Helping Planned Parenthood
words Aaron Wilder
illustration Kim Hickerson
Megalomaniac™ is President, a nuclear-family cult leader is Vice President and the He-Man Woman-Haters Club has a majority, albeit very slim, in Congress and you’re freaking out. You’re rightly worried about immigrant communities, religious minorities and the fate of reproductive rights. Many people just like you have reached out to me, a Planned Parenthood organizer, to ask what we need in order to survive in this new world. I put together a handy guide for getting involved at any level.
I have money and/or private health insurance-
First, I hope that your health insurance is safe during this uncertain time. The “American Health Care Act” is making its way through the legislative process and its supporters are laser-focused on driving the numbers of uninsured to more than 24 million Americans according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. EEK!
Second, you are in a fantastic position to help. Your local Planned Parenthood affiliate needs your charitable donations to help fund education programs, purchase contraception and deliver healthcare to 2.5 million people every year, nationwide.
You can also support Planned Parenthood by using your private insurance for quality, compassionate care at one of our health centers! For every insured patient we see, Planned Parenthood can free up other funds to help provide care to uninsured or underinsured patient. What a win-win!
I don’t have much money, but I have time-
Your local affiliate needs volunteers and all kinds. If you have time while a health center is open, you can donate your time talking to patients in the waiting rooms about advocacy and encouraging them to share their personal stories. If you like to make calls, a political Planned Parenthood organization in your area has endorsed candidates for local and state office that need your help getting the vote out. A Planned Parenthood organizer will work with your skills, interests and schedules to put you where you are needed and where your soul will be the most fulfilled.
I don’t have any money and I have, like, no time-
Me too, boo! That’s okay. We need people to use our handy dandy email and text action alerts to contact their state and federal legislators. You might feel that your form email or quick call will be ignored, but every contact counts! Signing up is easy; text “STAND” to 22422 or head over to istandwithpp.org to join our Defender network and for more ways to get involved.
It might not be easy, but rest assured knowing Planned Parenthood isn’t backing down. I hope you’ll keep standing with us.
Aaron Wilder is the Oklahoma Organizer for Planned Parenthood Great Plains and PP Great Plains Votes.