Celebrating 40: What does Roe v. Wade Mean for API Women?

Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court case that upheld women’s abortion rights, turns 40 this week. 18MR partners with the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF) discussing what reproductive rights and services are still needed for API women, and inviting you to submit your stories and photos!

A message from NAPAWF

This week, we celebrate the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. We are thankful the Supreme Court case has given so many women in this country the opportunity to have safe and legal abortion care, and that it brought us one step closer to a world where women are truly free and can determine the course of our own lives. We hope you are celebrating, too!

Still, we know the promise of Roe remains incomplete for many women, including women in our own community. Many Asian American and Pacific Islander (API) women still do not have meaningful access to their reproductive rights because they simply cannot afford abortion care. And, restrictions that both target API women and disproportionately affect us are a growing trend.

Watch Shivana Jorawar, NAPAWF’s Reproductive Justice Program Director, reflect on what we need, beyond Roe, to make sure every API woman can afford abortion care:

This Roe anniversary, NAPAWF is honoring and reflecting on Roe by answering the question. At forty years old, what does Roe mean for API women? NAPAWF is breaking taboos that block progress by speaking up about our values and experiences, and talking about the policies we need to make sure all women in our community can exercise their reproductive rights. Join us in the NOT IN MY SHOES! Campaign. Here’s what you can do:

  • Submit a photo of your shoes to tell politicians they don’t know the circumstances of our lives and shouldn’t be making decisions about our reproductive health — they’re not in our shoes!
  • Send your photo and one or two sentences about why your path is unique or why you, as an API woman, support access to reproductive health care.

Click here to make your submissions.

How can we break taboos around reproductive justice in our community, and why is that important to do? How has safe abortion care impacted your life? Have you or anyone you know faced financial barriers to having an abortion?

Entries will be shared on our website and social media, and with our partner organizations. Submit yours here.

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