women practical resources to obtaining abortion care, and speaking with them about their situations and needs, she is providing abortion care! When not organizing local, national and virtual communities to provide tangible support for women facing reproductive injustice, WentRogue can be found tweeting for abortion access and other vital things at www.twitter.com/WentRogue.  

Bowling for 'Bortion

Sorry about the late post today. This abortioneer has had a long couple of weeks.

While looking around on facebook the other day, I saw that NNAF is launching its annual bowl-a-thon. If you haven't heard of this, in the next month or so funds across the country will be "bowling for abortion access." If you go to the bowl-a-thon website, you can see more details including which funds have signed up so far. You can start a team, register with the site, and start raising money. Then you get to go bowling with lots of other fun pro-choicers. I don't know about you, but this abortioneer cannot wait to strap on a pair of awesome rental shoes and throw some balls (hopefully strikes) to raise money for my local abortion fund.

Events like this are so important for small abortion funds. These funds do their best to help the poorest women have the same access to reproductive health care that many of us do. With the economy still struggling, and many women pinching pennies just to put food on the table and pay their bills, it's nice to be able to help.

Money, money, money

It's been a while since we've had a fund spotlight, and many funds are really hurting right now. As I'm sure many if not all of you know, abortion funding is a real problem in this country. Federal funding for abortion care is outlawed due to the Hyde Amendment, a law that has been renewed annually since its inception in 1976. There are 15 states that, by law, fund some abortion care through their state Medicaid program. Some of these Medicaid programs are better than others but none of them go far enough. It's difficult to qualify for Medicaid, it can take a lot of time, and not all women know how to adequately advocate for themselves through the government "red tape".

This is where private abortion funds step in. There are abortion funds throughout the country, some that help women nationally and some that help women in a local area. These funds do the best they can, working hard to fundraise as much as possible. However, due to their extremely limited resources they have to restrict who they can fund money to and how much they can give per person. This leaves many women out of luck. Right now many, probably most, of these funds are in dire straits and desperately need help to continue on.

National Funds - those that help women across the country.

The Make a Difference Fund is 100% volunteer run and all of the money they raise goes to help women.

The 3rd Wave Foundation runs programs aimed at women and transgender youth, 15-30 years old. One of the programs they run is an abortion fund for women in need under 30 years old.

The Women's Reproductive Rights Assistance Project. They help women of all ages going to clinics that are part of the National Abortion Federation and/or the National Coalition of Abortion Providers.

Local Funds

There are too many local funds for me to fairly list them here, but the local funds are in particular need of help. They help women in a specific state or part of a state and often work very closely with the clinics in their area. Because they're local, fundraising can be more dificult, particularly if they are located in a more conservative area. Visit the National Network of Abortion Funds to find a local fund near you that you can help.


I know times are tough for everyone, but these funds need our help. Nothing is too small, even $10 a month would go a long way.

It's NEVER Too Late to DONATE!

Hi guys,

I'm running myself ragged and of course running late once again. Maybe you're getting tired of hearing us say it, but we need you to donate to our virtual bowling team through the National Network of Abortion Funds bowl-a-thon. NNAF has already reached their overall goal, but we have only reached a fraction of our goal and would like to keep going. We can never raise enough, after all -- every dollar we are able to contribute is a step in making reproductive choices possible.

Personally -- I cannot tell a lie -- I tend to be pretty tight-fisted with my money. I donate small amounts to a very select set of causes and organizations. If you have had a friend or organization help pay for your abortion, regular contraceptive method or EC, then you know every single dollar is a step closer. If you're someone who has a savings stash for just in case you need EC or an abortion, then consider donating a small portion of it or maybe even all of it. I did after reading Daughter of Wands' post on April 15th.

Whatever it takes and whatever amount, PLEASE support our bowling team or another. The bowl-a-thon campaign officially ends May 6, but if you need to donate later, the National Network of Abortion Funds and local funds are always accepting donations! 

Love,
Sparky

Tax time

Sorry, I know you've seen this one before. It's just so apt. 

Did you file your taxes on time? I did, but just barely, because unlike the last couple of years, life was just way too crazy in January, February, and March to even think about anything beyond the coming week.

So I was doing the April-Fifteenth hustle and feeling anxious to hear how much I'd be getting back, because my bank balance has been dropping steadily over the weeks, much to this over-scheduled, under-employed wage-worker/student's dismay. And I thought of my funding clients -- the women who were struggling to make one paycheck stretch to the next, couldn't quite scrape together the full cost of their abortion care, and turned to local or national funds in hopes of pleading for the difference.

A couple springs ago, I was fully immersed in funding cases and found myself really impressed at all my clients who were so on top of their shit that they had already filed their tax returns. At some point it dawned on me that they HAD to be on top of their shit -- and they HAD to get an H&R Block "refund anticipation loan" or something similar, and give the preparers a cut of the return -- so that they could count on their tax return to help pay for their abortion services.

To so many of my clients, the idea of having savings for health emergencies is a nice dream. As shitty as it is to be faced with an unwanted pregnancy at any time, the spring clients could at least say, "Thank God this didn't happen in December," when obligations like traveling home and finding your kids a gift and keeping the gas account open would have made it even harder to raise the needed money for themselves. At least, since it was happening in February, they could get to work on a refund advance right away. Even if the tax people do turn it into a 15%-interest loan.

I can't tell you how sick I got of hearing, during this health-insurance reform circus, the petty selfishness of "Why should my tax dollars pay for abortions?" Even as people say that shit, thousands and millions of women out there are diligently filing their taxes each spring, hoping their measly take-home was measly enough to warrant a refund check to serve as non-existent health savings account, because "we" can't be bothered to provide a basic, extremely-common health service with "OUR MONEY."

