We need you - your voice, your advocacy, your partnership.
When you give, and when you act, you insist that the movement for reproductive justice in Iowa and across the country isn't going away.
I’ve got 3 words for 2025: Challenging. Uncertain. Resolute.
Dear Friends and Allies,
This year has tested us all in ways both expected and unforeseen. We are 15 months into Iowa’s cardiac activity abortion ban. Unfortunately, the landscape for reproductive health care remains complex: challenging in its demands, uncertain in its direction. Yet through it all, the Emma Goldman Clinic has remained resolute.
These challenges and uncertainties have extended well beyond reproductive health and have seeped into the daily lives of our staff, clients and supporters, including LGBTQ+ people, immigrants, communities of color, and all those rendered ‘other’ or excluded by this administration’s actions. It has always been about more than abortion.
Of course we’ve felt the impact of these restrictive abortion laws and threats to federal funding, and the consequences reach far beyond our doors. Many of our trans and immigrant clients now face barriers of fear and access that prevent them from seeking health care. We’re seeing fewer abortion and wellness clients overall, and each absence tells a story of someone pushed farther from accessible, affirming care. Those who can’t receive abortion services at the Emma Goldman Clinic are often forced to look out of state or online. That loss of connection has deeply affected both our community and our financial stability.
We’re writing today not just to ask for your support, but to reaffirm these truths: We remain. We persist. We fight on. In a time when many were not sure we would survive, we continue to stand strong, grounded in compassion, guided by feminist principles, and fueled by our community.
This year is proving decisive for reproductive health care across the country. While forces continue to push back against access and autonomy, we are also witnessing signs of progress, proof that our collective efforts are making a difference.
National Ups & Downs
- Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has directed an inquiry into the safety of Mifepristone, an abortion medication approved 25 years ago that is the primary drug used in non-surgical abortions.
+ At the same time, the FDA has approved a generic version of the same drug.
Iowa Ups & Downs
- Effective July 1, 2025, Iowa’s Medicaid program no longer covers gender-affirming surgeries or hormone therapies for transgender individuals under a budget and health care provision signed into law.
+ Also in July, the Clinic received a grant that allows us to subsidize care for our trans clients in Johnson County.
This reminds us that even in difficult years, progress is possible when we remain united and determined.
Why your support in 2025 is more critical than ever
As we push forward, challenges persist:
- Federal funding remains unstable.
- States across the nation are doubling down on restrictions.
- Those seeking reproductive health care and those providing abortion care are being singled out for criminalization.
- Legal threats continue to undermine privacy, safety, and equity in health care.
- The inquiry into the safety of Mifepristone is an attempt to show that self-managed and online abortion care is not safe.
These represent threats to provider access, safe abortion service delivery and the stability of reproductive care infrastructure. Yet through it all, our mission endures. In an environment of both opportunity and constraint, our work is essential.
2025 has been challenging. It has been uncertain.
Yet through every challenge, the Emma Goldman Clinic remains resolute - steadfast in purpose, grounded in community, and unwavering in our commitment to compassionate, inclusive care.
With gratitude and determination,
Francine Thompson, Executive Director