Repro Workers Call for a Ceasefire
Workers in the Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice Movement Call for a Ceasefire in Palestine, an End to the Occupation, and Protections for Workers’ Speech
As workers in the reproductive health, rights, and justice movement, we are joining our colleagues at Doctors Without Borders, the World Health Organization, and the United Nations to call for a permanent ceasefire, an end to the US-funding of the genocide of Palestinians, the release of all hostages currently being held by the Israeli government and Hamas, an end to the occupation and the ability for Palestinians to freely return to their homes, and an end to the suppression of repro workers’ voices in support of Palestine.
Reproductive justice, which is defined as the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities, is our calling. It’s our North Star. Reproductive justice demands that we analyze systems of power as we reject discriminatory power based on white supremacy, gendered and sexualized violence, and capitalist autocracy. It demands that we take the histories of our communities, colonization, and reproductive oppression into account as we identify the root causes of issues and envision a better future. As Audre Lorde wrote, “There is no such thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.”
We cannot achieve reproductive justice while a genocide is happening. War is the antithesis of reproductive justice. We mourn the senseless killings of nearly 20,000 Palestinians in two months, 1,200 Israelis, Americans, Filipinos, and others during the October 7th attacks, the lives lost due to Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon, and all who are grieving the pain caused by this war funded in part by our government. We are funding war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and apartheid. The truth is, the United States’ tax dollars have been funding the occupation of Palestine since Israel was established as a settler colonial state during the Nakba of 1948 which displaced 750,000 Palestinians from their homeland. Our calls for reproductive justice include an acknowledgement of the experiences of Palestinians who navigate apartheid, lack of access to reproductive health care, and lack of safety for the children they’ve birthed since 1947.
Israeli government airstrikes have destroyed nearly a dozen hospitals and two thirds are out of commission. The Palestinian Family Planning and Protection Association’s health center was destroyed by Israeli airstrikes. Our fellow repro workers in Palestine are begging and pleading with us to demand a ceasefire so they and their families can live to see another day, and they can receive medical supplies to care for all who are suffering in Gaza. There is a dire lack of sexual and reproductive health care in the area, and an estimated 50,000 people pregnant are living without proper prenatal healthcare, leading to people giving birth via cesarean section without sedation. Pregnant people and newborns are facing acute infections and diseases due to the lack of water, food, fuel, and medical care being denied by the Israeli government. As the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) recently wrote, “Palestine is a litmus test to our collective commitment to human rights, and to the sexual and reproductive rights of all women and girls.”
As reproductive health, rights, and justice activists, we know that during wars and violence, cis and trans girls and women, nonbinary people, and babies bear the brunt of violence, including sexual violence, by destructive military forces. For years and more recently, we have seen the devastating images and read reports out of Israel and Palestine of girls, boys, and women being violently raped and mutilated by men seeking power and domination. We have seen footage of naked Palestinian men being sexually harassed, humiliated, and executed by the Israeli military. The stories are heinous and for many of us working in repro—including those of us who come from communities destroyed by colonization and white supremacy—a desire to finally end rape and sexual violence in war and all its forms is why we come to this work.
This violence is on the backdrop of an apartheid system and occupation that makes life difficult for Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza, particularly those who have to cross border checkpoints to receive pregnancy, queer, trans, and reproductive health, and abortion care. In some cases, women have given birth, had miscarriages, and died due to the lines and denials of entry at checkpoints. No one, whether in the United States or abroad, should have to cross a checkpoint in order to receive reproductive health care. In order for reproductive justice to thrive, and for queer and trans Palestinians to be free, we must end the occupation.
Ending federal aid to this genocidal violence is critical to our own liberation. As Amnesty International has documented, many US police forces train in Israel, thus ending the violence in Palestine will lead to our own safety. We cannot continue to allow global police forces to bring brutal tactics to our communities. Just as it is imperative that we stand against Cop City in Atlanta, we must end the importation and exportation of these violent policing tactics. We cannot credibly fight to end sexual violence while tolerating it as a tool of violent oppression in our prisons and wars. We cannot continue to fight for contraceptive and abortion access for military members without questioning the wars they are fighting in the first place and the lives of the people on the other end of our nation’s bullets. We cannot continue to be upset that the federal government bans the use of its money for abortion coverage, but say nothing about the deaths it funds instead.
