SAG-AFTRA Recognizes Women’s History Month with Open Letter Supporting Reproductive Rights

Today, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television & Radio Artists released an open letter in support of reproductive rights. The letter, which comes at the start of Women’s History Month, calls for collective action to “safeguard the right of all persons to make their own health care decisions without persecution and punishment.”

“It is our duty to help ensure that our members are treated with respect and dignity and that their right to make safe and informed decisions about their bodies and livelihoods is always protected,” said the union in its statement. 

The timing of the letter and its release marks SAG-AFTRA's most recent effort to ensure abortion care access for its members, regardless of where they live and work. In August 2022, the SAG-AFTRA Health Plan Board of Trustees voted unanimously to provide a benefit to cover certain travel and lodging expenses for participants in need of abortion care in states where such services are prohibited. Participants under the Plan are able to choose to travel to their home state for care, or in the case of prohibited access, a state closest to their home or workplace where abortion is legal. 

The open letter was initially conceived by SAG-AFTRA National Women’s Committee Co-Chairs Shari Belafonte and leslie Shreve and Vice Chair Nancy Flanagan. With this letter, SAG-AFTRA members’ voices join widespread calls throughout the industry to safeguard reproductive rights for pregnant employees. 

“The Supreme Court’s decision to eliminate a fundamental Constitutional right with a decades-long precedent has only opened the door for lawmakers to push for other decisions that go against the grain of what our country stands for,” said Belafonte. “In this time of our country’s history with so much at stake, our only recourse is to be each other’s keeper. Any woman’s right to ‘choose’ should never be in question. As members, we will continue to work to continue the fight when and where we can.”

“As someone who spoke up in support of Roe v. Wade 50 years ago, never did I believe there would be a time when history would reverse course in such a devastating way. It is not enough for us, all these years later, to simply right our path; we must work to make sure basic rights will not be repealed again. I am proud of my union and fellow members for taking up the mantle and fighting this good fight once more,” said Shreve. 

On June 24, 2022, the United States Supreme Court voted 6-3 in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. The decision effectively overturned the protections under Roe v. Wade, specifically the constitutional right to abortion. In the months following, several states have introduced or passed legislation shortening the allowed time for abortion procedures or banning such actions as illegal. 

The full letter and list of signatories is below. Members interested in adding their name to the open letter can do so HERE. 

SAG-AFTRA’S OPEN LETTER IN SUPPORT OF REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

As we enter Women's History Month, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, the world’s largest and most influential entertainment union, declares its unwavering support for industry workers affected by the United States Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.

We reaffirm our stance that a woman’s womb cannot be legislated, and are calling on our employers to guarantee continued access to all safe and legal health care services, including abortions, across the U.S. and its territories. 

Roe v. Wade guaranteed all women in our country the right to safe and accessible reproductive health care services.

What Dobbs has done to set the clock back for women in our country is a matter that cannot be debated or argued against. In just a matter of months, it has threatened and caused undeniable harm to the most vulnerable amongst us. It has threatened the removal of services that individuals and families from different socioeconomic backgrounds and communities of color have come to greatly depend on.

And, it has emboldened lawmakers from all levels of government to create laws that not only impede on a woman’s right to choose but also criminalize them if they make decisions in their own best interests. 

One thing Dobbs has not done is stopped women from seeking an abortion. It has, however, made having what should be a safe procedure a physical and legal risk for countless women. 

This decision has affected women of all ages across society, including members of our industry. 

We have heard our industry’s collective outrage following these shocking and egregious events, and applaud our union and industry colleagues for continuing to demand that more decisive steps be taken.

Along with other organizations, the SAG-AFTRA Health Plan has added a benefit to cover certain travel and lodging expenses related to abortion care for participants who live or work in states prohibiting abortion.

This undeniably important safeguard, however, is not enough for individuals who do not work enough to qualify for coverage by the Plan, or who cannot simply leave the communities where these laws are now firmly in place.

It is our duty to help ensure that our women members are treated with respect and dignity and that their reproductive rights to make safe and informed decisions about their bodies are always protected.

We, the undersigned SAG-AFTRA members and union, ask our industry colleagues to be on the right side of history and join us in the fight to end these attacks against women once and for all.

Take action now to protect WOMEN’S REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS.

Visit plannedparenthoodaction.org now to demand that your elected representatives protect a woman's right to choose.

Love is Love

Stay Safe

Fran Drescher
SAG-AFTRA President

SAG-AFTRA National Women's Committee
Shari Belafonte, Co-Chair
leslie Shreve, Co-Chair
Nancy Flanagan, Vice Chair

Members interested in adding their name to the open letter can do so HERE. 

About SAG-AFTRA

SAG-AFTRA represents approximately 160,000 actors, announcers, broadcast journalists, dancers, DJs, news writers, news editors, program hosts, puppeteers, recording artists, singers, stunt performers, voiceover artists and other entertainment and media professionals. SAG-AFTRA members are the faces and voices that entertain and inform America and the world. A proud affiliate of the AFL-CIO, SAG-AFTRA has national offices in Los Angeles and New York and local offices nationwide representing members working together to secure the strongest protections for entertainment and media artists into the 21st century and beyond. Visit SAG-AFTRA online at SAGAFTRA.org.