NYAAF’s Statement Regarding The Nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 13, 2020

Media contacts:
NYAAF Communications Co-Managers
May Sifuentes
may@nyaaf.org

Jenna McDavid
jenna@nyaaf.org

Ashwin
ashwin@nyaaf.org

New York, NY—The New York Abortion Access Fund (NYAAF) expresses its condolences to the family and loved ones of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who passed away on September 18, 2020. Justice Ginsburg took an unwavering approach towards advancing reproductive freedom, civil rights, voter protections, immigration, and healthcare, among so many of the issues that are vital to our survival. Our community continues to mourn her passing. 

This week marked the beginning of Senate confirmation hearings to seat Judge Amy Coney Barrett in Justice Ginsburg’s Supreme Court vacancy. In her time as a judge and law professor, Judge Barrett has signaled her unwillingness to support the right of a person to seek an abortion, and her record as a judge demonstrates her desire to limit reproductive rights to the fullest extent possible. Furthermore, Judge Barrett has opposed the Affordable Care Act, which provides much-needed health care; has defended the dissenters in Obergefell v. Hodges, the landmark Supreme Court ruling which made marriage equality the law of the land; and has suggested that Title IX does not apply to transgender individuals. 

Although NYAAF is not affiliated with any candidate or political party, we believe that as early voting is already underway, it is unjust and hypocritical for the Senate to try to fill this seat while many have already begun casting their ballots. We urge NYAAF supporters to call their Senators TODAY to oppose the confirmation of Judge Barrett. Dial 202-224-3121 to be connected to the Capitol Switchboard. Urge your Senators to respect the will of the people and wait until after Election Day to nominate a new justice to the Supreme Court. This toolkit from Planned Parenthood Action Fund features talking points and other ways to connect with your elected officials.

No matter what happens in the months to come, abortion funds will continue to be an important resource. Abortion funds are uniquely primed for this moment and need your partnership to continue responding to callers’ needs during these changing times. You can advance abortion access by making a generous gift to NYAAF today. You can also deepen your relationship to abortion access work in New York by becoming a volunteer

The future of the Supreme Court and access to reproductive health care is uncertain, but NYAAF remains committed to protecting abortion access for all. 

Support your local abortion fund and become a NYAAF case manager!

The New York Abortion Access Fund (NYAAF) is excited to announce we will be holding a virtual two-day case manager training on Saturday, October 24 and Sunday, October 25 from 12-3 pm

NYAAF supports anyone who is unable to pay fully for an abortion and is living in or traveling to New York State by providing financial assistance and connections to other resources. Intake case managers are dedicated volunteers who help manage our intake helpline and work directly with our clients to ensure they have the funds they need. This is a great opportunity to be trained in abortion fund case management, join a community of other committed volunteers, and learn about the abortion funding and clinic landscape in New York State firsthand.  

If you are interested in becoming a case manager and are available for the full training on both days, sign up here by October 7. Please note that space is limited and filling out this form does not guarantee a spot at the training. We will follow up confirming your spot within a week of the form closing.

We especially encourage BIPOC, people who have had an abortion, former clients of NYAAF, members of the LGBTQ+ community, bilingual Spanish-speakers, and New York residents living outside of New York City to sign up.

Feel free to reach out to info@nyaaf.org if you have any questions! 

In solidarity,

Karla, Anna, and Chelsea
Intake Team 
New York Abortion Access Fund

A Statement by the NYAAF Board of Directors Addressing the Reproductive Violence Faced by Immigrants at ICE Detention Center in Georgia

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 16, 2020


Media contacts:
NYAAF Communications Co-Managers
May Sifuentes
may@nyaaf.org

Jenna McDavid
jenna@nyaaf.org

Ashwin
ashwin@nyaaf.org

New York, NY—Yesterday, major media outlets reported allegations of forced sterilizations at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center in Ocilla, Georgia. A tip from nurse Dawn Wooten accused the Irwin County Detention Center of medically neglecting their mostly Spanish-speaking immigrant detainees as well as misinforming them about their health conditions. This resulted in an alarmingly high number of hysterectomies performed at the center. If true, these allegations robbed these individuals of their choice to decide if, when, and how to bear a child, and would constitute a violation of their human rights.

