A Letter to Our Community On the Supreme Court Decision

Praxis believes that the right to reproductive freedom and bodily autonomy is an extension of the movement to end gender-based violence.

In an attempt to control, coerce, and intimidate, the Supreme Court overturned the protections established by Roe v. Wade. As an organization committed to eliminating all forms of gender-based violence and oppression, we say to you:

We will not be controlled.

We will not be coerced.

We will not be intimidated.

The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade is only one piece of a decades-long systematic campaign rooted in white male supremacy designed to harm the most marginalized populations in our communities– ​​including, but not limited to, survivors, BIPOC, 2SLGTBQ+, and people with disabilities.

The United States was founded on the control of marginalized bodies: the genocide and displacement of indigenous peoples, chattel slavery, forced sterilization, and state-sponsored violence. Today this control continues through additional mechanisms such as the criminalization of poverty, anti-immigration policies, and anti-trans legislation. The Supreme Court’s decision sits within this history of violence and upholds the same white, heteropatriarchal, gender-based oppression that Praxis has worked against for 25 years.

Many are angry, grieving, and afraid. We are too.

But we will not be deterred. We are unwavering in our commitment to achieving a more equitable and just world. We will continue to stand with advocates, survivors, and all those who seek safe abortion care. The hardships they now face will not be forgotten.

We are ready to fight together. Join us in taking action today, and every day, to undo this atrocity and ensure that further freedoms are not eroded.

In solidarity,

The staff of Praxis:

Amanda Watson, Bree Adams Bill, Diane Docis, Elena Eggert Anderson, Kata Issari, Kue Chang, LaShae Lopez, Maren Woods, Noushin Shafiee, Patrice Anthony, Renee Torian, and Shelly Stoffel

A few ways you can take action:·

• Donate or volunteer with abortion clinics at the national level (National Network of Abortion Funds) or in your local area (find the abortion fund nearest you).

• Donate to FreeForm’s National Abortion Fund for Survivors.

• Find local organizations providing logistical support: Apiary for Practical Support

• Attend a protest or rally in your community

• Sponsor a discussion in your program about how to mobilize

• Let survivors know that you will support them in accessing safe abortion care·

• Hold space for and support one another in our grief and rage.

• Remember to nurture your mind, spirit, and body to sustain yourself for this struggle

A Letter to colleagues, family, and friends: Black Lives Matter

Praxis grieves the recent murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, Dreasjon Reed, David McAtee, and all those killed as a result of anti-Black racism at the hands of the police, the state, and others. We are both outraged and heartbroken, particularly in the midst of the world health crisis and the disproportionate effect it has had on Black people, Native people, and other communities of color. Praxis joins global demands for peace and justice. We add our voices to the cry that Black Lives Matter. Black Women's Lives Matter. Black Trans Lives Matter. 

Praxis' work focuses on ending gender-based violence by eliminating oppression and creating equity in the world. Our work to end gender-based violence is inextricably linked to ending both male supremacy and white supremacy at individual, institutional, and community levels. All forms of violence and oppression are 

interconnected-we cannot end one without ending them all. 

We condemn the systemic racism, white supremacy, state-sponsored violence, and police brutality enacted by institutions in the United States. Praxis stands with Black communities and all those working to hold institutions accountable while dismantling systems of oppression.

As an organization, we recommit to interrogating our own role in working to transform systems and institutions that cause harm. As we do so, we will continue to look to the leadership of individuals and communities most affected by the violence. We commit to grounding ourselves in the experience and leadership of Black and Indigenous people, people of color, and trans people. We commit to supporting and promoting the work of grassroots organizers and movements that seek an end to systemic oppression.

We call on all people to take action to create change. We call on government leaders and policymakers at all levels to implement fundamental changes to address the myriad harmful present-day manifestations of historical inequities perpetrated against Black and Indigenous people, people of color, women, and trans people. 

We believe that uniting in solidarity to take collective action will bring liberation.

In our pursuit of a just and equitable society, we are guided by these words from Archbishop Desmond Tutu: 

Justice requires three things: the truth be told, harm be repaired to the greatest extent possible, and that the conditions that gave rise to the violence be eradicated. 

The time to act is now.

In solidarity,

Praxis