Why Social Media is Key to Winning the Fight for Reproductive Rights in the U.S.

As we open a New York Office at Catnip, I’m eager to get stuck into the fight for abortion rights since the overturning of Roe. V. Wade in 2022. Our social media consulting services can help. 

Few things make my blood boil more, frankly, than the unfolding episode of The Handmaid’s Tale on abortion in America. A recent report suggests that about 65,000 rape-related pregnancies may have occurred in the 14 U.S. states with near-total abortion bans after the 2022 Dobbs decision. Abortion fund donations are on the wane. And the prospect of a second term for Trump (which makes me shudder to even think about) would spell further disaster for repro rights. 

Social media continues to be a critical venue for activism in the fight for reproductive justice in America. Users on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok have the power to shape their peers' views and behaviors around reproductive rights through their posts. Organizations can help by giving them the information, graphics, and campaign info to repost and crib from. 

Here are some ways that we have helped clients amplify their abortion rights campaigns on social media, and how you can think about boosting your own message there, too. 

Social for storytelling 

Social media provides a powerful platform for personal storytelling and sharing experiences around reproductive rights and access to care. When individuals can speak openly about their lives, it humanizes these issues and fosters empathy and understanding. Hashtag campaigns like #ShoutYourAbortion have confronted abortion stigma and invited people to share their own stories. 

Meanwhile, Democrats are leaning into abortion in their ad campaigns, knowing that, so far, when abortion is on the ballot in the U.S., abortion wins. These powerful stories will beget other stories, and social is an important place to share them for reach. If you are sharing stories on your blog or a podcast, consider serializing them as a thread or adapting them as a post to create a shareable story. 

Social for sharing key messages & talking points

Social is as pure a medium for messaging as you can get. On Instagram, there are so many ways to get your message across: Stories, grid posts, carousels, imagery, captions.   

For the Population Connection Action Fund, a former client in the repro justice space, we created a hashtag campaign (#Fight4HER) and snappy sharable Instagram carousels that broke down the Abortion is Health Care Everywhere Act and gave people easy ways to support it. Other great accounts for inspiration: Planned Parenthood’s illustrative content on Instagram is ace, of course. Other organizations that do social messaging well are: March of Dimes, Reproductive Freedom for All (formally NARAL,), and the ACLU.

Social for peer pressure & mobilization 

Activists leverage social media to apply positive pressure on their peers to take action and get involved with the cause. When users see many of their connections posting about reproductive rights, attending marches or rallies, and calling their representatives, they feel compelled to do the same. 

Platforms make it easy to join activist campaigns by signing petitions, changing profile pictures, using supportive hashtags, and more. For PCAF, we created a wildly popular custom Instagram filter that put “tattoos” on your face to show that you voted. These filters are a great way to engage widely as they invite people to post and share with their networks. On Twitter, we hosted engagement chats and live-tweeted the presidential debates to further spread the word and engage grassroots activists. 

Social for the sweet side of activism

Perhaps the purest and most brilliant use of social to get the message of repro justice outcomes from baker and activist Becca Rea-Tucker. She has capitalized on the colorful graphics and short, memorable slogans that rule Instagram’s grid and leaned all the way into a trend that the algorithm finds irresistible: Cake. Rea-Tucker posts photos of her homemade cakes with pro-abortion messaging—“Abortion. Any time. Any reason.” is a great one. Spread the good word about reproductive rights with a picture-perfect cake? Social genius.