As Audre Lorde said in 1989 at the Oberlin College Commencement Address, “Our federal taxes contribute $3 billion yearly in military and economic aid to Israel. Over $200 million of that money is spent fighting the uprising of Palestinian people who are trying to end the military occupation of their homeland. Israeli soldiers fire tear gas canisters made in america into Palestinian homes and hospitals, killing babies, the sick, and the elderly...Encouraging your congresspeople to press for a peaceful solution in the Middle East, and for recognition of the rights of the Palestinian people, is not altruism, it is survival.” This violence is not new, but we can and will see to its end.
Finally, we are concerned about the rising suppression of speech of repro workers in support of a ceasefire and those who speak out against the genocide of Palestinians. We have heard reports of workers in the reproductive health, rights, and justice field being reprimanded and fired by their employers for highlighting the ongoing genocide as a reproductive justice issue, students’ speech being suppressed on campus, as well as foundations denying or ending their support for repro organizations that speak out against the Israeli government’s actions. We have seen the statements by workers at Planned Parenthood offices across the nation speaking out. To be clear, the plight of Palestinians is a reproductive justice issue. This has been clearly articulated for several years in a statement by the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights and SisterSong, as well as by reproductive justice organizations like ARC-Southeast, the Abortion Fund of Ohio, and several others. We know this suppression is happening and it must end.
We are also joining our social justice colleagues in concern for the United States’ government’s use of its power to suppress those who are criticizing the genocidal actions of political leaders and legally equating criticism of Israel’s military actions with anti-semitism. Suppressing dissent of the government will hamper organizing, and is a threat to the free speech and freedom of expression we fight for. As we forge a future in this moment, we must reject the government’s manipulation of violence as a method to expand criminalization and surveillance.
The rise of anti-Palestinian and anti-Muslim hate, and anti-semitism, are detrimental to our work and safety; so is the suppression of free speech and the ability to be outspoken for Palestinian lives in feminist and repro workplaces. Workers must be able to speak out and our organizations would do well to shift our focus to fully following the lead of organizers and leaders in the global south, including union workers in Palestine, rather than capitalist ventures. In order to achieve reproductive justice, we must be expansive in our vision and solidarity.
We join HEART to Grow’s call to “hold space for our grief and reject any weaponization of grief into vehicles of further hate and destruction.” Each of us is working to build a world where reproductive justice is a way of life available to all. We are trying to create a world in which every person has the ability to determine what’s best for their bodies, have the rights and resources to live their lives safely with those whom they love, and build their families with joy and support. The world that we are working towards does not yet exist yet, and cannot exist until all of us are able to live without fear of violence towards our own bodies, families, communities, and people. We will get there, together.
List signatories (635+) as of December 18, 2023. Signatories are listed in their personal capacity; some have chosen to remain anonymous. Organization affiliation is a designation and does not indicate endorsement or condemnation of the Repro Workers for a Ceasefire statement. ReproJobs understands the courage that it takes for workers to speak out and we appreciate their voices in this moment.
Signatory list in formation.
