Americans are scrambling to help Texans left freezing and without water or electricity following one of the worst winter storms in a century, but Vogue Magazine is insisting that individuals looking to donate money to help those in need direct their funds to a Texas charity that helps pay costs related to procuring an abortion.
In an article headlined, “5 Ways To Help Texans Amid a Catastrophic Winter Storm,” Vogue provides some helpful suggestions to those people looking to help Texas “struggling to stay warm in a state whose infrastructure simply isn’t prepared to weather a storm of this magnitude,” because it “can be difficult to know how to help from afar.”
Among their suggestions, a blanket drive in Austin, a state-wide food bank, and “Fund Texas Choice,” because the abortion industry does not rest.
“Due to inclement weather, many Texans in need of reproductive care are being forced to reschedule appointments and make new travel arrangements; you can help support that process by donating to Fund Texas Choice, a nonprofit that pays for Texans’ travel to abortion clinics,” the magazine says, helpfully.
Indeed, Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas is closed because of the winter storm. A social media message from the abortion provider tells, “For the safety of our patients and staff, all @PPGreaterTX health centers are closed today. Call 1-800-230-PLAN or visit ppgreatertx.org for updates on appointment availability.”
Later posts indicate that virtual services are also unavailable, directing patients to “[c]onsider the Planned Parenthood Direct app for birth control, emergency contraception, or UTI prescriptions.”
“Fund Texas Choice” has a more specific purpose, however. It was created ” in response to HB2, a 2013 Texas state bill explicitly aimed at closing abortion clinics,” according to its literature.
“If you are a resident of Texas and need help getting to an abortion clinic this fund may be able to help you pay for transportation and a hotel room if you need to stay overnight for your abortion procedure,” the group says on its website. “This fund does not pay for the abortion procedure itself but can help refer you to other abortion funds and resources.”
HB2, the Texas legislative record notes, instituted a 20-week abortion ban, required that doctors performing abortions have admitting privileges at a local hospital, demanded abortion clinics abide by the same standards required of all ambulatory surgical centers and placed restrictions on chemical abortions. The Supreme Court overturned the law, but Texas is still working to restrict abortion, and legislators there recently passed a law removing Planned Parenthood from a list of approved healthcare providers who can receive state-based Medicare funds.
Texans are likely to have other priorities, however. According to CBS News, half a million homes and businesses in the state are still without power, and while the worst of the storm has passed, the state is still struggling to repair frozen and broken water pipes and restore power and water services to many of its residents. The state is also likely to experience a substantial jump in temperature on Friday, making floods from melting and ice snow a possibility.