Artists and Activists Will Host Virtual Event For Reproductive Justice

On May 7 at 7pm ET, Repro Freedom Arts and the National Institute for Reproductive Health will present a virtual program, "Readings, Resilience, and Reproductive Freedom."

Repro Freedom Arts is a non-profit professional theater organization dedicated to creating live performances and events about reproductive rights. The theater group has performed and conducted workshops across the country in places like colleges and community centers, sometimes in states that have recently faced legal threats to abortion and reproductive rights. Their next stop? Your desktop.

On May 7 at 7 pm ET, Repro Freedom Arts is teaming up with the National Institute of Reproductive Health (NIRH) to present "Readings, Resilience, and Reproductive Freedom," a virtual event consisting of performances and discussions surrounding reproductive rights issues.

Directed by Francesca Mantani Arkus and co-produced by Cindy Cooper and Stacey Linnartz, the May 7 event includes readings and adaptations of works written by playwrights, poets, and influential reproductive rights activists. Writers include Florynce Kennedy, lawyer and key figure in the radical feminist movement of the 1960s and 70s, and Dr. Susan Wicklund, an abortion-care provider who faced severe backlash from anti-abortion groups. Other writers are Dr. Grisel Acosta, Melissa Bell, Esosa Edosomwan, Jessica Feder-Birnbaum, June Jordan, Jacqueline E. Lawton, Alix Olson, Marge Piercy and Mary Ann Sorrentino.

Performances will feature Cait Cortelyou, Kimiye Corwin, Alinca Hamilton, Yvette Heyliger, Crista Marie Jackson, Carl H. Jaynes, Stacey Linnartz, and writer Dr. Grisel Y. Acosta.

The event also includes discussions with Andrea Miller, President of the National Institute for Reproductive Health (NIRH), co-sponsor. An organization on the frontlines of the fight for reproductive justice, NIRH is a reproductive rights advocacy group that has been instrumental in supporting reproductive freedom on local, state and national levels. Their work includes expanding access to reproductive health centers, providing reproductive and sexual health education to younger demographics, and advocating for legislative action that fortifies reproductive rights.

The event will be hosted on a Zoom webinar on May 7 at 7pm ET. Registration is required. To register and receive a Zoom link, visit https://reprofreedomarts.org/events-2 or email ReproFreedomArts@gmail.com.