Jennah
Lizz
Morgan
natalie, Richmond Reproductive Freedom Project
Samira
Stephanie A, UCSF Beyond the Pill Program
Victoria A
Kiah Abbey
Megan Abraham
Phoebe Abramowitz
Brooke Adams
Devon Adwoa, Abortion Defense Committee PGH
Zar Ahmed
Alyssa Al-Dookhi
Mariam Alburakeh
Gema Aleman, Fund Texas Choice
Mahima Ali
Heather Allison
Dr. Iman Alsaden
Shayla Alves
MK Anderson, Feminist Women’s Health Center
Alexis Andrea, West Fund
Arpita Appannagari, National Institute for Reproductive Health
Whitney Arey
Maya Arigala
Denni Arjona
Molly Arndt
Jessica Arons
Aimee Arrambide
Lucie Arvallo
Yaffa AS
Becca Astatke
Yasman Azimi
Maleeha Aziz, TEA FUND
Solange Azor
Crishelle Bailey
Kristen Baker, Feminist Women's Health Center
Emily Balentine
Melissa Banerjee
Tyler Barbarin
Claire Bartholomew
Nina Basker
Rhiannon Battersby
Molly Battistelli
DeAnna Baumle
Brandy Bautista
Emma Bayer
Lindsay Beane-Eyth
Daisy Becerra
Raina Beigler
Amy Belfer
Norma Jean Bell
Amanda Bennett
Samantha Berg
Kate Bertash
Noshaba Bhatti
Mehlam Bhuriwala
Isabel Blalock
Jackie Blank
Helen Bolton, Center for Reproductive Rights
Ashley Bordas
Jo Botelho, ACCESS REPRODUCTIVE JUSTICE
Mary Beth Botts, RWJBH
Courtney Boudreau
Julia Bourkland
Cortney Bouse
Renee Bracey Sherman, We Testify
Sofia Braunstein
Lotte Brewer
Gwendolyn Bright
Shanice Brim, Lilith Fund
Nell Brimmer
Alexandra Brock
Erin Brooks, Patient Care Coordinator @ Telehealth
Suzanne Buckley
Roselyn Buensuceso
Liz C, PPRM
Amy Caldwell
Dawn Callaway
Jocelyn Camacho
Willa Campbell
Rosalie Candau, Physicians for Reproductive Health
Ocean Candler
Olivia Cappello
Nancy Cárdenas Peña
Lidia Carlton
Alyx Carrasquel
Fabiola Carrion
Kendra Carson
Sage Carson
Diana Carvajal
Max Carwile
Erin Case
Maggie Casey
KC Casort
Donna Castelblanco
Michelle Castor, Agua y Sangre Healing, Portland Family Doulas
Christine Castro
Genevieve Cato
Jamie Cerretti
Natasha Chabria
Lizzie Chadbourne
Amina Chaudhry
Susy Chavez, California Latinas for Reproductive Justice
Leena Chawla
Rachel Cheek
Maya Cherins
Emma Chew Murphy
Hannah Chichester Downs
Erica Chong
Erika Christensen
Cassidy Clark
Nicole Clark
Amandi Clarke, Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA)
Allison Claytor
Jordyn Close, Ohio Women's Alliance
Kiernan Cobb
Rachel Coe
Quadira Coles
Brandi Collins-Calhoun
Samyu Comandur
Ramey Connelly
Brittany Conner, NNAF
Kamyon Conner
Alyssa Contreras
Israel Cook
Kels Cook
Coco Corbett
Madison Crisp
Sandra Criswell
Hillary-Anne Crosby
Karla Cruz, Lilith Fund
Valeria Cruz Guerrero
Julia D
Graci D’Amore
Colleen Damerell
Neesha Davé, Lilith Fund
MiQuel Davies
Yuki Davis
Ruth Dawson
Ana Delgado
Chrissy DeMarco
Amna Dermish
Sheila Desai
Katy Dilts,
Alisha Dingus
Hanz Dismer
Marissa Ditkowsky
Cammie Dodson
Lexis Dotson-Dufault
Alison Dreith, Women's Health Specialist of California
Poonam Dreyfus-Pai
Mary Drummer
Caroline Duble
Jorie Dugan
Abby Dunn
Cheyanna Duran
Sandra Duran
Myra Durán
Madeleine Durante, NYAAF
Sarah duRivage-Jacobs
Shilpa Dutta
Aster Dyer
simone e
Monica Edwards
Alison Egbers, MSW
Bekah Eichelberger
Gina Eichenbaum-Pikser, LM, CNM, Community Midwifery Care
Erika Enj
Shannon Ens
