So I know that at this point you have probably seen one too many Planned Parenthood support articles, and your probably as informed as you can be on this commonly debated topic, but we must continue to advocate for this important issue while the news is still relevant! So for those of you who haven’t heard the hot gossip, on August 14th Governor Herbert ordered state agencies to stop distributing over 200,000 in federal funds to Planned Parenthood.
Of course this news sparked a fire in many that started rallies and protests in front of the Utah State Capitol from hundreds of Planned Parenthood supporters.
The protest was in hope that Governor Herbert would hear the cries of thousands who feel it is unfair, and even illegal to defund an organization which has provided women with sex education and healthcare for so long now.
Rumors are that some are fighting hard to defund Planned Parenthood because some believe that life begins the minute the egg is fertilized, but others strongly oppose that view because people argue that PP offers an immense amount of benefits and you can’t defund an organization because of one negative accusation.
One of the University of Utah supporters, Hayden Shettig, a sophomore majoring in Business/Finance. “I think Governor Herbert is acting unfairly by the cutting of federal funds towards Planned Parenthood mostly because he is providing false information as to why it should be defunded. First of all, PP provides much more important medical services than abortions, which make up a small sliver of their operations,” Hayden explains. “Planned Parenthood provides proper sex education, free testing for sexually transmitted diseases/infections, birth control, and so much more. These services are available for FREE, so someone who can’t necessarily pay for testing and birth control through their insurance or other hospitals have access to medical care. I’m also incredibly frustrated because many people who are protesting (supporting the defunding) don’t understand what an abortion actually is and much of the information being provided is drastically false and misleading. Without this funding for the PP organization so many people will lose their free access to medical services that not only inform but protect men and women all over our community.”
Supporters continue to advocate this important issue by wearing pink and raising awareness for this cause on social media and around college campuses.