Advocates and organizers had been preparing for Roe v. Wade to be overturned since the U.S. Supreme Court draft decision leaked in early May. But Nadya Okamoto, co-founder of period care company August, still felt heartbroken when the decision became official in late June.
“One of the things that always made me passionate about policy and legislative action was that it always felt so permanent,” she told TechCrunch. “For Roe to be rolled back went against many of the beliefs I had about change and social progress.”
Activists like Okamoto are now on the front lines of once again protesting for an individual’s right to an abortion. As a startup founder, Okamoto said she’s ready to use her platform and position to help educate and influence others — and she’s not alone.
Many women founders running reproductive health companies are taking battle stances as the U.S. slips into a reality worse than what existed pre-Roe. Come November, 26 states face a near-total abortion ban.
The decision to reverse Roe also paves the way for the erosion of other rights, such as those that gave the right to interracial and gay marriage.
For this reason, TechCrunch conducted another vibe check, this time with the women founders taking themselves and their companies to the front lines of the fight for abortion. Okamoto and some of the others admit they never thought they would see themselves here; at the same time, it feels as if they’ve been preparing their whole life to take up this fight.
“It’s a privilege to have a platform,” Okamoto said. “That privilege should be reconciled by using said platform to do something important.”
The plan is to scale, fast
Already, women founders are starting to map out plans as the November elections loom.
Jannine Versi, the co-founder of menopausal service startup Elektra Health, said her company is starting to expand its regional partners to help teach other businesses how to support their employees without worrying about geography or penalizing remote workers.
TechCrunch previously reported that founders were still finding ways to help employees during this time, whether by further embracing remote work or looking at paying transportation costs for medical procedures. This situation becomes tricky to navigate as each state has its own labor laws and aiding an employee in a state where abortion is illegal could also be criminal.
Olivia Raisner has a similar mission as Versi. Coincidentally, Raisner co-founded and launched the health organization Mayday the same day Roe was overturned. Her goal is to establish a nationwide campaign to inform as many people as possible on how to access safe abortion pills through the mail.
“We’re going headfirst into the states that have trigger laws. We don’t care.” Leda Health, co-founder, Madison Campbell
Abortion pills, also known as medical abortions, are used in most abortions and are popular because of their low costs and for allowing individuals more privacy while undergoing the procedure, The New York Times reported. People have been scrambling to stock up on abortion pills after numerous states banned all forms of abortion, including medical ones.
Raisner said her target is those who can’t afford to travel out of state to obtain abortion care, she told TechCrunch. It could be difficult to track pills shipped to a home address and when someone crosses state lines to buy and take the pills.
The U.S. Attorney General said states cannot ban abortion pills because the Food and Drug Administration approved their use in 2000, but that hasn’t stopped states from trying. Because a clinical consultation is usually required before being prescribed the medication, numerous states have already banned or restricted using telehealth for abortion purposes, a blow to those looking for care providers outside of their home states. Last year, Texas enacted a law making it illegal to send abortion pills through the mail, and the issue is bound to take center stage come the November midterms.
This is just another reason Madison Campbell is also determined to quickly expand Leda Health, the company she co-founded, which provides medical services to survivors of sexual assault. She wants to reach every state in the nation as “fast as humanly possible” before the fall arrives.
Some states have already implemented near-total abortion bans without exceptions for rape or incest; notably, a 10-year-old girl denied an abortion in Ohio had to go to Indiana to get one.
Campbell’s company currently provides services like at-home rape kits and Plan B in Florida, Texas, California and Washington State. She said companies like hers must stick it out in red states, specifically those at risk of electing more conservative lawmakers in November, putting the lives of millions more individuals who can give birth at risk.
“We’re going headfirst into the states that have trigger laws. We don’t care. We’re not backing down,” she told TechCrunch. “We’re trying to get into as many states as humanly possible.”
Social media becomes center stage
Okamoto has posted hundreds of TikToks for her company, August, about periods and has pivoted to answering users’ questions about abortion rights and women’s health care. Menstruation has been put under the spotlight because apps that track periods can reveal when someone may have missed a period, posing a problem if that data were to be collected by prosecutors.
Already, August has more than 3 million followers on the platform, and Okamoto is hosting podcasts, live conversations and moderating a support group on Slack to spread awareness. She said social media is vital in disseminating information to those looking to educate themselves on the importance of safe abortion access. In the modern age, platforms like TikTok, Instagram and even Twitter are the new underground networks for abortion care.
“In the attention economy, social media … is honestly the best way to mobilize the vote,” Okamoto told TechCrunch. “We must garner attention to stay focused on what’s happening.”
Campell added to that, saying Leda Health tries to remain as apolitical as possible online to attract both sides of the political aisle. The company depends on pure scientific and medical information rather than sharing anecdotes and finds that liberals and conservatives alike respond better when information is presented somewhat neutrally.
In the modern age, platforms like TikTok, Instagram and even Twitter are the new underground networks for abortion care.
Michelle Kennedy is also using social media to inform consumers. Kennedy is the co-founder of the maternity platform Peanut, and she said her company took a public stance against the ban, much to the dismay of some of its anti-abortion customers. Nonetheless, Kennedy said Peanut would continue hosting discussions for women to express their thoughts and concerns as the company finds ways to support healthcare access.
“This isn’t about being on the right side of the law,” Kennedy told TechCrunch. “This is about being on the right side of history.”
A future worth fighting for
Despite moving fast, it’s still early days for many founders in determining what to do and how to do it. The potential for a political shakeup exists in November, but the midterms are not the only worry on founders’ minds.
Campbell said she’s afraid this issue is a “slippery slope” that will lead to the overturning of other pressing court cases that established rights for women and minorities. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has already expressed interest in revisiting the court cases that legalized gay marriage and contraception. The livelihoods of women and minorities will remain unsecured unless these rights are codified into law.
Even Kennedy is a bit worried. Based in the U.K., she said about 70% of her users are in the U.S. She fears conservative U.S. political decisions could influence lawmakers across the pond and noted that Roe’s reversal could impact the number of British women founders looking to the U.S. for startup opportunities.
“We have no choice but to be proactive, to be advocates.” Elektra Health co-founder Jannine Versi
The number of men who have spoken out about this remains small, she said. “All founders, speak out,” she continued. “It’s not just a women’s issue; it’s an access to healthcare, therefore everyone, issue.”
Meanwhile, August has started offering relocation costs for its employees looking to move to states like New York that still allow abortion. Okamoto said she’s already pulled up the schedule of Supreme Court cases to be heard this fall to start mapping out what will happen next and beyond. Versi expects more startups to begin working with grassroots organizations as politics and tech continue to intertwine.
Her company recently published its first workplace report to help add to the discussion about women’s health. Versi said it’s essential for people to keep talking about abortion access and imperative for people to take care of each other during this time.
“This is not a time where we can simply go about our business and ignore what’s happening,” she continued. “We have no choice but to be provocative, to be advocates.”
Okamoto agreed. Although today is just one of many battles in the war, it’s a fight worth having.
“We have a lot of work to do,” she said. “We have to get back to work.”