The New York Abortion Access Fund (NYAAF) is both horrified and angered by these allegations. As an organization, NYAAF believes that every person should be able to determine their own reproductive destiny and have access to the resources, rights, and respect to be able to do so — no matter who they are, or where they come from. The individuals detained at the Irwin County Detention Center were denied key aspects of a healthy, full life when they were allegedly sterilized without full consent. 

Latinx, Black, Indigenous, and immigrant communities have a long history of being subjected to reproductive violence and coercion by the United States government and other U.S.-based entities. As such, NYAAF joins activists, community leaders, and concerned citizens around the country in condemning the alleged actions of the Irwin County Detention Center and demand a full investigation. We will continue holding our government accountable and demanding justice for anyone whose bodily autonomy has been disrespected. 

Join the NYAAF Board of Directors!

Dear Community,

As an all-volunteer led organization, we at the New York Abortion Access Fund have a rotating Board of Directors who oversee the day-to-day work of running the organization, in partnership with our incredible intake case managers and other volunteers. As we prepare for several current members to close out their terms, we are thrilled to bring on a cohort of new Board Members to continue moving our critical work forward.

Click here to learn more about the available board roles. If you decide you’d like to apply, you can fill out the application form here.  Applications are due by May 15.

The work on the Board involves supporting callers by connecting them to resources and pledging funds toward the cost of their abortions, as well as participating in fundraising, advocacy, and managing our growing organization’s development. Individual Board Members oversee a particular facet of the organization, some with 1-2 Co-Managers, while also helping to guide NYAAF’s strategic direction, manage our budget responsibly, and jump into other work when needed. Joining the Board at this crucial moment provides an opportunity to guide NYAAF’s direction, sustainability, and impact.

We are looking for Board Members to fill roles in communications, fundraising, policy and advocacy, intake, and data management.

A strong candidate for the board will have skills related to one or more of these positions; a deep commitment to reproductive justice; and the enthusiasm to learn, grow, and work collectively with the board to advance NYAAF’s mission. We’re looking for vision and leadership, and leadership potential! No previous board experience is required for these positions.

After reviewing the applications, we will be in touch with select applicants for a casual video interview. We view this as a two-way process. Not only do we hope to find applicants who contribute to our needs, values, and mission, but we hope to be a good fit for your goals as a member of our Board of Directors.

Finally, we recognize that this is a really tough moment. Thinking about joining a board that requires a significant commitment may feel like too much right now, and we appreciate that. I have been returning to the words of Mariame Kaba, a prison abolitionist, activist, educator, and fellow New Yorker.


image: tweet from @prisonculture
Questions I regularly ask myself when I’m outraged by injustice:
1. What resources exist so I can better educate myself?
2. Who’s already doing work around this injustice?
3. Do I have the capacity to offer concrete support & help to them?
4. How can I be constructive?

In this moment, we will be constructive by funding abortions through the incredible mutual aid network you have helped us build. We hope you may also find it constructive to join us as a board member.

Abortion Is Essential Care

Dear friends,

I am a practicing OB/GYN in upstate New York, as well as a proud abortion provider. When I joined the NYAAF Board, I did so with the intent of making abortion safe and affordable for all New Yorkers, because I believe that abortion is essential health care.

In the wake of COVID-19, I still believe this. Although these are uncertain and, in many ways, unprecedented times, timely access to abortion care is critical and must be protected. No one’s reproductive decisions should be determined by their financial resources, or what the state deems “essential care.” Forcing someone to wait to get an abortion can dramatically increase the cost of the procedure, force them to travel across state lines, and in some cases, cut them off from care entirely due to state restrictions.

