November 18, 2014

To the Fordham Administration,

Students for Sex and Gender Equality and Safety Coalition has asked for the
support of social justice organizations, clubs, and groups such as ours in their campaign
for holistic sexual health services at Fordham University. As a reproductive justice group,
we support the S.A.G.E.S. coalition in their efforts to fight for access in their community
and abroad.
We stand with S.A.G.E.S. call for sensible housing policy for our transgender and
gender-nonconforming students, health options for sexual safety and womens health,
sex-positive campus dialogue in dorms and in safe and free spaces, an alternative to
gender-biased dorm visitation policies, and resources for members of the Fordham
community with children and those that wish to wait.
According to the Guttmacher Institute, 50% of women aged 18 to 34, including
Latinas, said there had been a time when the cost of a prescription contraceptive
prevented consistent use. Poor women in the U.S. are four times more likely to have an
unplanned pregnancy than women who have more resources. This includes students who
depend on their campus for services.
One of the most basic human rights is the ability to make decisions about ones
own life, including reproductive health decisions. Fordham has denied its students
autonomy by limiting and denying their access to contraceptives. Being able to make
decisions is essential to a womans health and dignity and to attaining justice for our
communities. Allowing employers to deny women coverage violates the individual
religious freedom and conscience of a woman who chooses to use contraception.
For undocumented immigrant Latinas, colleges are oftentimes the only places
they can access health and reproductive health services. We must do better as a
community in protecting the health, dignity, and justice of all people.
Fordham can no longer let these policies continue to inhibit student's right to
health, and young women's right for bodily autonomy. We stand in solidarity with
students who advocate for contraceptive access and sex safety.
We, the New York Latina Advocacy Network, an extension of the National Latina
Institute for Reproductive Health, stand in power, solidarity, and support with the
S.A.G.E.S. Coalition and this fight.

New York | Washington, DC | Florida | Texas | Virginia

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