Keemi Ereme
Maryn Eschmann
Negar Esfandiari
Sawyeh Esmaili
Ndome Essoka
Susana Estorga
Elizabeth Estrada
Lizz Fay
Sophia Feinstein
LaKeia Ferreira-Spady, Family Planning Support Services, JTP
Sofia Filippa
Cidney Fisk
Walker Fitz, Midwest Access Coalition
Claire Flanigan
Kimberlynn Floren
Anna Flores
Yaneth Flores, Avow Texas
Mackenzie Flynn
Taryn Frazier
Reb Friou
Gianna G
Erika Galindo
Mar Galvez Seminario
Iris Garcia
Irma Garcia, Jane’s Due Process
Aracely Garcia
Emily Garcia
Caitlin Gerdts
Candace Gibson
Jessica Gil
Deepali Gill
Jen Girdish
Latona Giwa
Rebecca Glassman
Lyndsey Godwin
Sonja Goetsch-Avila
Jenna Gordon
Audrey Gow
Crystal Grabowski, Just the Pill & PPWP
Ashley Gray
April Greene
Rebecca Griffin
Dr. Daniel Grossman
Isabel Guarnieri
Mario Guevara
Kathryn Guimont
Liz Gustafson
Ivania Gutierrez, Lilith Fund
Cynthia Gutierrez
Claire Gwyn
Hillary Gyuras
Elizabeth H
Nzingha Hall
Oliver Hall, Kentucky Health Justice Network
Sarah Michal Hamid
Graham Hamilton
Greer Hamilton
Caitlyn Hammack
Alicia Harris
Court Harris
Sahra Harvin
Cait Harwood
Hannah Hasper
Asha Hassan
Jordan Hatcher
Sarah Hawkinson
Priya Hay-Chattopadhyay, Baltimore Abortion Fund
Amy Hecht-Zizes
Amanda Heffernan
Shirin Heidari
Emma Hernandez, We Testify
Mari Hernandez
Asher Herndon
Mason Hickman
Elise Higgins
Lauren Hill
Rachel Hill
Kate Hoeting
Cat Hoffmann, NNAF
Jenny Holl
L. Holland
Taren Holliman, Abortion Fund of Ohio
Amelia Holstrom
Mariana Horne
Autumn Houle, Reproductive Freedom Fund of New Hampshire
Brette Howard
Dominique Huerta, ACLU of TX
Limayli Huguet
aj hummel, Planned Parenthood
Kati Hurd
Jade Hurley, DC Abortion Fund
Alicia Hurtado
Jess Huston
Mandy Irby, The Birth Nurse
Aasha Jackson
Ashley Jacobs
Emily Jaggers
Rev. Latishia James
Ruvani Jayaweera, Ibis Reproductive Health
Megan Jeyifo
Aye Johnson
Dana Johnson
Erin Johnson, University of California, San Francisco
Delaney Jones
Dr. Devki Joshi
Ciné Julien
Purvaja K
Tyler Kalogeros-Treschuk
Minji Kang
T Kao
Krystal Kara
Colleen Kennedy
Nicole Kern
Naina Khanna
Eshe Kiama Zuri
Kinjo Kiema
Sloane King Owen
Lauren Klapper
Adina Koch
Saayli Kokitkar
Sumeyye Korkaya
Meredith Kormes
Stephanie Kraft Sheley
Sophie Krensky
Christina Krysinski
Julia L
Kris L
Josephine LaBua
Madison Lands
Marah Lange
Hannah Latimer-Snell
John Laury
Andy Lawhead
Em Lawler
Allison Leavey
Stephanie LeBleu
Samantha Lee
Larada Lee-Wallace, Advocates for Youth
Emma Letcher
Emma Levine
Margaret Light-Scotece
Emily Likins-Ehlers
Jennifer Lim
Delma Catalina Limones, Avow Texas
Alyssa Lindsey
Elizabeth Ling
Fran Linkin
Katrina Lipinsky
Ashley Little
Paige Logan
Sarah Logan
Elaine Lopez
Juana Lopez
Nicole Lopez, Midwest Access Coalition
Xochitl Lopez-Ayala, ACCESS REPRODUCTIVE JUSTICE
Rachael Lorenzo, Indigenous Women Rising
Jessica Louise
Desireé Luckey
Samantha Luffy
Alison Lutz
Jenn Mahan
Cait Mallery, Planned Parenthood League of MA
Leah Mallinos
Maeghan Malone
Brenda Marlin, Brenda the Doula
Garin Marschall
Emily Martin
Angela Maske, Advocates for Youth
Bernadette Mason, Every Body Texas
Kimberley Mason
Katy Mayall
Percee Mayers
Nakita Mayfield
Nicole Mazzeo, Pleasure Pie
Jess McCabe
