Roe v. Wade Court Decision - Holistic Team Response

The following messages have been compiled from the leadership and staff at Holistic in response to the decision by the Supreme court on June 24, 2022 to overturn Roe v. Wade, thereby revoking a woman’s right to abortion. We are grateful to all of our team members who were compelled to express their opinions and emotions on this sensitive matter.

Company Response

“The decision by the United States Supreme Court to overturn Roe v Wade is a travesty; it is an assault on human decency, autonomy, freedom and the future of this nation. As a business, Holistic unequivocally rejects inequity in all its forms, and this action is a gesture of extreme inequity and exclusion. To be "people first" is to support and value the diverse needs and experiences of all people. We firmly believe that limiting or inhibiting necessary health resources does not align with a people first, equitable, or inclusive approach. What the United States Supreme Court has done is appalling. We believe the business community should assert its leadership and call for swift and fundamental action to return these rights to the people of this country. In the meantime, it is imperative that all businesses, large and small, do what they can for their teammates during these trying times, and continue fighting for equitable and inclusive policies for all.”

Commitments by Holistic:

Holistic will offer its employees reimbursement of travel expenses for necessary medical procedures, including abortions, using a no-questions asked approach. We will do what we can to support the reproductive health of our employees to the fullest extent that the law permits.
As Holistic develops these policies, we will “open source” our language for widespread use.
Holistic will create a resource guide as it relates to abortion and the workplace, that can be used for companies who are seeking to craft forward thinking policies and support their employees.
Holistic will offer free support to our clients who wish to have a listening session around this matter for their employees.

Ongoing Holistic Commitments

Holistic will always use its platforms to elevate employee voices when it comes to furthering messages of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Holistic will always support employees in taking sick time for mental health or physical health needs.
Holistic will always be open to growth opportunities to be more inclusive and equitable in our language and policies in support of our diverse team and client base.
Holistic will continue to open space for respectful employee dialogue about critical issues around Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
Holistic will “open source” policy language as a form of transparency and information/resource sharing.

Tanja Schroeder, she/her (Chief of Staff)

“I’m having a hard time finding the words to describe how I feel, or the capacity to draft an eloquent response. I never imagined something like this would happen- having a fundamental right to healthcare revoked. When I think of change, I think of moving forward, progress, improvement. This is not change, it is a regression. I am left wondering what else? What comes next? Right now, as much as I’d love to be positive and proactive, I’m worried about the answer to those questions.”

Guthrie Blechman, they/them (Lead Consultant)

“In any time of crisis, and I do consider this ruling a crisis, it is important for us to assess our strengths and our roles and do all we can to make change. This may look like political action, social action, community outreach, providing safe spaces physically or metaphorically, guiding conversations to be more inclusive, educating others on ways this decision disproportionately affects marginalized communities, donating time and/or money to local and national organizations, focusing energies on supporting our families, and other forms of advocacy. As important as it is to act, it is equally important to listen and learn from others who have been doing this reproductive justice work for decades. We do not need to recreate the wheel, there are people doing incredible work that are looking for more hands, more dollars, and more people to spread the word.”

Leah He, she/her (Deputy Director of Data)

“We’re not only fighting for the abortion freedom, we’re also talking about basic human rights. It is essential for everyone to access to safe and legal abortion, to make decisions about becoming parents and to raise their children with dignity and social supports. At this moment, we could support each other and our community by different ways, including committing to being a defender of abortion rights, donating to reliable abortion funds, sharing our stories and listening to others, voting for abortion access, etc. We must come together and fight for a world where we have the freedom to become decision makers of our own bodies.”

Leah Dugan, she/her (Consultant)

Abortion is an essential part of reproductive health. It can be life saving, life sustaining, and life changing. This Supreme Court decision has ushered us into a society where a corpse has more bodily autonomy than a person living with a uterus. It is sure to cost many unnecessarily and to widen the already massive chasm of access to healthcare and personal financial advancement. Those with means, financial and/ or regional, will continue to get abortions. Those without will suffer.

In a country with no affordable healthcare, where having a baby could easily cost $100k; where maternal and infant mortality rates are double or even triple that of many other “developed” nations; where 12 million children are food insecure and there is little in the way of help; where there is no paid universal parental leave and no universal childcare; where access to mental health is difficult if not impossible for many people; where financial assistance is hard to come by; where thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of rape kits sit on shelves unprocessed for years; where rape and incest cases largely go unreported and perpetrators uncharged; the cruelty of forced pregnancies and forced births is truly astounding.

This decision also pushes us into very dangerous legal territory. The decision to overturn Roe rides on the assertion that rights can only be enumerated if they are “deeply rooted” in our country’s “history and traditions”. Justice Thomas has already said they they can and should look at the same-sex marriage ruling with the same attention. What else could be next? A dangerous precedent was set with this ruling that has the potential to erode civil rights for generations to come.

Resources

Abortion Rights/Legality (by state):