UT Austin Confirms Payment to Pro-Abortion Advocate

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Documents recently released by the University of Texas at Austin confirm that the university paid a pro-abortion activist for work related to a research project on abortion.

According to Texas Scorecard, the activist Rebecca Gomperts, who founded the organisation Aid Access, received payment from UT Austin in 2021. Gomperts had submitted an invoice for services provided to assist Dr Abigail Aiken, principal investigator for Project SANA, a pro-abortion research initiative at the university.

Previously, only an invoice from Gomperts was publicly known, leaving questions about whether the payment was processed. Following a new open records request, UT Austin disclosed Gomperts’ contractor agreement along with wire transfer payment details, confirming that funds were indeed sent.

The contract between Gomperts and the university was signed in November 2018 and covered a three-year term. The agreement specified that Gomperts would provide data to Dr Aiken by November 2019. For this initial work, the contract set the payment at $6,000.

The agreement also outlined two additional tasks for Gomperts, which would warrant a further $6,000 in payments. However, examination of the records by Texas Scorecard indicates there is no evidence these subsequent tasks were completed. Despite this, Gomperts submitted an invoice in 2021 requesting payment for this second phase of work.

The financial records show that on May 7, 2021, UT Austin authorised a payment of 4,983.87 euros to Gomperts, who is based in the Netherlands. The wire transfer was completed on May 27, 2021. Due to changes in the currency exchange rate between these dates, the amount paid in US dollars was $6,142 at the time of transfer.

Rebecca Gomperts is a notable figure in abortion advocacy. She founded Aid Access, an organisation that distributes abortion pills through the mail. According to Aid Access’s website, it has facilitated over 200,000 online abortions in the United States since its establishment in 2018.

Project SANA, led by Dr Abigail Aiken at UT Austin, is a pro-abortion research effort focusing on abortion access and medication abortion. Gomperts’ collaboration with the project highlights the university’s involvement with advocates who actively promote abortion access through medication.

The release of these financial documents has raised questions about the relationship between academic institutions and activist groups. While universities often collaborate with external experts on research projects, the involvement of figures like Gomperts, whose organisation directly provides abortion pills, draws attention to the blurred lines between academic research and advocacy.

Aid Access operates by mailing abortion medication to women who seek to terminate pregnancies, especially in areas where abortion access is restricted. The organisation’s work has been controversial and is subject to legal scrutiny in several states due to varying abortion laws.

The University of Texas at Austin’s payment to Gomperts comes amid a national debate on abortion access, heightened by changes to federal and state regulations following the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision overturning Roe v. Wade.

While the university has not publicly commented on the payment or its involvement with Project SANA, these disclosures provide transparency regarding funding flows connected to abortion research and advocacy.

This case reflects broader tensions in the US over abortion policy and the role academic institutions play in researching and shaping the debate. The intersection of university-funded research and activist involvement continues to be a topic of discussion among policymakers, academics, and the public.