AMHERST — Imagine you are in your first year of college and you just had sex for the first time. You find out you are pregnant. You don’t have anyone to financially support you and no one is willing to help you parent. You are 19 years old.
That is Yamani Hernandez’s abortion story. Now 39, Hernandez is the executive director of the National Network of Abortion Funds. She has dedicated her life and her career to social, racial and reproductive justice.
Hernandez was the featured speaker Saturday at an annual event to commemorate the landmark Roe v. Wade decision made by the Supreme Court in 1973 which legalized abortion. The celebration is put on annually by the Abortion Rights Fund of Western Massachusetts.
Hernandez addressed some 100 people in the Red Barn at Hampshire College about the National Network of Abortion Funds. The organization is a coalition of over 70 grassroots organizations, she said, and 70 percent of its staff and board are made up of women of color.
“We have a political and cultural agenda that seeks to dismantle and reduce harm caused by root causes of oppression that make income a determinant factor as to whether people can have the families that they want, whether or not they involve reproduction,” Hernandez said. “We believe those root causes to be deeply rooted in patriarchy and racism. Our plans are to get bigger, smarter, stronger and louder — and leave no one behind.”
The event was held in the picturesque Red Barn atop a snowy white hill, where attendees sipped wine and soft yellow lights were strung from the rafters. But the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision the event commemorates every year is in jeopardy, organizers stressed, following President Donald Trump’s election.
“Who would’ve thought we would be here under the circumstances that we are here,” said retired state Rep. Ellen Story as she introduced Hernandez. Story, bundled in a turquoise scarf and polka dot leggings, said she was pleased to see such a large crowd of “usual suspects” and “shiny new faces.”
“We are under attack,” said Abortion Rights Fund of Western Massachusetts President Mary Russo. “We will persist and we will resist,” Russo said, giving a nod to the Our Bodies Our Justice rally held in Springfield on Saturday.
Russo said she keeps a list of the “unthinkable” moves made by the Trump administration, which she said are a “brutal barrage of threats” to hinder reproductive rights.
In her talk, Hernandez echoed Russo’s statement. She said Trump and Vice President Mike Pence are a “dangerous recipe” for people seeking abortions in the U.S. and across the globe.
Currently, income is the barrier. Those who can afford an abortion have easier access to the procedure, Hernandez said, and those who cannot afford the cost — around $1,500 — do not have that privilege. That’s where abortion funds come in.
In the South and the Midwest, a woman seeking an abortion anticipates traveling 140 miles to get the procedure, Hernandez said. In the second trimester that distance doubles, according to data taken between 2010 and 2014. Abortion funds help women cover the cost of an abortion, as well as transportation and accommodations for women who must travel to have the procedure done.
Regardless of whether people believe in the country’s political system, Hernandez said, policies created by the government impact everyone.
“We do not have the luxury of not participating,” Hernandez said.
After the rallies are over, the photographs have been taken and the sound bites have been collected, the real work begins, Hernandez said. That involves getting involved locally and changing peoples’ minds, she said.
“A movement is not only built 1 million people at a time. It is built 100 people at a time, maybe even 10 people at a time,” Hernandez said. “I will continue to be here until those with power and privilege use it to liberate those without it.”
And people want to get involved, she added. The weekend of Trump’s inauguration, she said, the organization opened up individual membership options. Within two days, 700 people signed up.
“People want to be a part of this and we need to provide avenues for them to do that,” Hernandez said. “I hope to close the gap between the people who call the abortion fund, and the people who answer the abortion fund.”
At the conclusion of her talk, Russo presented Herndez with a piece of artwork from the Nasty Women art exhibit. The exhibit was created by Nancy Paglia. All proceeds from the donated art will go toward the abortion fund, Russo said.
The Abortion Rights Fund of Western Massachusetts made a donation to Atlanta-based Access Reproductive Care – Southeast honoring Hernandez. Additionally, the fund made a donation honoring Susan Lowenstein, a member of the fund’s board of directors, who recently celebrated her 90th birthday.
Russo and Story also acknowledged Congressman Jim McGovern for his “brave and bold” sponsorship of the EACH Woman Act, which would have freed up federal money currently barred from funding abortions by the Hyde Amendment.
Despite an uncertain future when it comes to government, Hernandez stressed that her organization will continue to work toward access and equality for women who seek abortions.
“We aren’t backing down, we won’t go back and we won’t be punished,” Hernandez said. “Everyone loves someone who has had an abortion —and it is that love that will be key to our liberation.”
Stephanie Murray can be reached at stephaniemur@umass.edu