It’s no secret that we’re living in tough economic times. Many of us don’t have money for trips to the hair salon, let alone rent and groceries at times. Because of the down economy, many women have started to consider long-term methods of birth control, such as the IUD, in order to save on the monthly expense of paying for birth control pills. And in many cases, women who need abortions do not have access to the money required to pay for the procedure. Thankfully, there are nonprofit groups stepping up to lend a helping hand.
Founded in 2001, the New York Abortion Access Fund (NYAAF) is a volunteer-run, 501c3 non-profit organization that provides financial assistance to low-income women in New York State who cannot afford to pay for an abortion. NYAAF, an affiliate of the National Network of Abortion Funds, believes that abortion services should be available to all women regardless of their ability to pay. Without funding, many women do not have a real choice.
Abortion funds are local, grassroots organizations that raise money to support women in need of abortion services. From 2008 to 2009, NYAAF provided over $43,000 in assistance to support 77 women. In 2009 NYAAF helped 62 women fund abortions. The women came from New York and 9 other states, and NYAAF helped them get procedures they otherwise could not have afforded. This was a 45% increase from the number of women helped in 2008, a significant jump. [Read more...]
Feminist Conversations is a weekly column at Feminists for Choice, where we talk to feminists from across the interwebs to find out what feminism means to them. Today we’re talking to Steph Herold, who caused quite a stir earlier this week when CNN caught up with her to ask her about the #ihadanabortion tag that she created on Twitter. Steph is a reproductive justice activist who has worked in direct service abortion care and reproductive health advocacy. She founded the website 