Reagan McCune
Francesca McDaniel
Grace McGarry
Mindy McGrath
Katherine McGuiness
Kymberlie McGuire
Ariel McIntosh
Cat McKay
Meghan McKenna
Hayley McMahon
Clare McNerney
Sean Mehl
Morgan Mitchell, Abortion Fund of Ohio
Dr. Ghazaleh Moayedi
Nadiah Mohajir
Christine Montero, ARC Southeast
Makayla Montoya Frazier, Buckle Bunnies Fund
Autumn Moody
Bruce Moody
Mikaela Moore
Jessica Moran
Madeline Morcelle
Julie Morel
Alicia Moreno
Angela Moreno
Nicole Morino
Blaine Morris, Sana Sana Wellness
Heidi Moseson
Brittany Mostiller
Devin Mumblo, Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains
Blanca Murillo, Lilith Fund
Kris Muvceski
Sofia Nakhnikian-Weintraub, Cedar River Clinics
Nikiya Natale, We Testify
Becca Naul
Seynabou Niang
Maddy Niziolek
Nick Norman
Kelly Novak, National Institute for Reproductive Health
Chandra Noyes
Claudia Nunez-Eddy
Melissa O’Rourke
Molly Oakley, Independent Consultant
Daniela Ochoa Diaz
Débora Oliveira
Katherine Olivera
Olivia Oney
Mariana Ormeno
Natalie Oros
Beret Otero, Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts
Alecia Ott, The Autonomous Body Shop
Lauren Overman
Mol P-K
Cicely Paine
Nicholas Panagakos
Madeline Parente
Lauren Parker
Diana Parker-Kafka
Ammie Pascua, Hampton Roads Reproductive Justice League
Zoraima Pelaez
Nathalie Peña, Midwest Access Coalition
Adriano Perez
Madison Pettaway
Amy Pineda
Sahar Pirzada, HEART to Grow
Samantha Plante
Luna Plaza
Jamie Polglaze, National Abortion Federation
chinasa porter
Daisy Prado, ACCESS Reproductive Justice
Kara Pravdo
Ashlyn Preaux
dezi primous-gillon, Midwest Access Coalition
Ryan Pryor
Jessica Puk
Sameen Qadir
Nicole Quinones
Laura R
Michelle R
Niharika R, Advocates for Youth and National Institute for Reproductive Health
Michaela Rahimi, CNM DNP
Leila Rais, The Abortion Defense Committee
Yasmine Ramachandra, South Asian SOAR
Shakti Rambarran
Adrienne Ramcharan
Abby Ramey
Clarissa Ramirez
Stephanie Rand
Jen Rasay, Center for Reproductive Rights
Navila Rashid, HEART to Grow
Sally Rashid
Cara Rasmussen
Becca Rea-Tucker
Miranda Rector
Sydney Reese
Yevanit Reschechtko
Kelsey Rhodes
Bridget Rochios
Denise Rodriguez
Gabriella Rodriguez
Ana Rodriguez Tenorio, Lilith Fund & Texas Equal Access Fund
Ellie Rome
Jordan Romeo
Lupe Rosales
Annie Rosenblum
Delia Ross
Srishti Roy
Wendel Rubinstein
Viva Ruiz
Anna Rupani
Jordan Rush
Laila Salaam
Jennifer Salazar-Martinez, ACCESS REPRODUCTIVE JUSTICE
Paola Salwan Daher
Ben Sambrook
Sarah Samuels
Natalie San Luis, CNM, DNP, APRN
Selina Sandoval
Shilpy Sarguru
Meg Sasse Stern
Wanda Savala
Elizabeth Sawyer
Emily Schacter
Caroline Schiavoni
Gillian Schivone
Meg Schurr
Karly Schwab
Alexis Scott, Planned Parenthood Southeastern PA
Tobin Seastedt, Allegheny Reproductive Health Center
Chloe Shapiro-Barnard, Planned Parenthood League of MA
Shakti Shetty
Philip Shimel
Alexandra Siebenhaar
Emma Simpson-Tucker
AK Singleton
Elisabeth Smith
Laci Smith, Florida Access Network
Logan Snow
Meg Snyder, RDMS, Kent Hospital
Senti Sojwal
Selene Soto Rodríguez
Leah Soule, Our Justice
Esther Spindler
Anne Sprinkel
Alyssa Stenson
Audrey Stewart CPM LM
Emma Stoskopf-Ehrlich
amy stubbs
