Reproductive Justice
What is Reproductive Justice?
Reproductive Justice (RJ) means the human right to bodily autonomy, which includes the right –
to have children;
to not have children, and;
to nurture the children we have in a safe and healthy environment.
The term “reproductive justice” was identified in 1994 by Women of African Descent for Reproductive Justice, and is rooted in Black feminism, and the Combahee River Collective, which began in 1974. To fully understand the reproductive justice framework, and what it means to leaders of the movement read more from In Our Own Voice and Sister Song.
Reproductive Justice in 2025
The Trump administration, Congressional Republicans and anti-choice advocates are working hard to dismantle the right to reproductive freedom across the country. The harm is real. The threats are serious. People are dying, and more will die as a result of the Dobbs decision, state-level bans, and the extreme lengths that opponents of freedom are willing to go to in order to maintain power.
While we are relatively safer in Maryland, we must do everything we can to minimize harm. This requires us to re-evaluate and expand what we include in the definition of harm, and to center reproductive justice principles in our advocacy. It is not enough to pass a state constitutional amendment protecting the right to reproductive freedom. We also need to end family policing and surveillance, we need to protect the freedom to be and the rights of trans and non-binary people, we need to end the violence of poverty, and so much more, because that’s what reproductive justice really looks like.
So where do we go from here? We should always defend our right to bodily autonomy, and we must meet the urgent needs of this moment from legal fights to policy patches in the flawed system. But we can’t lose sight of the need for full-scale reproductive justice, or deny the reality that we need to replace, not repair our healthcare, criminal legal, and family support systems. Remember that the reproductive justice movement started in the 1990s, at a time when Roe was firmly in place. Simply reinstating Roe will not achieve reproductive freedom. We know Black women have been leading this work for decades, calling for revolution and adoption of a reproductive framework. While we continue to respond to urgent needs, we must also support the reproductive justice efforts led by Black women in Maryland and nationally in order to build the new systems of the future.
SIGN UP FOR UPDATES HERE >>
Victories for Reproductive Justice in Maryland
While Maryland is a leading state in the fight for reproductive justice, the extremism of the anti-abortion movement is relentless. We must continue to fight to protect the right to bodily autonomy and reproductive freedom in Maryland to ensure Marylanders and those that seek healthcare in Maryland are protected, and can receive the care that they need.
Due to the budget shortfall, the 2025 Maryland Legislative Session was more challenging than other years for advocates. While a lot of important bills were not passed, a few important reproductive bills made it across the finish line, including Delegate Lopez’s bill to create an abortion grant program utilizing unused health insurance funds.
View the status of 2025 Reproductive Justice Legislation here
Ballot Question 1
In November, 2024, nearly 2.2 million Marylanders voted FOR Question 1 to add a ‘Declaration of Rights’ to the state constitution, enshrining the right to reproductive freedom in our state. Over 76% of Maryland’s voters confirmed our state’s unwavering commitment to the right to abortion care and reproductive healthcare.
Maryland already had strong reproductive freedom laws, but the constitutional amendment is the strongest possible protection of our rights, and would be very difficult to repeal. This protects us against possible future changes by legislators or state courts that could change current legal precedent, similar to what happened with the Dobbs decision.
We’re grateful to the Maryland General Assembly for passing the “Right to Reproductive Freedom Act” in 2023 in response to the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, which put Question 1 on the ballot, and we’re grateful to Marylanders across the state who made their voices loud and clear: Maryland stands for reproductive freedom. We’re grateful to have played a small part in this monumental victory.
Local Resolutions
State and local governments play an important role in ensuring the US upholds its human rights obligations. They must do all they can legislatively to ensure that all people can access abortion care when they need it, because abortion is health care and access to healthcare is a human right.
That is why we need our elected officials at every level to do everything in their power to protect reproductive freedom, including access to abortion care, and contraception. We need to call on our county leaders across Maryland to follow her lead and ensure that our rights are protected at every level of government.
Montgomery County Resolution
On Tuesday September 10, 2024 the Montgomery County Council voted unanimously to pass a resolution recognizing abortion as a fundamental human right, introduced by Council Vice President Kate Stewart. The resolution affirms the County Council’s support for reproductive freedom as a human right and a state constitutional right.
Endorsements: Advance Maryland, Forward Midwifery, Ipas US, Montgomery County Commission for Women, Montgomery County, Maryland, Chapter of the National Organization for Women, Montgomery County Women’s Democratic Club, Potomac Family Planning Center, Pro-Choice Maryland, and State Innovation Exchange (SiX)
Read our press release here, and coverage from MoCo360 here.
Baltimore City Resolution
On Monday, September 30th, 2024 the Baltimore City Council voted to pass a resolution reaffirming the City of Baltimore’s commitment to protecting its citizens’ reproductive rights and support for measures, including a State Constitutional amendment, to ensure access to abortion, family planning, labor and delivery care, miscarriage management, pre- and post-natal care, and all other reproductive health services regardless of background, introduced by Councilwoman Phylicia Porter.
If you are interested in passing a local municipal or county resolution recognizing reproductive rights as human rights, please contact us at info@advancemaryland.org
Abortion Messaging
There has been a lot of research into what messages around reproductive justice resonate with people.
Here are some key points to keep in mind when talking about abortion care with organizational members, friends and family, the public, on social media, etc:
- People resonate with values-driven messaging. Connect with audiences by talking about freedom, autonomy, and health.
- Do not repeat opposition messaging. We should not give any more air time to this rhetoric, and it can reinforce their framework.
- Focus on the impact on people’s lives, don’t get into the policy weeds. Keep your messages simple and easy to understand. Emphasize the safety and health of people, especially young people, as primary concerns. These values resonate strongly with people. Freedom and autonomy messages test highest with men and swing voters, fundamental right messaging tests best with pro-choice voters.
- We must share our vision and values strongly and proactively. Effective messaging includes:
➤ Core messaging – attacking abortion care is attacking our communities. Everyone deserves the right to make their own decisions about their life, family, and safety. Barriers and political interference are unacceptable. We must fight back.
➤ Vision – freedom, justice, health
➤ Problem – abortion bans, other restrictive policies
➤ Solution – call for a specific solution
Partner Resources:
- Abortion Policy API provides up-to-date information on state abortion policies that can be integrated into online abortion resources.
- All* Above All shapes culture, narrative and public perceptions on issues of abortion.
- IfWhenHow seeks to transform the legal and policy landscape to ensure that everyone has the power to decide if, when, and how to define, create, and sustain their families. They have incredible resources for lawyers, policy makers and advocates, and health care professionals.
- ReproAction produces great pro-abortion resources, messaging tips, and hosts webinars for reproductive justice advocates.
- UnpunishPregnancy is a policy evaluation framework. It guides users through steps to analyze policies for threats to the bodily autonomy of pregnant people, parents, and just about anyone.