PRESS RELEASE:
“ABORTION IS OK!”
HOOSIER ABORTION FUND FLIES BANNER OVER THE INDY 500 AS ATTACKS ON REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS ESCALATE
May 26, 2019, INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.: Today, All-Options, a Bloomington-based national reproductive justice organization, flew a bannered airplane over the Indianapolis 500 proclaiming, “Abortion is OK! @Hoosier Abortion Fund,” as part of a nationwide campaign to mobilize resistance to recent attacks on abortion. This effort comes a week after Ashley Welch and Hailey McDermott – both fiancee’s of drivers participating in Sunday’s race – demonstrated their support for abortion rights by wearing t-shirts declaring, “Not Your Body, Not Your Choice” during the qualifiers.
“The majority of Americans — including fans at the Indy 500 — believe that every person should be able to make their own decisions about abortion,” said Parker Dockray, Executive Director of All-Options.
“The abortion bans sweeping the nation are outrageous and show a total disregard for the dignity and safety of pregnant people. Together with our fellow abortion funds and activists, we will fight back in the courts, the legislatures, and the streets. Abortion is still legal and available in every state, and All-Options is here to help people in Indiana and across the country find the support and resources they need to access safe abortion care.”
Extreme abortion bans are being signed into law in states across the country, threatening every American’s personal freedom to make their own reproductive decisions and to build the futures and families they want. Such restrictions are nothing new in Indiana, where abortion is already out of reach for many people. 95% of Indiana counties have no abortion provider, and myriad laws impede access by restricting both public and private insurance coverage, mandating waiting periods, requiring parental consent for minors seeking abortion care, and more.
All-Options is home to the Hoosier Abortion Fund, which since 2015 has pledged $115,000 in financial support to more than 550 people throughout Indiana who needed abortion care but would not otherwise have been able to afford it. In addition to providing this vital direct support, All-Options is also involved in local, statewide, and national advocacy efforts to increase access to abortion care. In 2018, All-Options filed a lawsuit against the state of Indiana, challenging dozens of abortion restrictions that impose medically unnecessary burdens on patients, require doctors to lie to their patients, and have shuttered clinics across the state.
Press inquiries should be directed to Jessica Giusti, National Engagement Director.
