This week’s Spacious Solidarity dialogue surrounds the topics of storytelling and narrative change for abortion stories. Renee Bracey Sherman and Camila Ochoa Mendoza lead us through a conversation that centers people who have had abortions, delving into the richness, power and essentialness of abortion stories and leadership of people who have had abortions. The discussants touch on intersectionality, economic justice, racism, and the ways that these are all connected to the narratives and experiences of people who had abortions.

More about the presenters:

Camila Ochoa Mendoza is a reproductive justice activist and researcher. She is the creator of the podcast Abortion, with Love, and her work is dedicated to destigmatizing abortion, and advancing access to comprehensive reproductive care for all people. 

Renee Bracey Sherman is a reproductive justice activist, abortion storyteller, strategist, and writer. She is the founder and executive director of We Testify, an organization dedicated to the leadership and representation of people who have abortions and share their stories at the intersection of race, class, and gender identity. She is also an executive producer of Ours to Tell, an award-winning documentary elevating the voices of people who’ve had abortions.

Watch Here

Highlights!

• In the USA, the loudest voices for abortion are usually white folks or “white saviours.” How would the movement change if more Black Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) who have had abortions were leaders? It’s okay to have boundaries regarding who to educate when we work on narrative shift— we do not any longer need to try to stoop down and convince people who are not willing to listen.
• Many organizations working on abortion are not run by people who have abortions, and people hosting storytelling programs often have not had abortions and may even be driven by funding of the abortion story complex. How will shifting the leadership shift the narratives? There is a real need to build institutions/spaces of care— instead of abusing people’s experiences and stories…
• Sex and Pleasure need to a part of the abortion conversation!

Links

• Let us know what you thought about this conversation by filling out our evaluation form
• Survivor Storytelling Survey
• Abortion Book Club

Thank you Camila and Renee for providing a space to reflect and build- dismantle- and – rebuild our mutual understanding of what it means to bust abortion stigma.