While the economic climate has proven challenging for many of us, its impact has been deepest among low-income women and families. Many have lost jobs and benefits or make just enough that they do not qualify for public assistance. These women count on NYAAF and NYAAF counts on you.

Melissa is 26 years old. She has a husband serving in the U.S. military overseas and a young daughter with numerous special health care needs. When they learned that she was pregnant, Melissa and her husband considered their limited resources and decided to seek an abortion. The ban on federal funding for abortion meant that this basic medical service was not covered. Melissa managed to raise half of the cost of her procedure by delaying paying non-essential bills. NYAAF pledged the other half.

Erika is a 19-year-old college student with an infant. Her boyfriend had recently been laid off, leaving their family uninsured. She called NYAAF for help when her family refused to offer assistance. She’d saved $100 dollars from her student loan check. NYAAF pledged the remaining $250 and Erika received the abortion care she needed.

These are just two of the 250 women that NYAAF was able to help last year. The women that we serve are diverse in age, background, family status and race/ethnicity. They are united by the fact that, while they live in a country where abortion is safe and legal, for many it is not accessible without financial assistance.

Without NYAAF, low-income women across New York State will fall through the cracks. We help them find and access safe and affordable abortion services and we negotiate directly with clinics to offer discounted services.

This holiday season, we thank you for your past support and invite you to help us ensure that abortion is safe, legal, accessible, and funded. One-hundred percent of your tax-deductible donation directly supports low-income women’s abortions.

With gratitude,

The NYAAF Board of Directors

167 Spring St, New York, NY (Near the A/C/E, N/R, B/D/F/M)
Saturday, November 12
12 – 1pm, VIP Happy Hour (two cocktails, first access to items), suggested donation of $40
1 – 3pm, General admission, $20 suggested donation

Click here for more information.

I was twenty years old last summer when I found out I was pregnant. About to enter my senior year of college with no interest in having a child, in a relationship with someone who most certainly wasn’t ready to be a parent and who had very little money, the choice was obvious. Though I have my fair share of miserable pregnancy stories (namely, ones of vomiting), when I think about last summer, I am mostly struck by how fortunate I was in my experiences.

One of my closest friends had become pregnant, and had an abortion, a few months prior. Thanks to her, I was able to find an amazing private practice close to where I lived. When I first called them, I was stunned by how patient, un-biased, and helpful the employees were in explaining my options and listening to my story. They gave me a discount on the procedure because I was a full-time student. My partner at the time was even allowed to be in the room with me when I had the abortion. Because I come from a financially stable family and worked the entire time I was in school, I was able to pay for the procedure out of my own pocket without any assistance, and without putting myself in a precarious position. If I hadn’t had enough money, I know my family would have helped me out. Even better, I have insurance, and the company fully reimbursed me for the abortion.

But what if things had been different? After all, my partner did not and could not contribute any money at all. I could very easily have been born to anti-choice parents, or to parents who couldn’t have helped me if I needed extra money. I could have been uninsured, or my insurance company could have not covered abortion. I could have not had enough money to pay for the procedure myself – a position that SO many women are in. A week ago, I found out a friend of mine was pregnant and uninsured, and the man who got her pregnant doesn’t have enough money to help pay for the abortion right now. I’m referring her to the New York Abortion Access Fund.

Though I made the right decision for myself quickly and with no regrets, that doesn’t lessen the blow of what I’ve been through. And it would have been infinitely more stressful if I didn’t have enough money. No woman should be prevented from making her own choices about her body and about parenthood, but unfortunately, income DOES prevent some women from being able to make the decision that they feel is best. Which is why an organization like the New York Abortion Access Fund is so important – had just one or two things in my life been different, there’s a good chance I would have had to turn to NYAAF for some help. Being one step away from that put into perspective just how valuable their work is , which is why I’m sharing this, and why I’m going to start doing volunteer work for them.

Every woman deserves full access to healthcare, and to be in control over her own life. We need to support the groups like NYAAF that help make that a reality.

Aiyana lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. You can contact her at toomanyvowels@gmail.com.

