Reproaction Activists Stand Up for Abortion Access in Missouri
On Thursday, May 30, 28 activists showed up for a visibility action to call out hypocrisies within the ‘pro-life’ movement. Activists demonstrated on the sidewalk in front of Columbia, Missouri’s local anti-abortion fake clinic. Anti-abortion fake clinics in Missouri are funded in part via Temporary Assistance to Needy Families funds that are allocated to states by the federal government to feed hungry children. Fake clinics are also funded in part via state tax credits, which represents another way Missourians pay for these fake clinics.
Direct-action protesters held signs as they chanted along with a small band. The signs spoke to the lack of attention paid to issues like maternal and infant mortality, and the closure of many rural hospital and maternity wards. Missouri’s annual state budget consistently cuts funding for healthcare while increasing the amount of tax dollars anti-abortion fake clinics receive. All of this has become especially contradictory because the same legislature that voted down a maternal mortality review board also passed an eight-week abortion ban during the same legislative session.
Activists wore Reproaction’s newly minted T-shirt proclaiming our stance: “pro-abortion, pro-family, pro-justice.” You can check out posts on Twitter under the hashtag #ProAbortionProJustice. In addition to our gratitude to Abortion Conversation Projects for funding these shirts, Reproaction remains grateful for our activists and look forward to more folks joining us in the future!
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This project received a Seed Support Grant from Abortion Conversation Projects to reduce abortion stigma.