Planned Parenthood volunteer speaks out
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Justine di Giovanni
Published: July 28, 2008
As a volunteer for Planned Parenthood, I wish to respond to the July 16 article about the protesters at a Planned Parenthood volunteer training. The meeting at Chinn Park Regional Library was a
community outreach training session to educate new volunteers about Planned Parenthood’s affordable birth control campaign.
Prevention is the focus of the affordable birth control campaign. One in four women will use birth control at some point in their lives. It is basic health care, and 73 percent of Americans support efforts to
reduce unintended pregnancies through the use of contraception.
Planned Parenthood volunteers joined Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, D.C., to become educated about preventing unintended pregnancies. During the volunteer training, protesters were
present outside Chinn Library. This shows just how out of touch anti-choice hardliners are with mainstream America.
If anti-choice protesters truly wanted to reduce unintended pregnancies, and thus the need for abortion, they would get behind Planned Parenthood’s prevention efforts, supporting us in the fight to make
abortion safe, legal and rare.
I am a sophomore at the College of William and Mary and a student member of Voices for Planned Parenthood. As a dedicated and active member of Planned Parenthood, this disruption is particularly
disturbing to me.
Being a young person with a limited income, I am acutely aware of the need for affordable healthcare. Without Planned Parenthood and the reproductive options in which they provide, countless women
would be left without an alternative for health care services.
In addition, Prince William County has the highest infant mortality rate in the state. This highlights the obvious need for better access to reproductive health care. As a volunteer for Planned Parenthood,
my goal is to educate the community on prevention and help increase access to contraception and health care for women.
JUSTINE di GIOVANNI
Woodbridge
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Reader Reactions
Posted by ( jVA ) on August 01, 2008 at 11:44 am
“Educating 3rd graders about sex is not my idea of preventing abortions. “
I’d love to hear what your idea of abortion prevention is. Most likely screaming about abstinence and thumping the bible as loudly as possible.
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Posted by ( Sammy B ) on July 30, 2008 at 7:34 pm
“Educating 3rd graders about sex;” seriously someguy? Where did that come from? It does not require a doctorate in public health to make the connection between more people knowing about proper contraception use (PP’s mission), more people practicing contraceptive use, fewer unintended pregnancies and fewer abortions. Perhaps if you did not have all your attention tied up in making ridiculous straw man arguments you’d get that.
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Posted by ( someguy ) on July 30, 2008 at 11:43 am
Educating 3rd graders about sex is not my idea of preventing abortions. I think it’s funny that you didnt argue that abortion is killing children though. Glad to see we all agree on that one.
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Posted by ( mmarin ) on July 29, 2008 at 3:20 pm
Justine,
Thank you for your efforts and the spirit of volunteerism that you have.
What many people just fail to understand is that the organization does not exist only to provide abortions but rather to provide family planning services. Abortions should be avoided but it is ultimatly the choice of the woman as it’s her body.
I can only hope that my daughter will grow up in a world where PP is available if she ever needs them.
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Posted by ( Sammy B ) on July 29, 2008 at 3:09 pm
Read the column carefully, someguy. Planned Parenthood’s main focus is providing education and access to contraception. Getting people to use condoms, the pill or, preferably, both, will do far more to prevent abortions than any protesting.
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Posted by ( someguy ) on July 29, 2008 at 1:47 pm
“If anti-choice protesters truly wanted to reduce unintended pregnancies, and thus the need for abortion, they would get behind Planned Parenthood’s prevention efforts, supporting us in the fight to make
abortion safe, legal and rare. “
HUH? So if you don’t want to kill children, you should support those who profit from killing childeren? ok, which one of us is out of touch?
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