"We Want Texans to Know Their Rights": Q&A with Mayday Health on the Impact of Surveillance on Abortion Care

Last May, EFF reported that a sheriff’s office in Texas searched data from more than 83,000 automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras to track down a woman suspected of self-managing an abortion. ALPRs are promoted as tools for keeping communities safe by finding missing persons and locating stolen vehicles, but this case showed how ALPRS can be weaponized to investigate people’s private healthcare decisions. And these aren’t the only tools in the surveillance arsenal: others include location tracking tools like Locate X, which can show a person’s visit to an abortion clinic, or search histories which might be used as evidence of a person’s interest in obtaining abortion pills. Taken together, these tools create a dangerous surveillance pipeline that threatens everyone’s health privacy.
Too often, though, the public is unaware of the threat, and one nonprofit is working to change that. Following EFF and 404 Media’s report on Texas’s use of Flock cameras, eye-catching billboards popped up in Houston, warning drivers that if they’re pregnant, the state of Texas could be tracking them.
Photo provided by Mayday Health
These billboards came from Mayday Health, a nonprofit dedicated to sharing information about abortion pills, birth control, and gender-affirming care. We spoke with Leo Raisner, Executive Director of Mayday Health, about the billboards to learn more about the campaign and organization and to discuss how surveillance affects reproductive freedom.
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THOMAS: Why did Mayday Health start this campaign in Texas?
RAISNER: Well, we read the incredible reporting coming from EFF about Texas's surveillance. We want Texans to know their rights, to know their options, and to know that there are organizations and people who have their back. So we decided to put up a few billboards around the Houston area to remind people that they still have options.
Digital advertising in the space, as I know you're well aware of, faces enormous platform restrictions from Meta and Google, whereas billboards reach people in the physical world without algorithmic gatekeeping and without requiring anyone to search for information. So at the very least, if a driver's passing by the billboard, we’re spreading information that they should be careful that they might be surveilled, and also there are different options. There's a website where they can come learn more about those options.
THOMAS: And how have the billboards been received so far? Have you heard anything from folks in the Houston area yet?
RAISNER: Yeah, we've heard some messages of support on social media DMs. We're just thrilled about how many drivers these messages are going to reach. They'll be up for 4 weeks, and are expected to hit over 1,000,000 drivers during that 4-week campaign period.
THOMAS: Are there other ways that Mayday Health has seen surveillance systems impact people seeking healthcare?
RAISNER: You know, we go all over the country and talk to folks who are seeking reproductive healthcare options in states where clinics are banned, and we direct folks to our website where they can learn more about abortion pills. We make privacy very central to how we operate. Privacy is not just an afterthought for us. When people arrive at our website, we direct them to the Digital Defense Fund, which offers people privacy and security resources as they're navigating reproductive healthcare in states where they might be being surveilled. We don't collect cookies, we don't collect identifying information from visitors to our site. We want people to know their options, and we don't have any interest in knowing who they are.
THOMAS: Why do you think the work of the digital rights movement is so important to the work of the reproductive health rights and justice movement?
RAISNER: I mean, those two movements are inextricably linked. The anti-abortion movement is using every tool in their toolbox to prevent people from getting the healthcare access they need, whether that's surveilling people online or closing down brick-and-mortar clinics, but we encourage people to visit Mayday Health and learn that they still have options no matter where they live.
THOMAS: Is there anything else that you would like the readers of our blog to know about Mayday Health?
RAISNER: I'd love for people to know that abortion pills are FDA approved. They're safe, they're effective, and they're available through the mail.
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EFF has said it time and time again – surveillance and reproductive freedom cannot coexist. Whether the tracking occurs over the internet or through license plate reader systems with over 83,000 cameras, it is an invasion of privacy. Protecting our digital privacy is more critical now than ever. Help EFF fight back against this digital dragnet and protect reproductive freedom for all by making a donation.

Facts Only

* A sheriff’s office in Texas searched data from more than 83,000 Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) cameras.
* Location tracking tools like Locate X can show a person's visit to an abortion clinic.
* Search histories might be used as evidence of interest in obtaining abortion pills.
* Mayday Health placed billboards in the Houston area warning drivers that Texas could be tracking them if they are pregnant.
* The billboards were funded by Mayday Health, a nonprofit dedicated to sharing information about abortion pills, birth control, and gender-affirming care.
* The campaign was part of efforts to inform Texans about their rights and options regarding reproductive healthcare.
* Mayday Health directs users to the Digital Defense Fund for privacy resources when navigating reproductive healthcare in surveilled states.
* Abortion pills are FDA approved, safe, effective, and available through the mail.

Executive Summary

A nonprofit organization, Mayday Health, launched a campaign involving billboards in the Houston area to raise awareness about reproductive freedom in Texas. This effort was inspired by reporting from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) concerning Texas's use of Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) cameras and other location tracking tools used to monitor individuals seeking abortion services. The organization sought to inform drivers that Texas could be tracking them, aiming to remind people of their options. Mayday Health emphasizes privacy as central to its operations, stating they do not collect identifying information from website visitors and direct users to privacy resources when navigating reproductive healthcare in surveilled states. They also promoted the fact that abortion pills are FDA-approved, safe, and available through mail order.

Full Take

The dynamic presented illustrates a tension between state surveillance capabilities and individual autonomy over personal health decisions. The reliance on technologies like ALPRs and location tracking creates an environment where private healthcare choices can become subject to scrutiny, shifting the focus from medical privacy to physical location data. The response from Mayday Health leverages public, physical spaces (billboards) to bypass algorithmic gatekeeping inherent in digital advertising, attempting to deliver critical information outside of surveillance-aware platforms. This demonstrates a pattern where systemic control over physical and digital movement is leveraged to restrict access to bodily autonomy. The linkage drawn between the anti-abortion movement's use of surveillance tools and reproductive rights highlights a structural alignment where external control mechanisms are used to enforce policy outcomes, suggesting that privacy and reproductive freedom are mutually dependent concepts that are actively contested by those seeking healthcare access. The core implication is that resisting restrictive policies often requires asserting autonomy over one's physical existence and data footprint.

Sentinel — Human

Confidence

The text reads like a synthesized piece combining journalistic reporting with direct advocacy interviews, exhibiting human narrative structure rather than purely synthetic exposition.

Signals Detected

Natural conversational rhythm and the use of direct, emotionally charged appeals combined with measured exposition.

The flow successfully transitions from a specific legal/surveillance example to an advocacy campaign, maintaining a consistent, activist-oriented voice.

Quotes appear organic and serve to reinforce the central argument rather than just summarize it; the structure mimics an interview setup.

The core claims regarding EFF reports, specific tools (ALPRs, Locate X), and the organization's stated goals appear grounded in verifiable public discourse.

Human Indicators

Use of dialogue format between named interviewees (Thomas and Raisner) which provides an authentic layer of conversational texture.

Integration of specific, context-heavy NGO names (EFF, 404 Media, Mayday Health) with real-world policy concerns.