Intent, Intersectionality, and Impact

For Lexi White ’10, philanthropy is about social impact. As a Black, multiracial, gender expansive, queer person, she uses her personal values and experiences to practice reproductive advocacy with an intersectional lens.

“We don’t lead single-issue lives. We have to build strong movements at the intersections of things like racial and gender justice. That’s something I have always been passionate about. I think doing this work has been transformative in how I think about leadership, and the values that I approach movement building and policy and advocacy strategies with,” says White.

White first felt the effect of intersectional programming and community building during her time at Tabor. While her experience as a Seawolf was great overall, she was still confronted with themes of power, privilege, and underrepresentation in the classroom.

“I am so grateful for the leadership of Mrs. [Anika] Walker-Johnson, who was the Director of Multicultural Student Affairs while I was at Tabor. She was a really big support system for me and many other students who came from historically marginalized backgrounds. At a place like Tabor, it’s so important for underrepresented students to have teachers and mentors like Mrs. Walker-Johnson, who model what it means to celebrate our cultural experiences and identities,” reflects White.

While navigating educational institutions such as Tabor and the University of Pennsylvania, White was inspired by vocal political leaders who spoke up and out about justice.

“I had to learn to advocate for myself and, in doing that, it has been clear that it’s not just about me. It’s about the communities that I am connected to,” she shares, “I think all those experiences collectively inform why it feels so important for me to be a part of efforts to address underrepresentation and to advocate for progress and change.”

Since October 2022, White has been Policy Director at REPRO Rising Virginia, the leading policy and political organization in Virginia dedicated to advancing access to reproductive healthcare for all, regardless of geographic location or socioeconomic status. According to White, Virginia is currently a central access point for reproductive care in the South. It is the only Southern state that has not severely or partially banned access to abortion care since the Supreme Court overturned the constitutionally protected right to abortion care in the landmark case, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization.

“I think it is work that is high stakes right now; there is a lot on the line. It is work that moves quickly and comes with a lot of rapid response and community mobilization, but it is also work that really gives me a lot of purpose and has sustained me through this current political moment that we are in,” emphasizes White.

In her current role, White leads the state-level policy portfolio to advance access to reproductive healthcare, including abortion access and contraception, for communities in Virginia. On the proactive side of her work, she is leading a multiyear campaign to introduce and pass a constitutional amendment for reproductive freedom in Virginia.

“It is a groundbreaking effort and something I have been excited about, to be building towards this effort to enshrine the right to reproductive freedom in the commonwealth constitution, even in this time where we are responding to a lot of political attacks and threats,” she says.

A multiyear effort in Virginia, the amendment will have to pass the legislature two years consecutively to allow voters to decide on their access to care. If passed, it would establish the right to reproductive freedom, which includes abortion without interference, the right to make decisions about all matters related to pregnancy without discrimination, protections against criminalization of pregnancy status and outcomes, and the protection of providers, and those who assist with standard care. White shares that criminalization of pregnancy status and outcomes impacts all women, and continues to harm Black women, women of color, and their families disproportionately.

“I think regardless of whether this amendment gets across the finish line, that is a priority and a key value for me and this work. To think about who is most impacted, and the intersections of being denied access to necessary care while being under scrutiny and risk of criminalization by the state,” says White.

White’s advice for allocating support within the Reproductive Justice Movement is to find organizations who intentionally center their work in a racial justice and human rights framework, who work at a grassroots level every day, and who interface directly with patients and providers to maintain access to care.

“In the philanthropy sector, I see an ongoing need to ensure organizations are well-resourced to do the critical work that helps us to build more just communities and a more just society,” she says, “We’re all in this together, but I do think now is a critical moment when people are asking, ‘Where should resources go and where can I make the biggest impact?’”