Planned Parenthood Generation Action hosts reproductive education discussion
Members of Syracuse University’s Planned Parenthood Generation Action and Student Association of Public Health Education promoted increased dialogue around access to reproductive health programs at a Wednesday meeting. Ella Chan | Asst. Photo Editor
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Members of Syracuse University’s chapter of Planned Parenthood Generation Action promoted open conversation through a Wednesday evening discussion on sexual and reproductive health.
PPGen members and SU students Julia Kirezi and Sophia Castro emphasized students’ access to health services on campus, including focusing on access to abortion and contraceptives. The two said there’s a lack of student awareness of Planned Parenthood, even though it has a location less than a mile from campus.
Kirezi and Castro said given the current political climate, these conversations are important ways to educate people about sexual and reproductive health.
“I think a lot of people right now feel pretty powerless in the situation and feel like they don’t have a voice,” Kirezi said. “So letting people have the opportunity to vocalize their thoughts, I think, is really important”
Amid several nationwide funding freezes, the President Donald Trump’s administration has also paused nearly $35 million in federal funding distributed by Title X, which provides affordable birth control and health care. One of the organizations impacted by this funding freeze is Planned Parenthood, which has reported losses in nine states.
Castro said conversations and building community through dialogue are an integral part of PPGen. Creating space for people to share their opinions — in both small and large group discussions — is essential in navigating the current political atmosphere, she said.
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The discussion emphasized Trump’s 2016 promise to appoint Supreme Court justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade. Limited access to abortion was one of the reasons Amy Pena, a SU junior studying economics, said she chose to get involved in PPGen.
Pena said in her home state of Texas, abortion access is difficult to obtain — even at her local Planned Parenthood, where she volunteered before coming to SU. She said her branch in Houston could only provide patients with non-abortion related care or refer them to providers outside the state.
Working within her local community to educate others about the services offered at Houston’s Planned Parenthood was something Pena said was deeply important to her, and she hopes to continue that advocacy while at SU.
She said a main focus of her volunteer work was educating those in her community who may not have previously had access to such resources. Kirezi echoed this sentiment and said that since working with PPGen, she’s noticed many moments where people lacked information.
“I’ve interacted with so many of my friends that have expressed to me that they didn’t know they had to use a condom, for example,” Kirezi said. “You might think someone else knows the same stuff you do, but I’ve had quite a few people who don’t and I’ve been in situations where I don’t know something that someone else does.”
PPGen collaborated with SU’s Student Association of Public Health Education to host the event. The evening began with a presentation on the history of Planned Parenthood and an overview of sexual health education.
Kirezi said the partnership between the two hosting organizations had been developing for some time.
Ella Chan | Asst. Photo Editor
SU’s Planned Parenthood Generation Action hosted a discussion on reproductive health Wednesday. The talk focused on available care options, including a Planned Parenthood less than a mile from campus.
Tommy DaSilva, president of SAPHE and a triple-major in public health, policy studies and citizenship and civic engagement at SU, said they met Kirezi during a tabling event with free condoms for Valentine’s Day. They said the two groups’ similar missions made collaboration a natural next step.
Castro echoed DaSilva and Kirezi, saying both organizations are closely aligned.
“We wanted to see what other ideas that we can come out of this event,” Castro said. “And just figure out a way to maybe work together in the future, to establish that connection, and then go forward in the future to do the work.”
The team hopes events like Wednesday’s will bring together members both old and new to engage in even more conversations and introduce them to new organizations.
Antara Stromayer began attending PPGen last semester with one of her friends, but hadn’t attended a STAPHE meeting before. She said one of the main reasons she continues going is for its sense of community. Stromayer said the meetings always feel like a “safe space,” and she feels welcomed when contributing to the conversation.
That space, Kirezi said, is one of the things she’s most proud of creating during her time with PPGen, and something she hopes continues after she graduates.
“I try to make everyone feel included and safe and that they can come talk to me,” Kirezi said. “Especially as a Black woman, I would really love a space where I could be represented and speak on issues pertaining to me, and also get the opportunity to learn and gain knowledge about people from different backgrounds and identities as well.”
