Olivia Rodrigo fans receive free emergency contraceptive pills at concert in Missouri
Olivia Rodrigo has once again shown her support for reproductive rights at a recent Guts World Tour concert.
On Tuesday 12 March, fans at the 21-year-old pop star’s concert in St Louis, Missouri, received free emergency contraception and condoms from the Missouri Abortion Fund and Right By You - ​​a text hotline that connects young people to abortion care, birth control, and information about reproductive rights.
According to posts shared on social media, the Missouri Abortion Fund distributed free boxes of the one-step pill under the brand name “Julie”, a progestin‑only emergency contraceptive. The morning after pill uses the same active ingredient as the popular Plan B One Step pill, levonorgestrel, which helps prevent pregnancy when taken within 72 hours after unprotected sex.
“It’s brutal out here in Missouri, but we are here for abortion access and hand out Plan B with @TextRightByYou,” wrote the Missouri Abortion Fund in a post on X, formerly Twitter. The non-profit organisation hosted booths at the concert venue, where fans also received free condoms, heart-shaped stickers with abortion resource links, and a square sticker with a QR code and the words, “Funding abortion? It’s a good idea, right?” written across it.
“Free plan b at @oliviarodrigo in St Louis tonight,” said one fan on X. “Thank you @MOAbortionFund”.
Another concert-goer wrote on Reddit: “Got for myself! They had condoms and stickers too.​​”
It’s brutal out here in Missouri, but we are here for abortion access and hand out Plan B with @TextRightByYou https://t.co/Rd7fc0b1xG
— Missouri Abortion Fund (@MOAbortionFund) March 13, 2024
In June 2022, the US Supreme Court struck down a 50-year precedent set by Roe v Wade when it issued a ruling in the 2018 case Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization. In turn, the Supreme Court decided that there is no constitutional right to abortion despite decades of federal protections for abortion access since 1973.
Since then, nearly two dozen states in the US have issued total bans on abortion or restricted access to abortion services. In Missouri, abortion is completely banned with very limited exceptions for medical emergencies.
The three-time Grammy winner has been vocal about her support for reproductive rights since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade nearly two years ago. Following the decision, Rodrigo brought out Lily Allen as a special guest during her 2022 Glastonbury performance to sing “F*** You” in response to the Supreme Court ruling.
“I’m devastated and terrified and so many women and girls are going to die because of this and I wanted to dedicate this next song to the five members of the Supreme Court who showed us at the end of the day they truly don’t give a s*** about freedom,” she said during the show. “This song goes out to the justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Amy Coney Barrett, and Brett Kavanaugh.”
In February, the “Deja Vu” singer announced she was launching a new charity initiative alongside her Guts World Tour, called Fund 4 Good. The fund supports community-based non-profits and programs that protect the reproductive freedoms of women, girls, and people who menstruate. Some of the programs supported by the fund also tackle issues such as girls’ education and gender-based violence.
“A portion of all of the proceeds from the Guts World Tour will go to the Fund 4 Good,” Rodrigo said. “And for the North American leg of the Guts World Tour, I’ll be partnering with the National Network of Abortion Funds to help those impacted by health care barriers and getting the reproductive care they deserve.”