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Shortly after giving birth to her sixth child, Laurie Bertram Roberts suspected she was pregnant again. She needed a test to confirm the pregnancy and couldn’t afford to see a doctor, so she went to a maternity clinic for free.
Bertram Roberts did not plan to have an abortion—if she had become pregnant, she planned to continue the pregnancy, she told the center’s volunteers. However, she was made to watch a pro-abortion video while waiting for her results, and was later shamed for not getting married despite saying she was trying to end a relationship. bad, says Bertram Roberts.
After the “consultant” told him the pregnancy test was positive, Bertram Roberts asked for help getting a mattress—the kind of stuff these centers recommend. read. What he got was a leaflet that listed what he could do to “get” someone, including going to church and watching more videos.
Although the primary purpose of a “problem campaign” (CPC) is to avoid disturbing people—often using false information and other deceptive tactics—research has found and many people who meet them, they know that they are related to religion and not real medical centers. But CPCs are the only organizations in the community that advertise free services such as pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, and baby equipment. Many CPC clients aren’t actually seeking an abortion—they’re looking for help to get pregnant right away.
As abortions are banned and clinics are closed across much of the South and Midwest, the number of people in need of these services is sure to rise. Advocates on the ground say there is an urgent need to provide alternatives to CPCs—but lenders aren’t investing enough to think about it.
Not only do CPCs spread misinformation and hate speech about abortion, many are affiliated with evangelical Christian organizations and create conservative views on gender, sexuality, and families in general. .
“I think sometimes we underestimate the scope of the accusation or judgment that people face when they go to CPC,” said Parker Dockray, chief executive of All-Options. “It’s not just the CPCs that are against abortion—it’s about everything related to that,” he said, recalling what a client who approached the CPC told the seeking child support but being sued for having older children. and then a strange thing happened.
In addition to its national support line and other programs, All-Options has operated a pregnancy resource center in Bloomington, Indiana, since it opened in 2015. As the name suggests, unlike the CPC, All Options offers support for pregnancy and all its outcomes, including childbirth, abortion, and adoption. A 2016 analysis of All-Options flyers found that 87 percent of shoppers were looking for free diapers, and 44 percent were looking for baby clothes and other items.
“Unlike the way some CPCs might give people five diapers a week and ask people to go to classes to get ‘mom money’ or ‘baby money’, we really try to provide what people need by not wanting it. They have to go everywhere in the city,” Dockray said. “We are trying to reduce the noise that is needed for people to fulfill their basic needs.”
Asking people to “earn” their assets “just shames the poor,” said Bertram Roberts, founder and executive director of the Mississippi Reproductive Freedom Fund (MRFF) who is also an activist. Rewire News Group sender. “Just because I’m poor makes you think I can’t be a parent. And most of it is exciting. You can’t separate racism from poverty and our perception of poverty in America.”
The MRFF is another strong example of the direct-development CPC type. In addition to the abortion care fund, the organization operates a food fund and a temporary shelter. He has found a baby shower during a national drought and provided water in response to Jackson’s water crisis. MRFF also distributes ventilators and supplies, and connects people with doulas and other key resources when possible.
“There is no group here that pays for your abortion one year, and the next year, pays for your midwife,” said Bertram Roberts.
Another key element of MRFF’s power: The services come with no strings attached.
“You’re not coming back to us,” said Bertram Roberts. “You don’t deserve any thanks.”
Many abortion clinics in countries where abortion is banned are also stepping up to fill gaps in reproductive and sexual health care, expanding their services to offer prenatal care. , abortion management, post-abortion care, etc. (I Need an A is tracking them at stillopenclinics.org.) However, many of these clinics manage to keep their doors open.
“I’m saddened not to see the abortion funding community spend money on those providers,” Dockray said.
Even clinics that manage to stay open may not be able to compete with CPCs in one important area: cost.
“You can open as many abortion-friendly health centers as you want, but not all of them will be accessible,” said Caroline Weinberg, founder and executive director of Plan A, an organization which controls cellular health. clinics in the Mississippi Delta.
Plan A provides all of its services for free, but it’s not easy. Originally focused on fertility, Plan A “grew because the world had changed, and we knew that as a fertility justice organization people who were pregnant also needed help,” Weinberg said. For example, even before Roe v. Wade overturned in June, pregnant Plan A patients will have trouble getting an ultrasound. So he bought an ultrasound machine—but getting patients was more important than that first purchase.
According to Weinberg, a new abdominal ultrasound machine costs between $3,000 and $7,000, and an abdominal ultrasound costs $3,000.
“So training is an issue,” Weinberg said. “Taking an ultrasound class is expensive, and it’s not the kind of thing everyone learns in nursing school or medical school. It all comes down to money.”
CPC vans offering free ultrasounds—many staffed by technicians with dual credentials—are everywhere outside abortion clinics. But it is impossible to get a free ultrasound from a reliable provider.
“If I could wave a magic wand and have a donor run an ultrasound class and they would invite people from all over the country, it would have a huge impact,” Weinberg said. talk.
In addition to the high cost of getting new services off the ground, Weinberg said, another challenge is that grants often come with restrictions on spending, which is difficult for small organizations. to make the necessary pivots. Finally, free ultrasounds are just one item on a long list of required services in states that have banned abortion, and those requirements may change over time.
Asked what he told investors, Bertram Roberts said: “Put your money here. Don’t forget the South.”
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