Em-URGE-ing Voices

Posts By: URGE Staff

#StopTheBans: Ohio Edition

If I ask you to name which states have the worst anti-abortion laws in the country, which ones would you name? Texas? Alabama? Oklahoma? You wouldn’t be wrong, but you’d be forgetting one of the biggest offenders: Ohio. Since taking office in 2011, Governor John Kasich has signed nearly every anti-abortion measure to come across his desk – from bills to restrict access to those targeting providers. The results? The number of abortion clinics in Ohio dropped by half, leaving the majority of counties without a provider. And Ohio now has one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the country – unconstitutionally blocking abortion at just 20 weeks. But they won’t stop there. In this session, the Ohio Legislature continues its obsession with controlling each and every body with… Read more »

Why Trump’s Sabotage of Obamacare Is Terrible for Young People (and What You Can Do About It!)

The mainstream narrative portrays all young people as not needing insurance, but we know that’s the furthest thing from the truth. Amazing young activists showed up to say they need and deserve health care coverage and helped defeat the repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in Congress over the past few months. But now, the Trump administration is sabotaging the ACA all by itself through executive actions. Here’s just a few ways these changes will be terrible for young folks: Putting birth control out of reach by granting a License to Discriminate.   Two new Trump administration rules allow employers or universities to deny insurance coverage of contraception for religious or moral reasons. Young people deserve access to birth control no matter where they work or go to school,… Read more »

How President Trump’s Expansion of the Global Gag Rule Will Wreak Havoc on Communities

Another day, another shitty reproductive health policy introduced by the Trump administration that will have untold effects on millions of people around the world. Earlier this week, as the country launched its annual recognition of global health needs during National Women’s Health Week, the President announced an expanded version of the Global Gag Rule he reauthorized soon after his inauguration. The original gag bars any funding from an international health organization that promotes abortion as a medical option for ending a pregnancy, which affects the $600 million budgeted for family planning. Already harsh and dangerous, the rule has been revamped to suit the archaic and asinine appetites of anti-abortion extremists. Now, the law threatens millions of lives with the potential to inadvertently spread disease and global illness. This newest policy… Read more »

#Resist: Join Our 2017-18 Journalism Team

It’s that time of the year again! We’re looking for a new class of Student Journalists to write for the ChoiceWords blog for the 2017-18 school year. Reproductive justice work is making headlines all around the world right now, and your voice could be a part of the movement for reproductive freedom for all. Because we believe in intersectionality, we know that reproductive justice is economic justice is racial justice is labor justice. That allows you, our blogger, to write about almost every aspect of our social and political life! Our bloggers have discussed Black Lives Matter, anti-trans bathroom laws, Beyoncé, and the fight to increase the minimum wage. They have encouraged participation in the political sphere over ending the Hyde Amendment, restoring voting rights and filling the Supreme Court…. Read more »

Artist We Love: Erika Moen

What encouraged you to become an artist? The friendships I made as a teenager with other kids who were passionate about art. We all egged each other on and supported each other and we’re all in the professional art world today as 30 year olds. My studio, Helioscope, has been absolutely invaluable in teaching me how to turn my creativity into a career. My community encouraged and enabled me to become an artist, really. What is one of your favorite pieces that you have created over the years? Collaborating weekly with Matthew Nolan on our comic Oh Joy Sex Toy is my proudest achievement of my life. In addition to that, I’ve spent the last several years making very slow progress on a painting and print series called Venerable Vegetable…. Read more »

Writing Abortion 20 Feet High

 This article originally appeared on the blog at Planned Parenthood Great Plains Votes.  Growing up in a small Kansas town meant a few things for me. I would forever be haunted by Wizard of Oz jokes whenever I told someone I’m from Kansas, going to Sonic with friends would be an early teen right of passage, and any road trip I took with my parents would mean driving past multiple anti-abortion billboards.   These billboards varied in language, size, and quality but they all had the same message: Abortion is bad. As most people know, Kansas is notorious for its negative outlook on abortion. Although much of our state legislature is rabidly anti-choice, the majority of fellow Kansans I know are okay with abortion. One of the reasons I believe Kansas still… Read more »

Artist We Love: Stephanie Feldman

Content Note: The videos in the Be Heard Project contain detailed descriptions of sexual assault and rape. Art and the creators behind some of our favorite work have changed as digital media maintains its hold on audiences the world over. Instagram has become the world’s museum, and finding and appreciating art has become easier than ever. This summer, we want to take a minute to appreciate some of our favorite artists who create work that inspires and excites us as reproductive justice advocates, intersectional feminists, and culture agitators. Artist Name: Stephanie Feldman  What encouraged you to become an artist? I’ve always gravitated towards creative outlets. For a long time I thought music was what I would be pursuing for the rest of my life. When I found myself questioning that… Read more »