Yesterday, the New York Times published a guest essay (with amazing graphics) that I wrote about the injustice of a U.S. foreign policy denying people in Ethiopia—and many other countries—access to abortion. I invite you to give it a read:

Abortions are legal in Ethiopia. But half of these clinics won’t provide them.

I’m talking about the Helms Amendment and its restrictions on U.S. foreign assistance funds for abortion—even in countries where people have a legal right to this essential health care.

As I explain in my essay, the law exports conservative American values overseas and amounts to an act of international interference and overreach. Ipas and our partners have been leading advocacy efforts to repeal the Helms Amendment for years, and we’re gaining traction.

I’m so glad the New York Times is shining a spotlight on this issue, since we need as many people as possible to understand the senseless harms of the Helms Amendment and join us in calling for its repeal. Abortion is health care, and everyone deserves access—no matter who, no matter where.

In solidarity,

Anu Kumar
Ipas President and CEO