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The Congregation is a belief system created to protect reproductive rights and bring people together. Through the creation of our belief system and efforts, we are exploring how the first amendment of the constitution can be used to protect reproductive rights by a religious liberty claim in a post-Roe United States. But we didn’t stop there. Our members could experience our “Sunday service” through our Instagram AR filter, join our pro-choice choir singing along to our “Choice” chant and spread the word of our “pro choice gospel” through sharable Instagram posts.
Our challenge was to create an inclusive"religion "for the 21st century using a branding system that evoked religious iconography without being connected to any existing religion. In addition to using light to reinforce the idea of illumination, graphics inspired by sacred architecture and rounded shapes that represent people coming together guide viewers through an accessible, human system of beliefs.
The US Constitution says that ”Congress shall not make any laws prohibiting the exercise of any given religion”. So why not hack the system by creating a religion that includes the right to choose as a core tenet? The Congregation – a belief system created to help make abortion a constitutional right again, leveraging the Constitution to protect individuals’ most fundamental rights.
When the US Supreme Court made the landmark decision on June 24, 2022 to overturn Roe v. Wade, women and womb-bodied individuals were robbed of their fundamental right to reproductive freedom putting their health and safety at risk. Just like that 50 years of protecting the constitutional right to abortion had ended, leaving many unable to access safe and legal abortions in their home states. PodHER, a female-lead, Latina-run, non-profit organization founded by Ingrid Silva helps all women embrace and understand their power through storytelling and meaningful conversations. They wanted to create a community to help those affected most by this devastating decision.
