After inviting abortion funds to give out contraceptive supplies at tour venues, Olivia Rodrigo’s management has decided to shut down the handouts following criticism from right-wing figures including Bill Eigel, a state senator in Missouri, where abortion is banned. Pictures of condoms and emergency contraception given at shows have gone viral. Eigel had falsely claimed that Plan B, which the Missouri Abortion Fund had given at Rodrigo’s St. Louis show, is an abortifacient, rather than a preventitive pregnancy medication.
Following the confirmation of the St. Louis show, the National Network Of Abortion Funds wrote to local organizations in cities where Rodrigo is set to perform to confirm that the singer’s management had prohibited them from delivering contraceptive supplies and lubricant. Management had told them that they were concerned minors might obtain them, according to Jezebel.
In a statement to Pitchfork, Destini Spaeth, the chair of Prairie Abortion Fund commented, “Our country lacks comprehensive sex education and accessible healthcare so offering these items when we table at events is a way abortion funds work to bridge the gaps in our communities.”
Spaeth added, “Abortion funds are more than a pledge to a clinic to pay for your abortion fee—we are navigators, collaborators, harm reduction advocates, disrupters, big thinkers, and a wealth of sexual and reproductive health resources. Our work has been exponentially harder since the Dobbs decision of 2022—don’t make it any harder for us. Let us do what we know how to do best; community care.”
Rodrigo’s tour of North America and Europe, billed as the Guts World Tour, is set to run through August.
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