NYAAF will always be here to facilitate access to abortion, but the recent pandemic makes our presence even more critical. For people seeking abortion care, the impact of COVID-19 has made an already difficult situation harder. As businesses close and people lose their incomes, more people will need our help. To make matters worse, anti-abortion lawmakers in states like Texas, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Iowa are capitalizing on this public health crisis by introducing efforts to ban abortion entirely. We are here to support anyone who is unable to fully pay for an abortion – and that number of people will increase as restrictions continue.

Our goal is to never turn away a caller, but to accomplish that, we need your help. We know this is a stressful time, both mentally and financially, and we are deeply grateful for any contribution that you can give to connect our callers to abortion care. As a result of the pandemic, this year we had to cancel our biggest in-person fundraising event – but we’re still collecting donations online. Your gift will go directly to folks seeking access to care.

I will be practicing medicine to the fullest extent of my abilities in these troubling times – and that includes providing abortions. Just like the obstetric care I provide, abortion care must be timely, compassionate, and accessible for all. Please help me continue to provide that care by supporting NYAAF today.

In solidarity,

Corinne McLeod, MD
NYAAF Board of Directors, Upstate Manager

Bowl-a-Thon Update

As you know, the New York Abortion Access Fund is in the midst of BowlaThon season. We love this event. It’s our biggest fundraiser where we come together to raise most of our annual budget through grassroots fundraising. We relish the chance to see so many of you in person, for what is a key celebration in the state’s reproductive health, rights, and justice community.

Nevertheless, we have made the difficult decision to cancel the in-person part of BowlaThon this year due to the coronavirus outbreak. This is the right thing to do as an organization rooted in caring for our community and intervening in unjust health care systems.

Our callers still need support and the BowlaThon is still in full swing as a virtual grassroots fundraiser. We ask that you sign up or donate to advance our goal today. 

As an abortion funder, you know that our collective actions are what make a difference in shifting unjust systems and moving resources towards care, and fully harnessing the power of our collective action is at the heart of how we respond together to crises like COVID-19. We are rooted in this truth as we recommit to our vital mission of taking the hustle out of health care.

We remain focused on serving the people who call NYAAF every day. The economic and logistical barriers our callers face — inaccessible health care, income inequality, unaffordable housing, and racist immigration and criminal justice systems — are only exacerbated in times of a crisis like COVID-19.

Showing up for people seeking abortion care is a critical piece of a broader ecosystem of solidarity and mutual aid. We ask that you support the BowlaThon alongside these efforts, and if you are participating in mutual aid efforts you think we should know about, please share by responding to this email.

As always, we’re here for people most impacted by every attack on health access and bodily autonomy. We cannot do this work without you, especially in uncertain times. Please consider signing up as a grassroots fundraiser, or donating generously todayWe are grateful for your continued support of Bowlathon.

In solidarity,
The NYAAF Boar

We made history for abortion access!

Yesterday was a historic day for abortion access! New York will become the first city in the country to directly fund abortion by allocating $250,000 of the City’s 2020 budget to NYAAF. We are overjoyed!!

But, there’s still more work to be done. We are currently working with the New York City Council to understand the details of how and when these funds will be dispersed to NYAAF, and in the meantime… we know that the support we provide cannot wait. 

In the face of increasing attacks on abortion access throughout the country, New York City’s commitment to funding abortion sends a powerful message. We are proud to advance health equity and justice at this critical time. As it gets harder for people to access abortion in conservative states, NYC will likely see an increase in out-of-state folks seeking abortion. This city funding means NYAAF will be better-equipped to keep up with the increasing demand and to continue building a movement to lift barriers to abortion access here in New York and across the country.

For months, you supported our #FundAbortionNYC campaign by calling City Council members, signing petitions, and spreading the word. This campaign was a powerful reminder that our collective power can shift resources and culture, and create greater access to abortion care.

We are proud and grateful to have collaborated with the National Institute for Reproductive Health (NIRH) Action Fund, as well as partner organizations including WHARR, All* Above All, the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health New York LAN, Reproductive Health Access Project, Abortion Access Front, the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum NYC Chapter, and the National Council of Jewish Women New York. We are especially grateful to members of our own Advocacy & Organizing Committee, made up of Board Members and volunteers, who tirelessly pushed this work forward.

