Women’s Health & Reproductive Justice
Without the ability to control our own bodies, women are not free, not equal.
Women’s Rabbinic Network
Our Mission
Reproductive justice is the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, that each person should have agency and autonomy over their own bodies. We are guided and inspired by the Jewish value of kavod habriyot, the respect for individual dignity.
Our Work
We focus our reproductive justice work on abortion access, because the legal right to abortion is meaningless if women are unable to access abortion care due to cost, distance to the nearest provider, and other obstacles. We also address other issues affecting the reproductive lives of women, including contraception access and comprehensive sex education.
We care about women’s physical, emotional, and spiritual health. We create opportunities for our members to explore the wisdom of Jewish teachings, from what ancient texts can teach us about infertility, to the contemporary uses of the mikvah. Our work has included providing the LSA Family Health Services in East Harlem with feminine hygiene products, formula, baby food, and other items, and supporting staff and volunteers at the only abortion clinic in Montgomery, Alabama with messages of gratitude. Teen members of our task force have lobbied in Washington, DC for H.R. 1692, Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH Woman) Act of 2019. We host a yearly Reproductive Justice Shabbat service, participate in protest efforts, and advocate for necessary change.
Partners
Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism (RAC), Women of Reform Judaism (WRJ), Brigid Alliance
Get Involved
For more information on how to get involved, contact Michelle Cherande or Lois Nyren.
Justice @TST