More Than Abortion: Why Reproductive Justice Matters in Cincinnati Post-Roe

ABSTRACT

This study examines Reproductive Justice (RJ) for Black women in Cincinnati. While recognizing the importance of ensuring safe, legal, and affordable abortion access, RJ extends beyond this narrow focus and delves into the complex intersections of race, gender, sexuality, and social class. Employing principles from Black feminist praxis in utilizing Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) methods, we conducted qualitative interviews to center the voices and experiences of 24 self-identified Black women. The research uncovers three main themes: 1) Ideological violence against Black women, with subthemes: beauty and body image, strength and resilience, and stigmatized mothering; 2) Distrust in daycare services; and 3) Hurdles for low income women in accessing abortion care. These findings shed light on a post-Roe reproductive justice landscape for Black women in Cincinnati.

KEYWORDS:

• Reproductive justice
• Black feminism
• resilience and strength
• devaluation and ideological violence
• abortion care

Acknowledgments

I’d like to acknowledge my special flowers that grow north of the woods, west of the river. I’d also like to thank Dr. Danielle Bassett for inviting me to lead this Reproductive Justice Study in Cincinnati for the Ohio Policy Evaluation Network (OPEN).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by Ohio Policy Evaluation Network (OPEN) from a grant from an anonymous foundation.

Notes on contributors

Carolette Norwood

Carolette Norwood is professor and department head of sociology and criminology at Howard University. Dr. Norwood is a Black feminist sociologist whose research explores the implications of violence (structural, spatial, and interpersonal) at the intersections of race, gender, class, sexuality, and space on reproductive and sexual health injustice for Black women.

Thembi Carr

Thembi Carr is a scholar activist researcher that has been in the field of education for almost 20 years. Her passion to assist students to obtain their education has led her to touch the lives of many different students such as pre-school students, students obtaining their GED, and traditional university graduates. Dr. Carr received her doctorate from the University of Cincinnati in Educational Studies with a focus on multicultural education, specifically dismantling structural and overt methods of subjugation within education systems. In addition to continuing this work within schools, Dr. Carr has also been using her skills to examine the access (or lack thereof) that Black women have to reproductive health care within the Cincinnati, Ohio area in era since the overturning of Roe v. Wade. She is also a mother to a wonderful son.