Rhiannon Carnes Named Reproductive Justice Hero

We are beyond thrilled to announce that our Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director Rhiannon Carnes has been named a 2022 Jane Bagley Leghman Award Winner by the Tides Foundation! Each year, five recipients are uplifted nationally for excellence, innovation, and creativity in public advocacy. Rhiannon not only upholds these qualities personally, she also models and engrains the same values into young leaders and members of Ohio Women’s Alliance. This well-deserved honor comes after years of power-building, organizing, and activism across progressive and Black-led movement spaces both in Ohio and nationally. Congratulations, Rhiannon, and thank you for all you do as a tremendous Black woman leader working to make Ohio a place where all people can thrive and lead prosperous lives! Click to read about this year’s recipients.

“‘Reproductive Justice is ours to protect. And while the work requires us to take care of our own, because we believe that we can make the best decisions for ourselves, there will always be those who are actively intruding on our best interests,’ said Carnes.

Carnes is doing her part to protect Reproductive Justice. As the co-founder and co-executive director of the Ohio Women’s Alliance, Carnes is building grassroots movements and mentoring local leaders. In this role, she has provided incubation support to new organizations, created assistance programs to improve access to reproductive health services, and started a peer support group for community members to receive housing, food, and wraparound services. 

But it hasn’t just stopped with direct services. Carnes also started an action fund that boosts voter engagement and civic education in an effort to raise awareness about Ohio Supreme Court judges who don’t back abortion. She also runs a Reproductive Justice roundtable for young organizers in Ohio who are interested in Reproductive Justice, but need support. The group has been actively working on a ballot initiative for the state of Ohio to push for constitutional protection for the right to an abortion.  

Carnes’ ambitions are to continue to uplift the people of her community and improve more opportunities for women to reach prosperity and liberation.”