A vast array of options
There are many ways that you can become a volunteer in the abortion access movement, some of which you may have heard of and some you have not! Here’s an overview different opportunities and how they fit into the larger abortion access ecosystem.
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Lend your professional expertise to abortion access organizations and seekers. Jump to more info here.
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Work directly with abortion seekers to provide emotional, financial and logistical support. Jump to more information about what that means and who does it here.
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Become an activist and advocate by lending your voice. Jump to find out more here.
See below for more information about each of these opportunities and key players doing the work.
Pro Bono Expert Support
Legal Services
Movement organizations rely on low-cost and pro bono legal services. Many organizations cannot afford to hire a law firm let alone have internal general counsel. In an eternally shifting legal landscape, having access to legal representation that can offer concrete information and support is invaluable.
Abortion Defense Network offers pro bono services for orgs
If/When/How Network offers pro bono services to people who have been criminalized related to their abortion
Who are some main players?
Tech is expensive and can be time-consuming to build but invaluable to leverage and streamline infrastructure for workers on the ground. Volunteers can help ensure that organizations that cannot afford to set up the technology they need to run effectively are able to do so.
Tech & Digital Security
Techies for Reproductive Justice is a coalition of technologists who want to offer free tech services to abortion access organizations and people.
Ineedana.com uses volunteers to help ensure the expansive database of clinics is accurate and working correctly.
Who are some main players?
Direct Service
Abortion funds
Abortion funds help cover the costs of procedures for people who are not able to afford their abortions. Many abortion funds are volunteer-run or rely heavily on volunteers to help manage their hotlines and services.
National Network of Abortion Funds is a membership organization of groups that provide procedural funds and many practical support organizations. You can find their list of members here to find one in your area.
Who are some main players?
Practical support organizations offer logistics to ensure that abortion seekers can get to their appointments, anything from booking flights and hotels to driving patients to and from appointments. Many abortion funds offer practical support and vice versa.
Practical support
Who are some main players?
Apiary for Practical Support is the national hub for organizations providing logistical support. You can find the list of all groups offering practical support here.
Clinic escorts
To protect their patients as they enter the clinic, many abortion providers have what they call “clinic escorts” to accompany patients from the parking lot into the doors of the facility.
Who are some main players?
Clinics generally manage their own clinic escorts or have particular relationships with a local group. You can search here for your local clinic and to find out if they have a clinic escort project.
Emotional support
Abortions can bring a lot of feelings up in a person, from confusion to fear to joy. Emotional support services offer compassionate outlets for all of it.
M+A Hotline, the guide to Miscarriage & Abortion, is a team of volunteer clinicians to counsel abortion seekers.
All-Options provides counseling to pregnant people looking to understand all the options available to them.
Reprocare helps answer peoples’ questions about abortion pills.
Some abortion funds also provide doula services - it’s worth looking!
Who are some main players?
Advocacy and Storytelling
Share your story
One of the most powerful things you can do is talk - about your abortion, about abortion work, about how abortion has shaped your life. These organizations help you use your voice.
Shout Your Abortion has a vast library of abortion stories - you can add yours here.
Reclaim’s Abortion Storytelling Project uses abortion stories to help shape policy to make our world more pro-abortion.
Abortion Out Loud is a project of Advocates for Youth, which helps young people learn how to become active participants in our political world.
WeTestify helps train storytellers on how to tell their stories in various settings, from a rally to a senate hearing, and best practices around safety.
Who are some main players?
Grassroots Organizing
Anyone can be an activist! These organizations provide concrete ways you can get involved in your community.
Shout Your Abortion has created resources for how you can get started - you can read and sign up for more details here.
Abortion Access Front’s Operation Save Abortion has practical ways to support your local clinic and abortion seekers.
Plan C Pills’s Discord is a network of local activists finding ways to get engaged.
Who are some main players?
Student Organizing
Engaging the next generation of activists is necessary. These organizations offer ways for high school and college students to work directly with their communities and campuses, ensuring their futures are safe and protected.
Advocates for Youth runs ongoing national campaigns to engage young people in support their access to sexual and reproductive health.
URGE hosts activist chapters across campuses to build power, share stories, engage voters and shift narratives.
Medical Students for Choice ensures that the next generation of medical professionals have access to abortion training to provide safe, expansive care.