The Supreme Court of the United States overturned its 1973 decision Roe v. Wade on Friday, June 24, ending longstanding federal protection of abortion rights in America. The effect of this decision was an immediate loss of rights for Americans in 13 states, with more restrictions expected in additional states to follow. As a global team with members across the United States, PC Gamer proudly and strongly stands for the rights of all members of our team, readership, and community to make critical reproductive decisions about their own bodies.
According to the Center for Reproductive Rights, "the Court’s decision will likely lead to half of U.S. states immediately taking action to ban abortion outright, forcing people to travel hundreds and thousands of miles to access abortion care or to carry pregnancies against their will, a grave violation of their human rights.
"This rush to ban abortion will lead to extreme chaos across the country as people, providers, clinics, and abortion funds struggle to deal with new and extreme preexisting bans—and clinics in surrounding states attempt to absorb a huge influx of patients. The impacts of these bans will fall particularly hard on people who already face discriminatory obstacles when accessing health care, in particular people of color, those having difficulty making ends meet, members of the LGBTQ+ community, young people, people in rural communities, and undocumented people."
In the fight to retain and reinstate our rights to reproductive choice, we have collected the following resources for donating to abortion funds across the country and participating in protests.
National Network of Abortion Funds
National Network of Abortion Funds - 100% of donations through this ActBlue link go to abortion funds across the United States. By default contributions are divided evenly between more than 80 funds, but you can choose the distribution. You can read more about NNAF here.
New York representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez curated a shorter list for states where anti-abortion laws are quickly going into effect. 100% of donations through this ActBlue page go to the Mississippi Reproductive Freedom Fund, Feminist Women's Health Center (Georgia), Reproductive Freedom For All (Michigan), Fund Texas Choice, and Midwest Access Coalition.
Keep Our Clinics
Keep Our Clinics - This fundraising campaign supports the Abortion Care Network, a "national association for independent community-based, abortion care providers and their allies." The Abortion Care Network is focused on independent clinics, predominately in rural areas where options are scarce. Independent clinics provide around 60% of abortions in the US, yet more than 100 have closed since 2016.
If/When/How: Lawyering for Reproductive Justice
If/When/How is a legal organization that "envisions a transformation of the legal systems and institutions that perpetuate oppression into structures that realize justice, and a future when all people can self-determine their reproductive lives free from discrimination, coercion, or violence." That vision includes several specific legal battles around access to abortion.
If/When/How also operates the Repro Legal Defense Fund, which "covers bail and funds strong defenses for people who are investigated, arrested, or prosecuted for self-managed abortion." You can donate to If/When/How or the Repro Legal Defense Fund.
NARAL Pro-Choice America
NARAL Pro-Choice America Foundation "organizes [its] 2.5 million members, and the allies around us, to make sure leaders at every level hear from their constituents—the 7 in 10 Americans who support our right to reproductive freedom."
You can become a member by joining NARAL's mailing list, or sign up as a volunteer, or donate.
Itch.io game bundle
Game developers are currently in the process of organizing a bundle on Itch.io, with all proceeds going to the National Network of Abortion Funds. Check out this Twitter thread if you're a game developer interested in getting involved.
The bundle should be available here on Itch.io when it goes live.
Activism resources
If you plan to join a physical protest, here are some useful links to make sure you have everything you need to stay safe.
What to bring to a peaceful protest - Vice's guide on what to take with you to a protest.
Protect your protest - An in-depth plan for keeping yourself and others safe during a protest.
How to Cop-Proof Your Phone Before Heading to a Protest - Gizmodo's how-to on protecting your phone data (though if you can, leave it at home).
ACLU Know your rights - Everything you need to know about your rights as a protestor and what to do if you're detained by the police.
