Our 3rd annual UCRJ Reproductive Justice Week will take place April 7-13, 2025. Last year's UCRJ Week included 26 events in partnership with over 45 organizations. We look forward to an even more impactful week of events in 2025. It's never too soon to get involved - email us if you'd like to host an event or volunteer! julie@ucrj.org

BIPOC for Better Birth aims to center the experiences of People of Color and build better birthing and parenting communities across Central Illinois. They host Black Breastfeeding Week events and birth & art focused events with the intention of creating space for birthing and parenting communities to come together, reflect, and have fun. BBB also aims to create opportunities for BIPOC folks to become birth workers, such as doulas, midwives, childbirth educators, and herbalists. 

Thanks to a grant through the Home Visiting Consortium's Birth to Five program, we will be providing 250-300 boxes of newborn supplies to new families throughout Champaign County in 2025. This is fantastic news for our community! To make this program sustainable, we hope to build a coalition of partners dedicated to the vision. Contact julie@ucrj.org to get involved!

UCRJ's vision is to act as an umbrella organization, linking and supporting reproductive justice activists and organizations in our community. To that end, our work focuses on collaborative activism. Our steering committee includes representatives from Uniting Pride, BIPOC for Better Birth, Planned Parenthood, the University of Illinois, Eastern Illinois University, the Unitarian Universalist Church of Urbana-Champaign, and dedicated community activists.

In collaboration with the School of Social Work, UCRJ is organizing an annual RJ Summit. The event will bring together individuals and organizations working in reproductive justice in the downstate area. Our goal: helping to build a stronger network of RJ and perinatal care for our communities. The first summit is planned for early February 2025.

The CU Birth Fund will provide direct financial grants towards doula and homebirth midwife services for expecting pregnant people of color in East Central Illinois. By supporting wrap-around guidance and support throughout the pregnancy and birthing process, the fund will improve care for pregnant and birthing people and help reduce BIPOC perinatal mortality in our community. With the help of seed funding from the UC Friends Meeting, we are in the development stage. Stay tuned!

In collaboration with Midwest Access Coalition, UCRJ helps provide emergency contraceptives, condoms, and other safe sex supplies to the community. Local partners include Uniting Pride, Cunningham Township, RACES, Avicenna Community Health Center, and CUPHD. Find out more on our Free Morning After Pills page.

UCRJ offers volunteer and internship opportunities for students interested in reproductive justice and community organizing. Email inquiries to Julie Laut: julie@ucrj.org.