This incredible victory will reverberate throughout the nation, and allow us to better advance our mission to lift barriers to abortion access for people living in our traveling to New York.We could not be more proud to celebrate this victory with our community!

Also we’re in the New York Times!

Abortion bans may become law. Act NOW to make a difference.

As you may have heard or read, extreme abortion restrictions are rapidly moving through multiple state legislatures. On Wednesday, Alabama passed a law banning abortion without exception and imposing long criminal sentences on abortion providers. Similar bills have passed in Georgia, Mississippi, and Ohio, and Missouri could be next. While no full abortion bans have yet gone into effect, we know that this hostile climate is likely to create more barriers to abortion care in those states.

We are angry. But we find strength in the resilience of this movement, and what we can do when we stand together — and in this moment, we have an opportunity both to show solidarity with other states and to strengthen New York’s ability to remain a haven for safe and legal abortion for all who need it.  

NYAAF is proud to be a core member of the Fund Abortion NYC campaign, which is encouraging the New York City Council to include abortion funding in its 2020 budget. If the campaign is successful, the funds will go directly to NYAAF and will bolster our ability to serve clients living in or coming to New York for abortion care. This would make New York City the first city in the country to publicly fund abortion.

Help us keep abortion access a reality for all. Here’s how:

Thank you for standing with us and helping us make New York a powerful ally in the fight for reproductive justice for all.

The NYAAF Board of Directors

P.S. Another way to support the #FundAbortionNYC campaign is to tweet at City Council Speaker Corey Johnson (@NYCSpeakerCoJo) to urge him to publicly support the campaign to #FundAbortionNYC!

NYAAF Bowl-a-Thon 2019 Frequently Asked Questions

It’s our favorite time of year! The NYAAF Bowl-a-Thon is back for 2019! This year we’re offering two time slots in New York City and events in, and Rochester, because abortion access is a necessity across the whole state!

The Bowl-a-Thon allows NYAAF to continue our critical work. As our main annual fundraising event, the Bowl-a-Thon keeps NYAAF’s services available to those who need it most. This year, we’re looking to raise $150,000–and we need your help to get there!

Ready to join in? Sign up for an event in New York City and Rochester and lace up your bowling shoes! Or you can support this great cause by pledging toward an existing team or bowler!  

We’ve put together this list of Frequently Asked Questions, but if there’s anything you don’t see addressed, feel free to email us at  bowlathon@nyaaf.org–and if we can help in any way to get you and your teams set up to be the best and happiest NYAAF bowlers and fundraisers ever, just let us know!

When and where are the Bowl-a-Thons?
Glad you asked!

  • New York City: Bowlmor Lanes on Sunday, April 28th from 11am to 4pm. There are morning time slots (11am – 1pm) and afternoon time slots (1:30pm – 3:30pm), so check with your team captain if you’re not sure about your assigned time.
  • Rochester: L & M Lanes in Rochester on Friday, April 26th from 6:30 pm to 10 pm.

 

So… what does bowling have to do with abortion access?
Every April, abortion funds across the country that are part of the National Network of Abortion Funds hold Bowl-a-Thons — this year marks NYAAF’s 10th Bowl-a-Thon! These events allow us to have fun connecting with our reproductive justice community while raising funds so we can continue to serve our clients in need. The Bowl-a-Thon is our largest yearly fundraiser and crucial to our ability to fund abortions. Now more than ever it is important that we come together, support each other, and fight to ensure that abortion access remains a reality for all individuals. Bowl; fund abortion; build power. It’s that simple.

I’m sold! How do I sign up?
We have individual event pages for each of our four locations. Please make sure you’re registering for the correct event!

Sign up here for New York City;
and
here for Rochester.

Once you sign up, you can personalize your individual fundraising page — we encourage punny names and lots of GIFs! You can also start a team, or join one that your friends have already started!  

