Destroying the protection of Roe v. Wade threatens our progress toward racial equity while reinforcing systemic racism and white supremacy in the United States. People with resources and power will always be able to access abortion and other health care services. The lack of federal protection of the right to an abortion disproportionately impacts Black and Brown women, the transgender community, and non-binary peoples. The Supreme Court’s decision on Dobbs v. Jackson will make it harder or impossible for people who have been historically oppressed and those living in poverty to retain bodily autonomy and receive medically necessary and potentially life-saving procedures.

The Dobbs v. Jackson ruling destabilizes the protections offered by the 14th Amendment's due process and equal protection clauses, which have been pivotal in securing a range of rights and protections for LGBTQ+ folks, women, and people of color. For many, the 14th Amendment was the constitutional amendment that countered the anti-Black and anti-woman nature of the Constitution. If more rulings are undone under the guise of only honoring rights that are “deeply rooted” in our “nation’s history and tradition,” the question becomes, who is afforded rights under this interpretation of the Constitution? Who is being actively excluded?

Regardless of whether a funder is health-focused or not, SoCal Grantmakers and Northern California Grantmakers believe our philanthropic community has an opportunity and responsibility to protect the well-being of women and gender expansive folks, especially Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and people of color. Five opportunities present themselves for immediate action.

  • Fund abortion clinics and reproductive justice
  • Expand and ensure abortion access in midterms elections
  • Reframe abortion beyond the gender binary
  • Recognize far-reaching & acute implications, especially for people of color
  • Support California in becoming an abortion sanctuary

Read the full article about abortion rights by at Northern California Grantmakers.