Reproductive Justice for All
What is Reproductive Justice? Why is it important?
The term ‘Reproductive Justice’ can invoke many emotions. Some may feel empowered or liberated while others may feel oppressed. Reproductive Justice is defined as the right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, having ownership over your own body, deciding for yourself to have children or not, and nurturing the children you already have, in safe and sustainable communities.
Simply put, Reproductive Justice is a framework, movement, and vision. We fight on behalf of each person to have the power, resources, and rights to make their own decisions regarding their bodies, sexuality, and future, regardless of race, ethnicity, income, status, class, sexual orientation, immigration status, or other pivotal factors.
The History of Reproductive Justice
It all started in 1994. A group of Black women gathered in Chicago and shared their frustrations about the global reproductive health status of Black women. Their frustrations stemmed from Black women having little to no access to quality reproductive healthcare, birth options and lack of pregnancy support. The Black Women’s Caucus of the Illinois Pro-Choice Alliance saw the need for a human rights framework for women of color and women with low-income that addressed issues of bodily autonomy with reproductive decision-making. This is what sparked the Reproductive Justice movement and the fight to make reproductive and birth justice available to all.
MCC's Contributions to Reproductive Justice
At MCC, we know that access to the full spectrum of reproductive health options improves birth outcomes. Supporting access to reproductive health services includes connecting people to all pregnancy options available, enabling us to support families as they navigate their pregnancy and parenting journeys. Recently, we reached a new milestone by receiving a community reproductive health grant from Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services. With this new grant, we have broadened our scope of services to include reproductive healthcare access.
Aiming to shape healthier communities to contribute to a healthier society, our community reproductive health support includes connections and referrals to the following resources and services:
Prenatal care and postpartum support
Early detection and prevention of health conditions
Parenting education programming
Menstrual and reproductive health education and free menstrual health products
Referrals for sexually transmitted infection testing and care
Referrals for assistance with other physical or behavioral health care needs
Doula and lactation training and referrals
Ensuring that Reproductive Justice is made possible for all, remains at the core of what we do. Along with other community-based organizations who have been doing this work for decades, MCC’s rich history includes providing the communities we serve with knowledge, guidance, and resources necessary to successfully shape their own parenting and pregnancy journeys.
Our vision is to create a future where parents impacted by racial and social inequities can birth with dignity, parent with autonomy, and raise babies who are healthy, growing and thriving. We remain committed to working diligently until there is access to reproductive autonomy and birth justice for all.
