Thrive Campaign
Under our former name, Pro-Choice Arizona, the organization launched the Thrive campaign in 2021 in response to SB 1457, a sweeping anti-abortion law. This bill attempted to establish fetal personhood, created even more hurdles for providers, and banned someone from seeking abortion because of a genetic abnormality of the fetus. .
We launched this campaign in 4 rural counties which consisted of billboards and radio ads, targeting swing counties based on the 2020 elections. We partnered with local artists Lucinda Hinojos and Stephanie Guillermina Castro to create the campaign art.
*Although the campaign has ended, this page is occasionally updated with changing laws, statistics, and new information.
We all deserve to thrive, no matter if and how we decide to grow our families.
Whether you want a family, already have children, or know you’re not ready, having access to abortion care in our community gives us power over our own futures.
Deciding if, how, and when to grow our families is one of the most important decisions we make in life. When full reproductive healthcare services are available and affordable to us, we can do what’s best for ourselves and for those we love. With the right resources and support, we can all thrive.
What Is Reproductive Justice?
Reproductive Justice is the human right to maintain personal bodily autonomy, have children, not have children, and parent the children we have in safe and sustainable communities (as defined by SisterSong). When Arizona’s government passes policies and laws that dictate and restrict what our bodies are allowed to do and how it can be done, we lose our bodily autonomy - the freedom to decide what is right for ourselves.
Reproductive Justice is not only limited to personal control over our physical bodies, it also focuses on the environment and communities in which we raise our families. When our towns are economically unstable and lack employment opportunities with fair wages and health benefits, we struggle to make ends meet to provide for our family. We cannot take care of our health and well-being the way we deserve to be able to. People of color face additional barriers because of systemic racial inequalities. Native American, Latin, and Black communities have the highest poverty rates in Arizona.
It’s time to end the myth that access to abortion is only a women’s problem.
Access to legal and safe abortion impacts everyone, including families, partners, friends, children, and communities. Making it to an abortion appointment should not be a strenuous process. We need to work on changing policies that create barriers to care. We need to change the narrative that stigmatizes the people who choose abortion. Anyone with a uterus who can get pregnant, including non-binary, trans, LGBTQ+ folk and women, especially those from marginalized communities, are most impacted by restrictive laws and barriers to care.
1 in 4
People will have an abortion in their lifetime
49%
Helpline callers travel to another city or out-of-state for care in 2023
40%
People seek abortion because they can’t afford to have a child
62%
Of abortion patients have a religious affiliation
73%
Abortion Fund helpline callers are already parents
People living in Arizona face some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country:
A 24-week viability abortion ban
Mandatory counseling appointment and ultrasound
24-hour waiting period between ultrasound and procedure
Only medical physicians are allowed to perform abortions and administer medication
Ban on telemedicine for abortion medication
In 2021, state lawmakers passed a ban against seeking abortion because of the genetic abnormality of a fetus
Over the years, these restrictive policies have caused clinics to shut down across the state. Today, we only have seven clinics providing abortion care in Phoenix and Tucson.
Restrictions and barriers impact patients who call the Abortion Fund of Arizona every day. Even if they can afford the procedure, they may face other costs like taking unpaid time off work or paying for childcare if they’re already parents. They'll also need to stay for one to three nights due to the mandatory waiting period, adding travel and lodging costs if they don’t live near a clinic. The logistical and financial burdens created by these barriers are more than many people can afford.
Pregnant people in rural Arizona lack more than just abortion access
Abortion isn’t the only form of reproductive healthcare that is lacking for pregnant people living in rural areas. A 2020 report from the University of Arizona’s Center for Rural Health found that 8 counties in Arizona have less than 10 OBGYNs, while 2 have no access to OBGYN care and maternal health services at all.
If a person living in rural Arizona is unable to gain access to the reproductive healthcare needed to end an unwanted pregnancy, they are also very likely to have limited or no access to prenatal and postpartum care. This can lead to complications or dangerous situations for the pregnant person and fetus. Adding more restrictions to reproductive healthcare only makes matters worse.
The Future of Abortion Access in Arizona
Lawmakers in Arizona and across the country have put laws in place that affect people differently based on where they live and who they are. Many Arizonans already struggle without access to a clinic, cannot afford an abortion, and are forced to continue pregnancies because of geographic, economic, racial, and legal barriers.
That’s why we’re working toward a future where all people in Arizona have the power, resources, and support we need to get abortion care and thrive with happy, safe, and healthy families and communities — no matter who we are or where we live.
It’s going to take all of us working together.