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

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. 

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.

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

As you know, the New York Abortion Access Fund is in the midst of Bowl–a–Thon 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 Bowl–a–Thon 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 Bowl–a–Thon 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 Bowl–a–Thon 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 today. We are grateful for your continued support of Bowl–a–thon.

In solidarity,
The NYAAF Boar

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!

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:

• Call your New York City Council Member TODAY, and urge them to support the Fund Abortion NYC Campaign. This link identifies your Council Member, provides a script, and even initiates the call for you. It’s that easy! Once you’ve done it, encourage others in your network to do the same by forwarding this email.
• Make a contribution to an abortion fund in one of the states where abortion access is under the most severe threat. We’re proud to work in solidarity with ARC Southeast as well as the Yellowhammer Fund in Alabama, the Magnolia Fund and Women in Need Fund in Georgia, the Gateway Women’s Access Fund in Missouri, Mississippi Reproductive Freedom Fund in Mississippi, and Preterm, The Agnes Reynolds Jackson Fund, and Women Have Options in Ohio. You can also donate collectively to multiple funds moving forward with abortion bans through a single contribution.

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!

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