The past few weeks with the New Orleans Abortion Fund have been as challenging as they’ve been exciting. With the Trump administration growing more anti-choice everyday (or so it seems), our work feels more urgent, dire, and powerful. This internship has given me a tangible outlet for my frustrations and fears surrounding the current threat to women’s health, justice, and gender equality in this country.
Namely, I’ve been working on NOAF’s new branch, NOAF OutLoud, which aims to use story sharing in the fight for abortion access. I really resonate with OutLoud’s vision of amplifying the voices of women who have sought out abortions, and I think that in doing so we find our place in the modern debate of reproductive rights-centered politics. Storytelling allows listeners (and readers) to humanize the women who have made these decisions and adds a personal dimension to what is, for some, a very abstract, removed, and even scary concept. With a mission so rooted in equality, my job with NOAF doesn’t really feel like “work” – it truly feels like both a privilege and a duty.
I’ve been busy making all the graphic design collateral for the OutLoud branch, including the logo, a brochure, and even an infographic. I feel lucky that I’m enrolled in a digital arts class this semester and that I now have this amazing organization for whom I can put my Adobe design skills to the test. I’m excited to share the materials that Jacky and I have been chipping away at for the past several weeks! We have also been in the planning stages for our first story-sharing event, where a small group of (mostly) students will gather to discuss abortion in our lives, the lives of those around us, as well as true abortion stories from real women.
It’s an inspiring, albeit frightening, time to be doing this work right now. I feel incredibly grateful to Amy at NOAF and NCI for granting me this opportunity to pursue reproductive rights and advocacy in such a meaningful way.
Here’s a picture of me and Amy in full vagina regalia at the Women’s March New Orleans! It’s amazing to see your boss practicing what she preaches (and so colorfully):
