What happens when abortion stops being a subject of silence and becomes poetry?

At inroads, we are proud to be part of the co-organizing team behind the Grand Feminist Poetry Slam: Aborto Sin Pena [Abortion Without Shame/Penalization], a regional gathering where feminist poets from across Latin America will share original spoken-word pieces created to challenge abortion stigma, celebrate bodily autonomy, and transform narratives through art.

More than a competition, the slam is a celebration of feminist creativity, collective healing, and the power of storytelling to build a future of reproductive justice and freedom.

💚 Grand Feminist Poetry Slam: Abortion Without Shame
📅 August 8
💻 Online (Zoom)
🕓 4:00 PM Mexico City

🔗 Register to attend here: https://dub.sh/slamfeminista

Join us in celebrating the power of words, feminist creativity, and the voices building transformative narratives around abortion and reproductive justice. 💚🎤🌿

A Regional Journey Rooted in Creativity and Care

The slam is Feminist Poetry: Aborto Sin Pena, a regional feminist poetry initiative that has brought together 80 participants from 12 countries across Latin America over the past months.

Through this initiative, activists, abortion companions, poets, and people with lived experience of abortion have connected across borders through creative expression, weaving stronger relationships between movements while amplifying narratives rooted in dignity, autonomy, and our shared humanity.

Participants took part in a series of virtual feminist poetry workshops facilitated by Latin American Slam feminist poets Victoria Equihua, Sara Raca, and King, who guided participants through creative writing, spoken word, and slam poetry practices. The program was designed not only to strengthen artistic skills but also to provide a safe space for connection, reflection, healing, and collective power-building. 

Grounded in Regional Power & Collaboration

What began as a small initiative sparked by Onda Feminista, with seed funding from Abortion Conversation Projects, grew into a broader coalition effort co-organized in partnership with regional feminist organizations and local collectives.

The initiative was made possible and expanded its original form through the collaboration of inroads, Purposeful, Slam de Poesía para Morras, Sukuamis, Colectiva Feminista MAPAS, Crisálidas Azules, Marea Verde Tlaxcala, Ñañaykuna, Frente Catarinense de Luta pela Descriminalização e Legalização do Aborto, Onda Feminista, and Abortion Conversation Projects, in partnership with Latin American poets and activists.

“As a poet, slam artist, and activist involved in initiatives regarding abortion access, the right to bodily autonomy in my region, and the poetry slam scene at national, continental, and international levels, I found this proposal essential. It offers a space to forge alliances and build a network for communication amidst the rise of the right wing and a climate of repression against public policies supporting our rights, lives, and identities—a space where poetry acts as a bridge connecting our actions and struggles.” — Victoria Equihua, Mexican poet and member of Colectiva MAPAS and Slam de Poesía para Morras.

“This is a unique initiative in Abya Yala—unprecedented in both the reproductive rights movement and the poetry slam scene. I have dedicated my life to poetry, and I am thrilled to share my knowledge and tools as a Poetry Slam workshop leader with enthusiastic participants. I want to encourage them to replicate this format in their own communities—a format that transforms the spoken word into a communal act, where poetry becomes a living force fully embodied by those who speak it to craft their own narratives. We deserve more spaces like this. We deserve to be heard and respected, and to exercise our autonomy; we deserve new perspectives and words that help us define ourselves and weave narratives that acknowledge us—free from guilt, shame, and discrimination. We deserve to retell our story.” — Sara Raca, Mexican poet and Slam Master.

Feminist Poetry: Aborto Sin Pena is also a story about what becomes possible when organizations choose collaboration over competition, and work horizontally in partnership with local collectives across movements.

As the initiative evolved, partners contributed not only funding, but also staff and volunteer time, facilitation and fundraising expertise, communications support, organizing experience, and relationships with local communities. Rather than working in silos, organizations and collectives came together to creatively pool resources and share responsibilities so that the program could grow beyond its original scope and reach more people across the region.

This collaborative approach reflected a commitment to centering what movements need most, rather than prioritizing institutional visibility or individual organizational agendas. By trusting one another, sharing labor, and building on each other’s strengths, the coalition was able to expand the initiative’s reach and deepen its impact.

“One of the most powerful things about this initiative has been witnessing what becomes possible when we prioritize movements over organizational silos. Many of us involved in this program inhabit multiple spaces within feminist organizing, and we brought those relationships, experiences, and commitments into this work. By trusting one another and building collectively, this initiative grew beyond what any one group could have achieved alone.” – Mariana González, Communications Director at inroads 

In a context where feminist organizations are often under-resourced and asked to do more with less, this project offers an example of another way of working: one rooted in solidarity, interdependence, and a belief that our collective power is greater than the sum of our individual efforts.

Breaking down silos allowed this initiative to flourish, not because of any single organization, but because many people and groups chose to invest in a shared vision.

The result has been a regional program that not only supports artistic expression but also strengthens relationships across diverse movements working toward reproductive justice throughout Latin America.

What Comes Next?

The Grand Feminist Poetry Slam represents an important milestone in this regional journey, but it is not the end.

Following the slam, participants will have the opportunity to apply for community funding to bring poetry-based spaces into their own contexts and communities. Through these small community grants, organizers will be supported to create feminist poetry circles, community workshops, local slams, and other artistic gatherings that foster dialogue about abortion, challenge stigma, and strengthen networks of care and solidarity.

By investing not only in individual creative expression but also in community-led organizing, the initiative seeks to ensure that the stories, skills, and connections cultivated through Aborto Sin Pena continue to ripple outward across Latin America.