July 19, 2024
Chris Compendio/PhillyVoice
Freeda Womb, a giant inflatable IUD, stopped by Philadelphia City Hall during its nationwide tour. Nonprofit group Americans for Contraception is traveling with the inflatable to promote birth control rights.
A hard-to-miss demonstration for protecting birth control rights was set up at Philadelphia's City Hall on Friday morning.
Nonprofit group Americans for Contraception has been touring a giant inflatable IUD named Freeda (short for Freeda Womb) around the United States to warn about legislation that could threaten contraception access.
The 20-foot-tall inflatable debuted in Washington, D.C., at Union Station on the day the Senate voted on the Right to Contraception Act, which failed to pass. On Friday, Freeda was on the south side of City Hall behind a stand of postcards showing other locations it visited.
Caren Benjamin, a spokesperson for Americans for Contraception, said Freeda was in Philly to "remind everyone that the right to contraception, something that we took for granted, is seriously under threat."
The Right to Contraception Act was written to codify protections for individuals to receive access to birth control, including IUDs, condoms, pills and other forms. Only two Senate Republicans supported the bill, which failed in a 51-39 vote, but Senate Democrats may bring it up again.
Americans for Contraception said there are at least 13 state bills in the country that would restrict access to IUDs.
"We all know what happened with abortion and then with IVF," Benjamin said, referring to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and the Alabama Supreme Court's controversial ruling on in vitro fertilization.
In Pennsylvania, access to contraceptives has not been codified into law. The state House passed a bill that would protect birth control access, but its future in the Republican-controlled state Senate is uncertain.
Freeda made stops in Baltimore, Virginia Beach and Richmond before gracing Philly with its presence. It will visit Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina, and Chicago in the coming weeks.
