#TacoOrBeerChallenge - TYT Network

It turns out “hash tag activism” is real activism with concrete results in the “real world.” It can raise awareness as well as money while changing culture and bringing people together internationally — even when the hashtag itself was initially started as a joke.

Written by BOTL social media/activism director Katie Klabusich

Andrea Grimes — a reproductive healthcare activist and senior political reporter for RH Reality check — had been watching the “Ice Bucket Challenge” make its way around and thought tacos and beer sounded more fun.

So, Grimes issued a new challenge via video on Tumblr: The Taco Or Beer Challenge. (That’s heavy on the “or,” by the way, to be inclusive to everyone’s dietary needs and restrictions.) She wrote the following for RHRC:

“What do ice buckets have to do with ALS? I don’t know. What do tacos and beer have to do with abortion? I don’t know that either.

What I do know is that eating tacos and drinking beer is more pleasurable than getting doused with ice water, and that lawmakers around the country are passing increasingly restrictive anti-abortion access laws. Which means abortion funds are now more necessary than ever as legal abortion becomes harder than ever to access—especially for those of us who don’t live in major urban centers.

Tacos and beer, of course, remain as vital to our human happiness as they ever were. The solution is clear: Eat tacos, drink beer, and donate to abortion funds.”

Since the start of the Taco Or Beer Challenge, the National Network of Abortion Funds has reported a major spike in first time donors. Celebs like Dan Savage, Martha Plimpton, Sarah Paulson and more are snapping pics and videos of themselves with a beer and/or a taco while donating to the abortion fund of their choice. Many are choosing to give to funds in New Orleans and Texas where recently passed laws are going into effect.

Participating is easy and delicious. There’s no minimum contribution. You can toss two dollars to your local abortion fund — which you can find at FundAbortionNow.org — and you’ve completed the challenge! TacoOrBeerChallenge.tumblr.com has a submission link and you can put it up on Twitter where right-wingers are freaking out over the abomination of “American” favorites like tacos and beer being used to fund healthcare for patients in need.

The average caller to an abortion fund receives assistance in the neighborhood of one to two hundred dollars, which means your modest contribution goes a long way. Because the hotlines are volunteer run, 100% of your donation goes to save a person who needs it because this basic, safe medical procedure is singled out by politicians and rarely covered by insurance.

So have a taco. Or a beer. Or both! Ice cream tacos, root beer, vegan quesadillas — all taco and beer-like substances are accepted. And then enjoy angering hysterical right-wingers and their hypocritical need to regulate your bedrooms and your doctor’s offices.

TAKE ACTION:

Take the Taco Or Beer Challenge via Andrea Grimes

Additional Activism/Resources:

Find your local abortion fund through The National Network of Abortion Funds and follow NNAF onTwitter

Follow #TacoOrBeerChallenge and use it to challenge your friends/followers!

Sources/further reading:

#TacoOrBeerChallenge, Two Weeks In

NNAF Spotlight: New Orleans Abortion Fund h/t @nolaAbortionFnd

“Meet The Woman Who Refuses To Stop Fighting Against Texas’ Abortion Restrictions” by Tara Culp-Ressler at Think Progress

“Whole Woman’s Health Opens its Doors in New Mexico, Starts Advocacy Initiative” via Whole Woman’s Health

“Abortion Provider Expands to New Mexico in Response to Texas Anti-Abortion Law” by Andrea Grimes at RH Reality Check

“Federal Court Blocks Part of Texas Abortion Law Preceding Immediate State Appeal” by Andrea Grimes at RH Reality Check