• Wall Street Journal: Do Dirty Dancing and Thelma & Louisa Still Matter?
• Village Voice: Eleanor Bergstein, Screenwriter, Talks Dirty Dancing
• Feministe: I Had The Time of My Life–Dirty Dancing, Remakes, and Battles We’re Still Fighting
• Tablet Magazine: Is ‘Dirty Dancing’ the Most Jewish Film Ever?
• Jezebel: How To Say “Nobody Puts Baby In A Corner” In German (with video clips!)

On Monday, August 8, NYAAF is is teaming up with the fab blog Jezebel to host a benefit screening of the timeless classic Dirty Dancing!

Best of all, screenwriter and producer Eleanor Bergstein will make a rare appearance for a Q&A. Watermelons optional.

Note: CHANGE OF VENUE. Due to possible thunderstorms, the event will be held at Cinema Village, 22 East 12 St between University and 5th.

Here’s what you have to do to come:

• Go here and donate $25 (more if you like) to NYAAF.
• Email dirty@jezebel.com to confirm your spot on the list.
• We have very limited capacity and strongly encourage buying tickets in advance. And anyway, aren’t you scared of closing out of this post and never feeling the rest of your whole life the way you’ll feel when you’re watching this movie for a good cause?Rooftop Screening Of Dirty Dancing

Thanks to our board members, dedicated volunteers, and YOU for helping us raise over $70,000 to help women and girls access safe abortion services in New York State.

Because when the going gets tough, the tough GO BALLS OUT!

The bowl-a-thon is an exciting opportunity to raise money for NYAAF and also to have a great time with activists in New York City. Last year hundreds of teams from around the country raised over $175,000 for abortion access—and this year we’re aiming even higher!

How does it work? Easy! First, go to NYAAF’s bowl-a-thon page. Next, recruit a few friends and register your dream team: a few great team names already registered are Spare Ribs, the Stiff Boehners, and The Bowled and the Beautiful. You’re ready to start making reproductive rights a reality for women in your state!

Haven’t bowled since high school? Or EVER? Not a problem! The bowl-a-thon is about access, not prowess. There’s no pin count: the goal is to help women and girls with the resources they need to make the right decision for their lives. And it’s the most fun you’ll ever have in rented shoes!

Want to support this grassroots event but you’re too busy to bowl? Donate to one of the NYAAF teams or to an individual!

Together, we’ll strike down barriers to abortion access.

While the New York Abortion Access Fund (NYAAF) works to help women access safe abortion care, anti-choice forces are hard at work. You’ve heard about Congress voting to defund Planned Parenthood and Title X. You’ve heard about states pledging not to cover abortion in the upcoming insurance exchanges. You may not have heard how these legislative attacks can affect real women’s ability to access abortion care.

NYAAF is critically low on funds and facing the highest need in our 10-year history. Today, many women and families are struggling to make ends meet. Many have lost work and health insurance. This, coupled with increasingly restrictive abortion regulations in states across the country, means that more women than ever are coming to New York to access safe abortion care. 100% of your tax-deductible donation will go to help women access the reproductive health care they need. You can donate here. These are some of the women that your donations have already helped.

Angela* is a young woman just beginning college, with the dream of becoming a journalist. Her health plan did not include abortion coverage and she reached out to NYAAF when she discovered she was a few weeks pregnant. She contributed to her procedure with funds saved from her work-study program and NYAAF covered the remaining cost.

Stella* was excited to have her second child. At 28 weeks, she learned that her pregnancy had a fatal fetal abnormality. Her insurance covered abortion, but only until 24 weeks. She called NYAAF to help her reach a clinic in Colorado for a safe termination.

Melissa’s* husband had just lost his job when she discovered she was pregnant. With no health care coverage, two small children to care for and unreliable access to housing, she came to NYAAF looking for assistance. She made the decision based on what she and her husband felt was best for their family and with your support, NYAAF was able to help her.

These women needed NYAAF’s help, and thanks to your generous contributions, they had safe abortion procedures. With your ongoing support, we hope to help as many women as possible, but the calls for our help have been consistently higher than ever before. At the current rate, we will be out of funds within the next few months, and possibly even weeks. Your donation of $25, $50 or $100 will help women afford the safe abortion care they need. Click here to help. On our donation page you can even set up a recurring donation, to ensure that your support of NYAAF remains as constant as your commitment to women’s rights.

Thanks for all your support, and  behalf the women we serve, we thank you for your commitment to reproductive justice for all.

The NYAAF Board of Directors
*Names have been changed.