Is there a fee to sign up?
There is a registration fee ($25 in NYC; $15 in Rochester) that you can pay as a donation to your own fundraising page after signing up online. However, we encourage bowlers to donate more if they are able! As a volunteer-run grassroots organization, NYAAF ensures that donations are maximized to help cover the costs of abortion care for those who reach out to us for assistance. If you haven’t raised enough to cover the cost of your registration by the day of the event, we will ask you to pay the registration fee at event check-in.    

Is there a deadline for registration?
We ask that all teams and individuals register one week before the event!

If you have extra folks you’d like to add the week before the event, please email bowlathon@nyaaf.org. We will do our best to make sure we accommodate everyone who wants to join us!

There are two time slots this year for the NYC event! When are they, and when will NYAAF let bowlers know their designated bowling time?
Teams bowling in NYC assigned to the first time slot will be able to bowl between 11 AM-1 PM and teams assigned to the second time slot will be able to bowl between 1:30PM-3:30 PM. All teams have been notified of the time slot they can bowl. But you can also come and hang out during the entire event, even if it’s not your bowling time! If you or your team has a strong preference about your time slot, please let us know by emailing us at bowlathon@nyaaf.org with your team name and preference, and we will do our best to honor your request!

How do I update/personalize my page?
While logged into the fundraising site, select the “Manage” button on the top left of the screen on your individual fundraising page. Select the “Story” tab. You can edit the text, or add new text images in the page field. For more details, visit the Classy Help page on this topic.

How do I join a team or add people to my team?
On the team’s page, have the person who wants to join select the “Join” button underneath the team’s image on the left hand side. Or select “Become a Fundraiser” on the event home page, then “Join a Team” and search for the team name. The system will walk you through a step-by-step process to set up a new individual fundraising page as part of this team. Please note that even team captains must join their own team after creating the team page.

How do I thank my donors?
Select the “Manage” button on the top left of the screen on your page when you’re logged into the fundraising site. Select the “Donations” tab. You’ll see a list of all donations to your page, and a button that says “Thank” next to each. This allows you to write a comment in response to their donation that will be sent to them, and will show up on your page. All donors who choose to be non-anonymous also get an automated “Thank You” email when their donation is processed. However, we recommend you also thank people personally, via email, social media, letter, or with a big hug!

My friends are on other teams that got a different time slot–will I be able to see them?
We’ve reserved the entire main area at our NYC venue, so registered non-bowlers and those arriving before/after their team’s designated bowling time can feel free to hang out and enjoy good times, snacks, and abortion funding community building throughout the event!

How many people can be on a bowling team?
In NYC, each bowling lane can accommodate 8 people, so we encourage teams to have no more than 8 people per lane who plan to bowl, if they want their score recorded. If you happen to have an extra large team (preferably closer to 12-16 people), we can assign your team two adjacent lanes so you can keep your team spirit extra strong and concentrated!

In Albany, Buffalo, and Rochester each bowling lane holds 4-6 people, but we’ll assign lanes in a way that keeps larger teams together!

What happens if I’m a bad bowler?
That’s okay! We embrace ALL our bowlers, regardless of bowling skill! Neither your fundraising nor your importance in building power through abortion funding is connected to your bowling score. Bring on all the gutter balls you’ve got — we’ll still be cheering you on!

I have someone who wants to donate to me but through cash or a check, instead of online. How do I add this to my fundraising totals?
Checks can be made out to “New York Abortion Access Fund” and sent to:

New York Abortion Access Fund
FDR Station, Box 7569
New York, NY 10150

*A FEW NOTES ON CHECKS: Please do not write checks to “NYAAF”. The bank will unfortunately not accept them. Please write in the memo line “BAT,” along with the name of the bowler to whom the gift should be attributed. When we receive checks from your supporters, we’ll add them to your online fundraising page so they contribute toward your goal.

If you have collected cash donations, please bring them with you to the event and we can collect it and add it to your totals onsite.

