Issue Brief

State Abortion Bans Threaten Nearly 7 Million Black Women, Exacerbate the Existing Black Maternal Mortality Crisis

Analysis from the National Partnership for Women & Families and In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda reveals the harmful impact of Dobbs on Black women. We find that more than 6.7 million Black women – 57 percent of all Black women ages 15-49 – live in the 26 states that have banned or are likely to ban abortion.

State Abortion Bans Harm More Than Three Million Disabled Women

State Abortion Bans Harm More Than Three Million Disabled Women

The Dobbs decision has only compounded the longstanding barriers to abortion care that disabled people face, including provider discrimination and lack of training or experience with disabled patients, guardians dictating decisions about their reproductive care, denials of care and assistance among religiously-affiliated service providers and intermediate care facilities, transportation difficulties, inaccessibility in health care facilities, and layers of economic obstacles to affording the costs of care.

Democracy & Abortion Access: Restrictive Voting Laws Across States Threaten Freedoms

Democracy & Abortion Access

In a political landscape that moves the question of abortion access to the states, NPWF demonstrates the connection between the representation of women and women of color in state legislatures and better policy outcomes for those seeking abortions.

Black Women’s Maternal Health

The reproductive health of Black women has long been compromised by interpersonal, institutional, and structural racism. In addition to contending with social and economic drivers of poor health that undermine Black Americans, they have experienced discriminatory health care practices and abuse from slavery to the present.

Rejecting Business as Usual

Black women workers are a critical backbone of the economy. As demonstrated during the COVID-19 pandemic, women were the majority of essential workers who continued to work during the pandemic, providing vital services and sustaining the nation’s economy throughout the public health emergency. Black women disproportionately work in many of these essential roles

Discrimination While Pregnant

Any pregnant person may experience pregnancy discrimination. But because of the ways that racism, sexism and ableism have structured the United States economy, pregnant workers’ need for accommodations — and the harms they may face if unable to access accommodations — can differ significantly. Women and people of color are especially likely to be in jobs that are higher risk and lack adequate health and safety protections.

Called to Care

Too often in our country’s history, the ability to take time to care for yourself and others while maintaining your economic security has been predominantly reserved for the white and wealthy few. Yet, it is through providing care for one another that we knit together the bonds of our families and communities.