Latinas fight misconceptions about abortion views in their community

National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice to hold educational seminars this month

(Yamila Ruiz)

The National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice has helped women and nonbinary individuals in their communities navigate the post-Roe world of misinformation, transportation barriers, and inadequate abortion access. 

The majority of Latino voters support abortion access, but the misconception is that they have a religious opposition to it because of the large number of them that practice Catholicism. For years, polling and research data have indicated that support has grown. Yamila Ruiz, senior director of communications, spoke about the concerns they’ve sought to address.

“US voters, including Latinx, voters overwhelmingly support access to abortion care, and they strongly oppose extreme politicians who want to ban abortion and interfere with their personal health care decisions,” Ruiz said. “And those same folks are the ones that are spreading and confusing our communities with misinformation and disinformation.” 

Getting support from other Latino organizations can sometimes be challenging because of that misconception and the prevalence of so many other issues like immigration and decriminalization. 

“It's hard to be everywhere all at once,” Ruiz said. “I think there is more that we could all be doing.” 

Antiabortion operatives have spread misleading data to Latinos through social media platforms like WhatsApp. For Ruiz and others, there’s also been the historical challenge of dealing with crisis pregnancy centers locating their operations near an actual abortion clinic. 

Ruiz’s organization trains activists on how to discuss abortion. They’ve had virtual events throughout the pandemic. 

“We're really trying to promote these events because we provide resources and training of how to talk about faith and abortion, and how to talk to your family members, your relatives, or your loved ones to dispel all these myths,” Ruiz said. “So it's really about informing, educating, and promoting advocacy.” 

They have three of those events in February. Some of the content will focus on the intersection of the Latina and Afro-American experiences. Another will deal with faith and abortion. 

Those interested can learn more about those events here.