Today, on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, we want to reflect together on an area of gender violence that often goes unnamed: the violence that happens when laws, norms, and institutions give abusers even more power over women and pregnant people.

As depicted in these illustrations…

For many, this is not a story. It is daily life.

Most of us working in this movement already know this well. We see in our communities, our research, our organizing, and our care for survivors.But so many people outside our movements, the direct link between gender-based violence and barriers to reproductive healthcare is not as clear.

To help reach those audiences, we created these shareable & translatable illustrations of moments many survivors have lived through when trying to access abortion healthcare.

If you would like to share them, you can download and translate these illustrations in multiple languages. If sharing, please also include resources to support people in those situations, such as local hotlines or international support services listed here.

Abortion stigma and criminalization create environments where violence, coercion, and control thrive.

In countries where abortion is criminalized, restricted, or requires spousal permission, abusive partners and gatekeepers can – and regularly do – weaponize the law to abuse women and pregnant people.

Research from around the world shows the same pattern:

• – Gender-based violence and barriers to reproductive healthcare reinforce each other. 
• – When healthcare is restricted, women, trans, and queer people at risk of violence become less safe.
• – For people impacted by gender violence, sexual and reproductive abuse is a common reality. When reproductive autonomy is denied, gender-based violence deepens. 

A Cycle of Violence

Intimate Partner Violence often leads to unwanted pregnancies, and abortion restrictions and stigma extend the violence by pushing survivors into greater risk, deeper abuse, and unsafe alternatives.

One data set that makes this connection painfully clear comes from CDC data summarized by the Guttmacher Institute.

At inroads, we know this violence is not inevitable.

The over 2700 members we support are fighting back every day across more than 120 countries. They are abortion justice organizers changing policies, shifting narratives, and transforming practices so that survivors can access care without fear, shame, or abuse.

inroads members are:

• 💚 Running hotlines and digital platforms that provide accurate, stigma free and judgment free information about abortion care.
• 💚 Leading accompaniment networks so that no one has to navigate care alone or rely on abusive gatekeepers.
• 💚 Training healthcare workers to reduce stigma, prevent abuse and uphold dignity in clinical settings.
• 💚 Challenging and overturning harmful laws, including spousal consent requirements and criminal penalties, that hand abusers even more power.
• 💚 Expanding access to abortion pills and community based self managed care.
• 💚 Replacing stigmatizing narratives that silence survivors and abortion seekers and uplifting stories of agency, autonomy and power.

This is an essential part of the work of ending gender-based violence.

But there’s so much more to do. With your support, we want to equip more stigma-busting grassroots movements to protect and advance reproductive rights worldwide —something urgently needed in this era of emboldened and well-funded anti-rights forces.

Join us! Donate or partner to co-fund our programs to keep fueling frontline movements into 2026!