Author Mark Haddon will donate all future royalties from US sales of his bestseller The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time to the National Network of Abortion Funds.
Haddon made the announcement on his Twitter and Instagram accounts, saying that from now until the Supreme Court’s “repeal of Roe v. Wade” is overturned or some equivalent action is taken, he will be donating all US royalties from the book.
Photo: Vintage
The National Network of Abortion Funds is a network of grassroots organizations “building power to remove financial, logistical, cultural and political barriers to abortion access.”
Haddon told the Guardian that his decision to donate his royalties was “pretty spur of the moment”, following the Supreme Court ruling removing abortion rights, and that he wanted to make a “more public statement”.
He chose the National Network of Abortion Funds because the money “goes most directly” to the people who need support, and also because the word “abortion” was in the group’s name, which meant its intentions and his were clear .
Since the next royalty payment from Curious Incident isn’t due for “some time,” Headon said on social media, he’s made the $10,000 donation “to get the ball rolling and as a statement of intent.”
The Supreme Court ruled in June that there is no constitutional right to abortion in the US, overturning the landmark Roe v Wade decision of 1973. A number of states declared abortion illegal within hours of Roe v Wade being overturned.
Critics of the decision worry that, in addition to endangering lives, it will lead to the overturning of court rulings related to other rights.
Headon said on Twitter that if the Supreme Court wants to “turn its fire” on precedents on contraception, same-sex sexual activity and equal marriage rights for same-sex couples, it “may redirect some of the copyright to help people affected by these decisions’.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time was published in 2003 and won 17 literary awards. It was adapted for the stage in 2012 and has sold more than 10 million copies.
Haddon isn’t the only author to show his support for pro-choice organizations. Authors and creators including Neil Gaiman, Shannon Chakraborty, VE Schwab and Sabaa Tahir have donated books to Authors for Abortion Access, an auction that will raise money for the National Network of Abortion Funds’ Collective Power Fund and Keep Our Clinics , a campaign that provides funding to independent clinics to cover costs such as increased security, building repairs and legal fees in the face of abortion bans and restrictions.
The auction was organized by authors Rebecca F. Kuang and Vaishnavi Patel and has already reached its fundraising goal of $10,000 (£8,500).
The auction runs until July 26 and includes signed books, limited edition copies and boxed sets. Among the lots is a rare leather-bound edition of Coraline by Gaiman on Easton Press and a signed special edition of Schwab’s The Invisible Life of Addie Larue.
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