PLAN C Documentary: A Must-Watch for Anyone Interested in Reproductive Justice
Access to safe and legal abortion has been a contentious issue for decades, with women fighting for their reproductive rights across the globe. Even in countries where abortion is legal, it is often stigmatized, and access to information about how to get an abortion can be limited. When you apply this to the context in the US (even before the Dobbs Decision), the stigma around access and the insane misinformation from Crisis Pregnancy Centers has made the environment impossible for pregnant people to navigate. In this context, the PLAN C documentary is a must-watch for anyone interested in reproductive justice. The documentary sheds light on the issue of self-managed abortion and the criticality of access to reliable and accurate information.
On June 26th, Spring into Action co-hosted a screening of the PLAN C documentary with the amazing participation of Elisa Wells Co-Director & Co-Founder & Amy Merrill Digital Director & Co-Founder Plan C, with the support of Julie who opened her home and provided a delicious dinner to everyone.
Watching the film I had two significant takeaways:
It made a meaningful difference to experience this movie with others who care deeply about Reproductive Justice. Having the space for a conversation following the movie helped in processing some of the challenging emotions of sadness, rage, and fear that arose.
Amy and Elisa provided some meaningful and important rays of hope in our post movie discussion. Their added context on what has happened since the movie finished filming grounded us in action and motivation to keep fighting for change.
The Importance of Access to Information
The PLAN C documentary focuses on the importance of access to information about self-managed abortion. Even in the US, when abortion pills are legal and readily available, people are often unable to access them due to a lack of information or challenges in distribution. The movie follows the efforts of the Plan C non-profit through a multi-year journey across a pandemic, a radicalized Supreme Court, and a quickly shifting legal landscape. The power of this film is how it brings to life the lived experiences and stories of every day people who are in need of reproductive healthcare.
So often it feels like the media in the US only focuses on the stories at the extremes - where people are experiencing life threatening complications, or fetal abnormalities, or rape. Unfortunately, the unintended consequence of these narratives is a reinforcement that there are “good abortions” and “bad abortions.” The PLAN C Documentary approaches this narrative from another angle - the importance of bodily autonomy and that every person should have the right to say what happens with their body. And rather than emphasizing the reasons that a person wants care - focusing on the logistics and how difficult or easy it is for people to access the care they need. Shout Your Abortion is another wonderful ally in this space supporting people to share their stories and reduce the stigma experienced by people who want to be un-pregnant.
Rays of Hope
Following the film we had the privilege of hearing from Amy and Elisa, co-founders of Plan C, about the amazing progress that’s been made since the film was released. Plan C is the most comprehensive online resource for accurate and reliable information on safe at-home abortions.
NY passed the Abortion Shield Legislation on the eve of the 1 year anniversary of the Dobbs Decision. This legislation protects providers who ship pills to red states with abortion bans. This is game changing as Aid Access, an international NGO that founded by Dr. Rebecca Gomperts has been providing access to mifepristone & misoprostol to those who need it - but traditionally shipping from India where it can be a couple hundred dollars and a few weeks for delivery. Aid Access is now able to ship from NY at a fraction of the cost an in 2-3 days. This is game changing as waiting 2-3 weeks can actually put you over the line in some states for when you are allowed to have an abortion (and can increase other potential complications).
Plan C is investing in a series of major communications campaigns with partners in states where abortion is banned or under threat. They are running a 6 state public service announcement campaign on #knowyourplanc. If you want to support access for people across the US who want to be un-pregnant please donate. They are raising $500,000 to support this campaign and can use help from amazing reproductive justice advocates like you.
Resources
Plan C - the only comprehensive website for all information you could use about your reproductive
The New Handbook for Post-Roe America - Buy from black owned bookstore Marcus Books
The Miscarriage and Abortion Hotline - 1-833-246-2632
Abuzz Health & Aid Access- Access to pills in 2-5 days for $150