This is all a very long, roundabout way of saying: Please fucking donate to the National Network of Abortion Funds Bowl-a-Thon. Even if it's just twenty, ten, or five dollars. Then email it to at least three people who might care. Can you do that? Please? It's the least we can do, living in this country full of very pious people who'd rather save their dollars to be dipped in the blood-bath of foreign wars and police abuse than see one cent of public "support" for the fact that women may choose not to be pregnant.

Utopia

I'm sitting here in my apartment, looking out the window at the trees dancing in the spring breeze. My cat walked by and gently rubbed my foot as I took a sip of tea. I have no obligations for this day except for writing this post and reading my books in time to get them back to the library. It's the kind of nearly-perfect day that makes me think about what would be absolutely perfect: A world where Sunday means nothing but relaxing with a cat and books and tea, no matter how warm it is outside, and also, a world where OF COURSE everyone wants abortion to be included in the new healthcare plan, where woman talk about their (positive) abortion experiences in the same breath as they talk about the frozen yogurt they had last night, where Medicaid pays for all abortions, where birth control is affordable and accessible and side effect-free, where abortion providers are heroes to all, where every child is wanted, where every termination is a blessing, and where no woman has to panic or give up her dignity or feel complete despair because she doesn't have the money or the means to terminate her unwanted pregnancy. Oh, and also a world where I am 5'9" and I have chocolate pouring out of my kitchen faucet and I have a unicorn.

I'd give up my Sunday afternoon leisure and all the tea in my kitchen (the new version of "all the tea in China," because I'm pretty sure I have more, and who talks about China like that anymore?) if I never had to hear another potential patient sob about how she couldn't possibly continue this pregnancy because she had no job and no support and her kids were already wearing clothes that were too small, so how in the world would she be able to get the hundreds or even thousands of dollars needed to have an abortion? And I would love to see someone merrily purchasing Tory Burch Revas (How do I even know about those?) without automatically, bitterly thinking, "Enjoy your flats. Clearly, they will help the average American woman much more than anything else you could possibly spend your money on."

I'm no Tory Burch buyer, and I'm not even a Chuck Taylor buyer--I can only afford the One Stars at Target. But I pledge to forgo my little splurges on coffee, Lush shampoo, clearance rack earrings, and unicorn in favor of making a donation to the NNAF Bowl-a-thon. Dear reader, will you please pledge to do the same?

Bowling for Abortion Access

She’s a single mom with two small children. She can’t find a job, and her unemployment will soon run out. If she can barely take care of herself and her kids now, how will she support another child? She’s a teenager who’s afraid to tell her parents. If she has a baby, what will happen to her? What will her parents do? Will she be able to graduate high school? She was raped, and she’s scared. She hasn’t told anyone what happened because she fears they won’t believe her. Her family and friends don’t agree with abortion; what would she say to them? She’s a mom who found out her daughter is pregnant. She wants to be supportive, but she can barely pay her bills as it is.

She’s you.

She’s me.

She’s your friend.

She’s your sister.

She’s your co-worker.

She’s any one of us.

What can I do to help? What can you do to help? As Sparky posted yesterday, the National Network of Abortion Funds is organizing a bowl-a-thon. Local and national funds are participating in it, individuals, and bloggers like us. What can you do to help? You can donate to the cause. Anything helps – even small amounts add up. Our bowl-a-thon goal is $1,000, and the idea is to raise money by the 16^th – THIS FRIDAY. We need your help to reach this goal. All of the money goes directly to the NNAF who will then use the money to assist these women in exercising their choice to have reproductive freedom.

Money Makes The Difference

Money is about survival. Money determines the choices we make in life, which choices are available to us, which option we decide, and how the choice is carried out. In anyplace, USA, money is a huge factor in any choice big or small.

We often tell stories of rescheduled appointments, missed appointments, and pregnancies unwillingly carried to term. Of course, that story often ends here with us: we support women who can find a way to handle most of the factors in choosing to have an abortion or not, and the saga can end there. She is then just another women who did, or did not have her abortion. I have helped a friend pay for her abortion, and another friend's birth control, and emergency contraception for another. However, my social network only reaches so far, so it's still important for me to support funds that reach out to women I'll never know.

We can all be abortioneers: supportive sisters and people who help facilitate sexual and reproductive health and care. There are lots of abortion access funds, often 501(c)3, that accept donations. These funds often make the difference for women who need it most. They are able to offer the last $75, $100, or even $150 for a woman who might otherwise have to postpone or cancel her appointment. But they literally exist through support from people like us -- not from the government, and very rarely from official grants.

It is incredibly important that each of us support both local and national funds so they can offer financial support to women who direly need it. To raise money in a public and fun-type fashion, the National Network of Abortion Funds is holding a bowl-a-thon! The nice part is, for those of us who aren't all in one place or anywhere near a bowling alley, there is the Blogger Bowl-a-thon: We write, you donate, and we stop pestering you when the goal is reached.



The Abortioneers have a team, and our goal is to raise at least $1000 of the entire goal of $125,000. This is only a small fraction of the entire goal but I'm confident we can raise $1000 plus some. The National Network of Abortion Funds is a network of many of the local grassroots organizations that help women pay for abortions in their prospective areas.

Please go and support local funds all over the country by making a donation, even if you have to wait til payday! Every dollar counts, literally! Additionally, if there is a bowl-a-thon team playing at your neighborhood lanes, you can support them too and help NNAF meet their total goal.