This week, I spent time in New Orleans attending the SACReD Gathering 2024. SACReD, or the Spiritual Alliance of Communities for Reproductive Dignity, is an organization “collaborating to advance Reproductive Justice through congregational education, culture change, community building, and direct service.” The headline of the gathering was “Ignite Healing, Rewrite the Narrative, Create Culture Change.” I joined people from across the country, including several of our Texas Impact members, in three days of holding intentional space to determine a way forward in this post-Roe world.
A central theme of the event was creating community and centering collaboration. No one organization has the power to change this tide of restrictive policies on reproductive health care. The issue is one of policy, but those policies are created and tested at local levels and result from decades of cultural shifts among people of faith who are vocal, organized, and dedicated to making their beliefs law. The people proposing and implementing these restrictive laws are collaborative and do not back down. It is time that we start taking a page from their movement as we work to undo their work and restore reproductive health policy to people across the country and here in Texas.
Kyle Riley and Rev. Erin Walter stand in front of the SACReD banner at the 2024 SACReD gathering in New Orleans.
One thing was evident as I spoke with and heard presentations from folks across faith traditions and organizations at this conference. Everyone is serious about making changes to the landscape of reproductive policy. We are all approaching the issue from different angles. Some are working on providing direct services to folks seeking reproductive health care, even in Texas, to make sure that people are receiving care that is still legal, despite popular misconceptions and fear. Some are working on culture change among the faith community and other areas of society. Some are working on negotiated policies, like us, at the local and state levels. A metaphor I heard from one of the speakers made me very hopeful.
We are trying to host a potluck. For it to be successful, we all have to take on different roles. Someone has to set the table. Someone has to bring the serving ware. Someone needs to defrost and cook the turkey. Someone needs to get the beverages. A few people have to bring sides, and someone must ensure they are all different. If we each do our part and communicate with one another in the process, we will come together at the end and have a beautiful meal. But if we stand alone, we will all experience a lesser meal.
We all must do our part, from our area and in our ways. But we have to communicate and collaborate with everyone else working on this issue, or we will end up at a potluck with jello, five kinds of potato salad, a single fork, and no plates. We have to do this for reproductive health. And when we work together, listening to the differences in approaches, our outcome will be a hard-fought and worthwhile restoration of what was methodically deconstructed.