United Methodists Educate for Reproductive Health, Rights and Justice

As United Methodists, we affirm that healthcare is a basic human right (2016 Book of Discipline, Social Principles ¶162.V) and we advocate for access to reproductive healthcare and family planning information and services for all (2016 Book of Dicipline, Social Principles ¶161.K).

To honor the sacred worth of all people is to advocate for healthcare policies that support reproductive rights, dignity, and access for all people. However, the current social, political, and economic conditions in the U.S. and worldwide impact people’s access to lifesaving reproductive healthcare.

On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court ruling on Dobbs vs. Jackson overturned the constitutional right for persons in the U.S. to have access to abortion. Research has shown that, in the absence of Roe v. Wade and by limiting access to reproductive medical care such as abortion, people are more likely to experience poorer health outcomes and even death.

The absence of quality and comprehensive reproductive health care is a matter of justice and human rights. This lack of care presents a moral question for people of faith: how do we honor the sacred worth of all persons, especially when legal decisions like Dobbs vs Jackson have removed necessary lifesaving resources to protect and care for that sacredness?

In response to the United Methodist Church’s affirmation of reproductive healthcare and closing the gap in healthcare, a group of United Methodists began a collective called United Methodists for Reproductive Justice (UM4RJ) that applies a Reproductive Justice framework to advocate and create brave spaces for all bodies to have agency and be honored, respected, valued, and safe in the church and society.

“Reproductive Justice,” is a term defined by a group of 12 Black women known as Women of African Descent for Reproductive Justice in 1994. This group released a public statement entitled, “Black Women on Health Care Reform,” advocating for an intersectional approach to women’s health care centered on race and economics. This statement, which was printed as a full-page ad in the Washington Post along with over 800 signatures in support of its message, laid the foundations for the reproductive justice movement that continues today.

Reproductive Justice advocate Loretta Ross explains that, “Reproductive Justice analyzes how the ability of any woman to determine her own reproductive destiny is linked directly to the conditions in her community.” (Reproductive Justice Primer, SisterSong Collective) It is a human rights framework that affirms how the intersections of race, class, and gender impact a person’s reproductive health and rights. Through this framework, UM4RJ educates, advocates, and empowers other United Methodists to create communities and environments that truly honor the sacred worth of all bodies.

On February 19 - March 26, 2024, UM4RJ is hosting a four-week virtual Lenten webinar series to educate United Methodists on the importance of Reproductive Justice, Rights, and Healthcare. The virtual series will include representatives from the General Board of Church and Society (GBCS) as well as the voices of other United Methodists, educators, and ethicists who will share more about the framework of reproductive justice and how people of faith can respond.

Register for the series here to learn more about advocating for reproductive justice, rights and health care.

Rev. Laura Kigweba is the Director of Grassroots Organizing at the General Board of Church and Society.