I can’t attend the Bowl-a-Thon event, but still want to fundraise for NYAAF! Can I still participate?
YES, PLEASE! We’d love those who want to support NYAAF and its mission to create their own fundraising page, even if you can’t join us in person! Whether you live somewhere without a bowling event, or your dance card is full when your local event is taking place, we welcome people ANYWHERE to bowl with us virtually! Creating a fundraising page through our Bowl-a-Thon website will make it easy for you to ask for donations (think: example language and automated emails you can send to your networks), and for your supporters to donate securely online!

Does my fundraising money go to different places based on which New York Bowl-a-Thon event I attend?
Nope! All funds raised through these four NYAAF Bowl-a-Thon events come to the New York Abortion Access Fund and are used to help our clients throughout the state, as well as clients that NYAAF supports coming from or traveling to other states.

Some of our registered team members can’t make it to the Bowl-a-Thon, or are coming but don’t plan to bowl. Should we let NYAAF know how many of our team members are actually attending and bowling?
Absolutely! Send us an email at bowlathon@nyaaf.org and let us know the names of team members who will not be bowling with you. This will help us better allocate our lanes and make the registration process faster for all our bowlers. We’ll also reach out to team captains to confirm this information closer to the event.

I’m a single bowler without a team! What should I do?
No worries! All you have to do to start is register as an individual and we’ll match you up with other folks to bowl with at the event! We often have teams that notify us they have space for extra individuals, so feel free to email us at bowlathon@nyaaf.org if you’d like to get linked up with them in advance!

Will there be bathroom access for gender non-conforming and trans folks?
There will! At the NYC event, there are two gender-neutral bathrooms available for use.

How is NYAAF addressing any potential threats to security on the Bowl-a-Thon fundraising site?
The National Network of Abortion Funds, who hosts the Classy website we’re using for registration and fundraising, specifically chose this vendor with a mind to creating a supremely secure online fundraising process. All online registrations and transactions will continue to be monitored, even following the event.

Still, if you see or receive any strange or suspicious messages that seem to be related to the Bowl-a-Thon, please email us at bowlathon@nyaaf.org and we’ll look into it as soon as possible.

How is NYAAF addressing any potential threats to security at the event?
We work with venue staff to ensure the safety of our supporters, and we have never had a security issue at a NYAAF event. We will have volunteers trained in safety and de-escalation at each of our Bowl-a-Thons.

My receipt says National Network of Abortion Funds–what’s going on?
NYAAF is a member of the National Network of Abortion Funds, which hosts the Bowl-a-Thon website as a way to support fundraising infrastructure for all member abortion funds. They accept the donations on our behalf and then send us a check; a great benefit for an all-volunteer organization like NYAAF. If you make your donation through the Bowl-a-Thon website, this is why you may see their name and tax ID number.

Please share these FAQs with your teammates, friends, and anyone interested in the Bowl-a-Thon. And as always, reach out to us at bowlathon@nyaaf.org if you have any questions or suggestions for how to make this event an even bigger success!  

Look out for more helpful emails from us, and keep spreading the word about NYAAF and #bowl19!

 

It’s Bowl-a-Thon Season

This year marks ten years (!!) of Bowl-A-Thon and we can’t wait to celebrate with you! We’re proud to have four great events taking place across the state this year; check them out here! If you haven’t yet put together your Bowl-A-Thon team or set up your fundraising page, now is the perfect time to do so.

We are planning a great bowler engagement event in the near future–keep your eyes out for information coming soon, because we’re excited to make this one of our best bowling seasons yet!

If you’re really fired up and ready to bowl, or want to do more to support abortion access this spring, we’d LOVE for you to join us as a volunteer! Volunteers help promote the event, support bowlers in their fundraising, outreach to local sponsors, and keep the final events running smoothly. If you’re interested in in joining us as a volunteer, please email bowlathon@nyaaf.org for more information on how to get involved.

Start your engines, invite your peeps, and get ready to bowl for abortion access! What are you waiting for?


In solidarity,
The NYAAF Board of Directors