Kylee Sunderlin
Amy Sustaita
Angie Swanson-Kyriaco
Rimsha Syed
Sareya Taylor
yakira teitel
Amy Teitelman
Chelsea Tejada
Mezekerta Tesfay
Hannah Thalenberg
Louisa Thanhauser
Zoey Thill
Desirrae Thomas
Fiona Thomas, National Abortion Federation
Kenyatta Thomas
Michyah Thomas
Noah Thompson
Caitlin Thorn
Jane Tierney-Beed
Stephanie Tillman
Rachel Todd
Cathy Torres, Frontera Fund
kailey townsend
Savannah Trebuna, Kentucky Health Justice Network
Devanshi Tripathi
Tayler Tucker
Alex Turner
Kristin Turner, EMILYs List
Ukwuoma Ukairo, Advocates for Youth
Erinma Ukoha
Ashlee Van Schyndel
Kim Varela-Broxson
Cait Vaughan
Diana Venegas
Hirsha Venkataraman
Isabella Villa Real Seabra
Ayanna W, Beautiful Flower Doula Services
Becca Walker, New Mexico Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice
Blair Wallace, ACLU of Texas
Mary Walton
Alice Wang
Rebecca Wang
Shae Ward
Monika Wasik
Sunayana Weber
Corey Westover
Ashley Weyers, Doula
Clarke Wheeler
Hannah Wheelwright
Shireen Whitaker
Amanda Beatriz Williams
Ash Williams
Chelsea Williams-Diggs, New York Abortion Access Fund
Toni Wilson
Iris Wong
Ariel Wood
Sam Woodring, Abortion Fund of Ohio
Michelle Wooten McFarland
Dominique Wyse-Rivera
Melody Yan
Chante Yarbough, Dupont Clinic
Rola Yasmine, The A Project - Lebanon
Dilara Yılmaz
Yasman Yudeh
Johanna Zacarias
Rachel Zamora
Zaena Zamora, Frontera Fund
Christina Zampas
Crys Zaragoza
Anonymous, Planned Parenthood of Greater New York
Anonymous, URGE
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous, Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio
Anonymous
Anonymous, Planned Parenthood of Northern New England
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
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Anonymous
Anonymous, Planned Parenthood Arizona
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous, Planned Parenthood
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous, Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous, Physicians for Reproductive Health
Anonymous, Planned Parenthood Metro Washington
Anonymous, Meet Me at the Spot Podcast
Anonymous, Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region & Southwest Missouri
Anonymous, Women's Health Center of Maryland
Anonymous
Anonymous, Just the Pill
Anonymous, Crea
Anonymous, Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington DC
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous, Holistic Abortions
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous, Planned Parenthood Federation of America
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous, National Abortion Federation
Anonymous
Anonymous, Catholics for Choice
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous, National Abortion Federation
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous, Rochester’s Sexual and Reproductive Justice Task Force (ROC SRJ)
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous, Jane’s Due Process
Anonymous
Anonymous, American Medical Student Association
Anonymous, Virginia Sexual & Domestic Violence Action Alliance
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous
Anonymous, ACN