Let’s Talk About Abortion Toolkit
Everyone loves someone who's had an abortion.
Anti-abortion extremists use the word “abortion” 4 times more than pro-choice advocates do, which means that they have been able to stigmatize abortion so deeply that even supporters often feel awkward or ashamed when talking about it. Messaging matters because it can help move people from judgment to empathy. That’s why we’ve created this guide to help you navigate conversations about abortion.
Quick Tips
Use the word "abortion"
Antis use the word 4 times more
Lead with values
Follow with facts
Use gender-neutral language
Trans people need care
Talk about a decision
Destigmatize often
Lead with values, follow with facts
- “Not our place to decide.”
- “Personal family decisions.”
- “Once a decision is made, we should be promoting that person’s health, not imposing our own beliefs.”
- “When deciding to become a parent, it’s vital that a person be able to consider all their options no matter their income or zip code.”
- “However we feel about abortion, we shouldn’t be denying someone insurance coverage based on where they live or how they’re insured.”
- “We cannot know all the personal and medical circumstances behind a person’s decision to have an abortion; every person’s
situation is different. We should respect that this decision is an individual person’s to make, with their doctor, family, and faith.”
- “Our laws should support and safeguard Texans’ health. Once someone has decided to have an abortion, access to safe medical care is vital.”
- “Everyone loves someone who
has had abortions.”
Say this, not that
What it actually takes to get an abortion in Texas
Texas's web of restrictions and barrier to care as show below still remain in place.
You have to sort through state-funded fake clinics and misinformation online to find a provider.
You have to sort through state-funded fake clinics and misinformation online.
Patients and clinic staff face extreme harassment outstide of clinics.
Patients and clinic staff face extreme harassment outstide of clinics.
Since Roe V. Wade, state lawmakers have stopped at nothing to restrict access to abortion. Between 2011 and 2019 alone, states enacted 483 restrictions on abortion. Texas is one of the worst offenders.
Prepare to discuss specific issues
Crisis pregnancy centers + “alternatives to abortion”
Crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) are nonmedical facilities that exist to prevent people facing unintended pregnancies from accessing abortion services. Many CPCs present themselves as medical clinics even though they provide no health care services and the information they share about abortion and sexual health is largely inaccurate. Texas began funding crisis pregnancy centers, or fake clinics, through the Alternatives to Abortion program in 2005.
- Funding fake clinics that intentionally mislead Texans about their healthcare options is deceptive and unsafe.
- Pregnancy-related decisions are time sensitive and patients’ needs should always come first.
- Pregnant Texans need timely and unbiased information about the full range of healthcare available to them, delivered in a professional, nonjudgmental,
and compassionate manner.
Parental notification + judicial bypass
In 2005, Texas passed a law requiring that a pregnant person under the age of 18 seeking an abortion get written consent from their parents. Anyone under the age of 18 cannot obtain an abortion until 48 hours after a physician tells at least one parent. Judicial bypass was established as a legal exception to parental notification for abortion in cases where it is not in the best interest of the pregnant minor. Jane’s Due Process was founded in 2001 to help minors navigate this process. In 2015, Texas passed a law designed to make minors access to judicial bypass even more difficult by requiring the minor to file a petition in the county of their residence, requiring the minor to appear in person at court, and issuing an automatic denial of the minor’s application if the judge doesn’t rule within a certain time frame when previously it was auto-approved.
- We need to trust young people – they deserve the right to consent to their own reproductive healthcare needs.
- Parental involvement laws place access to abortion care in a special category. Minors may independently consent to most other pregnancy-related medical procedures, including pre-natal care, labor and delivery procedures, and can even give the baby up for adoption without parental consent or notification.
- Do not say that kids are not mature enough, and therefore should have parental consent before getting birth control or an abortion. Perpetuating the belief that young people lack the understanding or maturity to make important decisions for themselves is a contributing factor why Texas has parental involvement laws.
Abortion later in pregnancy
Typically, an abortion later in pregnancy refers to having the procedure in the second or third trimester. There are countless reasons that may lead a person to have an abortion later in pregnancy including: fetal anomalies, parental health endangerment, or perhaps due to restrictive laws that have delayed an earlier procedure. Everyone’s situation is different, and it is important to be compassionate and recognize that an abortion later in pregnancy is already complicated enough without increased stigma and a disregard for the patient’s experiences that have brought them to this decision.
- Say “abortion later in pregnancy” instead of “later-term abortion,” which is medically inaccurate.
- Say: “Every person’s circumstances are different. Our legislators should not deprive us of our ability to make this extremely personal, medical decision.”
- Do not legitimize their false “scientific” claims. Instead, assert that the medical community opposes any interference in the doctor-patient decision-making process and pivot to values.
Practice talking about abortion
Use the word abortion
Lead with values, follow with facts
Acknowledge and assert: When you’re confronted with views that you do not agree with, this is a way that you can give them a reason to listen to you and help them realize there’s something more important than forcing their beliefs onto others. We know this doesn’t come naturally to many of us. But it’s helpful to name their conflict in a way you can agree with, then model how to resolve it.
- “Some of those reasons may not seem right to us, but it is better that each person be able to make their own decision.”
- “Some of us may feel uncomfortable about abortion, and I still feel I can’t make that decision for someone else.”
- “I can accept someone’s decision to end a pregnancy even if I would not make that same decision for myself.”
Model empathy: This helps the audience tap into their innate empathy, which is crucial to humanizing the people who have abortions, decreasing barriers and moving away from a judgmental place.
- “It’s not for me to judge.”
- “I’m not comfortable deciding for someone else whether they should get an abortion or not.”
Use gender-inclusive language
Use “decision” in place of “choice”
Example scenarios
"Well, I think too many women use abortion as birth control. It’s too easy for them to get. Maybe they should have to wait and think about what they’re doing.”
Because it's a friend, follow up with facts another time. Share some of the ways Texas actually makes abortion very difficult to access.
"Don't you know abortion is murder?!"
And then walk away.
