Here’s how Ariana Grande is helping the fight against abortion restrictions

People


Here’s how Ariana Grande is helping the fight against abortion restrictions

By Chloe Gray

6 years ago

Ariana Grande is known for her no nonsense approach, and she wasn’t messing around when she decided to support Planned Parenthood amid America’s abortion ban laws. 

A month ago, Alabama’s senate voted to criminalise abortion at any stage, even in the cases of rape or incest. It followed hot on the heels of five other Southern states in the US introducing ‘heartbeat bills’, which massively reduce the time frame in which pregnant women could have an abortion.

People across the world protested the news, huge film companies including Disney and Netflix withdrew work from Georgia, and Hollywood stars refused to return to the states in question until women were given back rights over their bodies. 

One celeb who has decided not to boycott the states which are restricting abortion is Ariana Grande. But the singer has used her time in Atlanta to help fight for change: the singer reportedly donated the profits from her sold out Sweetener show on Saturday to the city’s Planned Parenthood.

The donation is thought to be around $250,000 and $300,000 (around £200,000 - £235,000), an amount that Dr Leana Wen, president of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, told People magazine comes at “a critical time”.

“This is not what the American people want, nor is it something they’ll stand for,” said Dr Wen.

“Thanks to inspiring support like hers [Grande’s], Planned Parenthood can continue to fight back — in the courts, in Congress, in state houses, and in the streets — against these dangerous attacks on people’s health and lives. We are so grateful to Ariana for her longstanding commitment to supporting women’s rights and standing with Planned Parenthood to defend access to reproductive health care. We won’t stop fighting — no matter what.”

Grande’s feminist fight in the state didn’t end there, though. She apologised to fans after the aforementioned concert was targeted by anti-LGBTQ+ protesters, saying she’s “saddened but not surprised”. 

Her tweet read: “we will do our best to ensure this doesn’t happen again. proud of u all for not fighting / engaging violently.”  [sic]

This isn’t Grande’s first rodeo when it comes to standing up for what she believes in: for the Sweetener tour, she partnered with HeadCount, a voter registration organisation, to encourage political participation from her young fans. 

And, weeks after the Manchester bombings at her concert in 2017, Grande returned to the city to host the One Love fundraising concert that raised over £10 million for the victims and their families. 

She’s also spoken out about mental health issues as she suffered PTSD after the attacks and the effect of grief after the death of her ex-boyfriend Mac Miller, and she’s the queen of using her voice on twitter, even calling out professional troll Piers Morgan’s BS.

So thank you, Ariana Grande, for consistently reminding us there are good people who are willing to fight for others in this very, very shambolic world. 

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