Ok Feministers, now is the time: Donate to the Feministe team and support the National Abortion Access Fund. We’re still really far away from reaching our goal, so please help out! Also, I’ll be bowling tonight in Williamsburg with Sally, Sady and some Feministe friends, and the number of beers I buy for everyone is dependent on how much Feministe raises — so help out women in need, and get your bloggers some cheap drinks in the process.
For those who are unfamiliar with the group, the National Network of Abortion Funds (NNAF) is an organization that provides financial assistance to low-income women seeking abortions. It is a network of local, grassroots organizations that work tirelessly to pay for abortion care and the surrounding costs — the procedure itself, bus or air fare to get somewhere that offers the procedure (87% of US counties don’t have an abortion provider), and a place to stay if a woman needs it. Abortion is not covered by federal (and most state) Medicaid dollars, and so low-income women and women and girls who rely on the government for their health care are out of luck when it comes to paying for the procedure. It can take months for women to scrounge together enough money, and to pawn off enough of their belongings, to afford the procedure — and as time passes, the procedure becomes harder to access and much more limited. I’ve written before about my volunteer work with the Haven Coalition, which provides housing for low-income women and girls traveling to New York for second-trimester abortions (you can read a little bit about that here, if you’re interested). In my work with Haven, I saw just how crucial NNAF’s work is for women in need. Women show up in New York City with literally nowhere to sleep — they often plan on spending the night on park benches or in the subway while they undergo a two-day-long procedure — because they have put all of their resources into paying for their abortion procedures. NNAF helps to close the financial gaps that low-income women face in terminating pregnancies. Their work is often thankless, but incredibly valuable. It gives women access to a necessary medical procedure, and it gives women a second chance.
This is an issue that is, for me, very personal and very important. The Bowl-a-Thon is a fundraiser to help NNAF continue their incredible work.
Oh and if you all get the Feministe fundraising page up to $1,000, I’ll bowl in these glasses. Except mine are peach-colored and python-print. Public humiliation for a good cause!