“We’re not giving up. Ever.” How NCJW is fighting for abortion access in Indiana with Hoosier Jews for Choice
NCJW has been fighting for reproductive freedom in states like Indiana for years, because as Jewish advocates, we know that reproductive freedom is religious freedom. That’s why we’re working with Hoosier Jews for Choice and other amazing interfaith partners to fight for abortion access in Indiana. Here’s what you need to know.
Is abortion legal in Indiana?
Right now, a narrow pathway to legal abortion access exists in Indiana — in large part due to the advocacy of Hoosier Jews for Choice and other women of faith.
Indiana is one of 13 states that enacted near-total abortion bans in the wake of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade.
Amalia Shifriss, a co-founder of Hoosier Jews for Choice, remembers exactly where she was when she got the news about Dobbs. “I was actually in the waiting room of a Planned Parenthood because I needed to get a biopsy and there was a shortage of OB-GYNs in my hometown at the time. And so I went to a Planned Parenthood and I was in the waiting room and I got a CNN notification about the Dobbs decision and I started crying,” said Shifriss in an interview with the NCJW team. “After that, I got to talking with some friends, and we decided we had to do something about it.”
That’s how Hoosier Jews for Choice was formed. From the initial meeting at Shifriss’s synagogue came the plan: Hoosier Jews for Choice was going to use Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act to fight for abortion access.
What is the Religious Freedom Restoration Act?
Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) was signed into law over a decade ago under former Indiana Governor Mike Pence. When it was passed in 2015, Politifact described it as a vehicle for conservatives in the state to weaponize their faith to fight the legalization of marriage equality.
After talking with their lawyers, Hoosier Jews for Choice realized they could use this law to challenge Indiana’s draconian abortion ban. “This abortion ban is violating our religious freedom because it is against our religion,” said Shifriss. “If RFRA’s for one, RFRA’s for all, because it has to be for all religions, not just Christianity. It has to be for Judaism and Buddhism and paganism and Hinduism and Muslims, everyone.”
The group joined other people of faith to file a class-action lawsuit challenging Indiana’s abortion ban for violating their religious freedom. And so far, the courts have been on their side. Earlier this year, an Indiana state court permanently blocked enforcement of the state’s abortion ban for plaintiffs with sincere religious objections.
Now, the ruling is being challenged in state appeals courts by white Christian nationalist organizations and anti-abortion extremists. The case is set to be heard by the Indiana Supreme Court on September 10th, 2026.
How NCJW is fighting for abortion access in Indiana
NCJW has fought Indiana’s abortion ban in court three times. Now, we’re back in defense of reproductive and religious freedom. In April, we organized 39 faith-based organizations to submit an amicus brief in support of Hoosier Jews for Choice’s case.
“Forcing people to abandon their religious beliefs in order to comply with a narrow, Christian belief is a substantial burden on free exercise, full stop,” said NCJW CEO Jody Rabhan in the press release announcing the brief. “We will keep filing, keep leading, and keep demanding until every person in Indiana — and across this country — can make their own health care decisions in accordance with their own faith and conscience.”
NCJW has been working with Hoosier Jews for Choice and the other brave plaintiffs in this case every step of the way. “Our team’s goal is to bolster and support the work these advocates are already doing on the ground,” said NCJW’s Alex Lehman. “We’re so grateful to work with Hoosier Jews for Choice and lend our issue expertise at the intersection of faith and abortion policy while leveraging the strength of a diverse, national coalition of faith-based partners to lift up the lived experience of the Jews in Indiana fighting for their right to control their own lives and their own bodies.”
How we can protect abortion access in other states
“As a result of the ruling from the spring, technically a narrow right to abortion access exists in Indiana. But a right existing doesn’t equal access,” Lehman said. “There are so few providers, there’s so much more work to be done, this is just one piece of the puzzle.”
And Shifriss wants people to know that Indiana is not unique: what she and Hoosier Jews for Choice have done is possible in other states. “You know, if you have a similar abortion ban, go to your ACLU and talk about it and talk about how, you know, this is violating your religious freedom because it 100% is.
“We’re not giving up, ever. And that’s the important thing to remember.”
Take action to protect abortion access
Reproductive freedom is religious freedom — and this November, we have the chance to protect it. Sign the pledge to vote for reproductive freedom today.