AMBASSADOR HANDBOOK
Contents
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Welcome letter
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What is the Birds & the Beehive?
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Planned Parenthood’s Mission & Work
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Health Care in Utah
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Why we fight
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Intersectionality
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Reproductive Justice
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Developing your Story of Self
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Community Lobbying
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Now what?
Welcome! Dear Planned Parenthood Ambassador, Thank you for standing with Planned Parenthood. Because of people like you, our movement grows stronger, prouder, and more inclusive every day. The stakes have never been higher for access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care and sex education. With the changes made to our courts and policies the last four years, we have our work cut out for us. And yet, we know that 65% of Utahns support medically accurate sex education curriculum in Utah schools, and 80% of Utahns believe we do not need additional restrictions on abortion care. Remaining engaged, organizing for change, and linking arms with our communities are essential for progress. While it’s true that many Utahns are divided politically, we know that what unites us is more important than what divides us. Utahns of all backgrounds and convictions share a common belief: the importance of agency and self-determination. We believe in the rights of all people to choose when and whether to have children and to have access to the inclusive education, information, and comprehensive health care they need to make informed decisions. We survived four years of a hostile administration, and we are hopeful for the change that will (eventually) come at the national level. However, with the Trump appointees to the Supreme Court, Roe v. Wade is hanging by a thread, and we have never been closer to losing constitutional protection for abortion rights. This has emboldened many who oppose reproductive freedom, and here in Utah, we have seen a heightened level of opposition in the form of protestors and hate groups. This is why, now, more than ever, we need our Hive to swarm and protect our freedoms. Together, let’s share our stories, combat shame and stigma, and get loud about our fierce and unapologetic support for bodily autonomy and reproductive freedom.
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No one believes in strong, healthy communities more than Planned Parenthood Association of Utah. Together with our Hive – supporters like you, partner organizations, and fierce elected officials – we fight to protect our communities – no matter what. Planned Parenthood strengthens communities throughout Utah by: • • • •
Providing sexual and reproductive health services to tens of thousands of Utahns annually; Educating thousands of young people and adults about healthy relationships and sexual health; Engaging with communities and leaders and advocating for policies to help all Utahns lead safe, healthy lives and expand their opportunities; Investing in the next generation of leaders so that our collective movement will stay strong and vital for the next 50 years in Utah and beyond.
With your help, we will continue to provide health care and education, advocate unapologetically for our patients, communities, and supporters, and advance Planned Parenthood’s mission. We are counting on you to help us tell the Planned Parenthood story to your friends, family, neighbors, and co-workers. We are so fortunate to have you working for sexual and reproductive rights, health, and access for all members of our community. Sincerely,
President & CEO, Planned Parenthood Association of Utah
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Let’s get started What is the Birds and the Beehive? We’ve all heard about the birds and the bees, but here in the Beehive State, we tend to do things a bit differently. That’s why Planned Parenthood created a uniquely Utah movement called The Birds and the Beehive. The Birds and the Beehive is the first step of engagement with Planned Parenthood of Utah. We encourage inclusive and ongoing discussion about sexual health issues specific to our state. We demand accessible and affordable health care—including safe and legal abortion—and quality sex education. We know that this work is most successful when it is intersectional. COVID-19 and the beginnings of a racial reckoning in our country laid bare the systemic inequities that impact the health of communities in Utah. Our Hive aspires to be actively anti-racist and pro-equity. We are committed to doing this work. When threats to reproductive rights and freedom arise in our state, the Hive fights back together. We swarm when and where we need to, and we bring “the honey” to our local policymakers’ inboxes.
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The Role of Ambassadors Ambassadors create buzz around the state by talking to their public officials, friends, and neighbors about why they stand with Planned Parenthood. They help grow and strengthen the community by getting others to join The Birds and the Beehive. Thanks to technology, you can engage with Planned Parenthood and the rest of the Beehive no matter where in Utah you live. We also have student clubs at eight college campuses across the state of Utah. And our eight health centers span the state from Logan to St. George. As an Ambassador, you can do a little or a lot. You can share your story, become a community lobbyist, host an ambassador meetup, attend a Beehive Academy, plan an event in your community and request a PP booth, create or join an affinity group, show up to rallies and events, or repost calls to action and articles we share with you. We encourage you to get creative and make your activism your own!
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Our Mission & Work Our mission is to empower Utahns of all ages to make informed choices about their sexual health, to ensure access to affordable, quality health care and education, and protect their right to do so. Our work:
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Help people live full, healthy lives — no matter your income, insurance, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, or immigration status; Provide the high-quality inclusive and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care services all people need and deserve — with respect and compassion; Advocate for public policies that protect and expand reproductive rights and access to a full range of sexual and reproductive health care services, including abortion; Provide medically accurate education that advances the understanding of human sexuality, healthy relationships, and body autonomy; Promote research and technology that enhances reproductive health care and access.
The three-legged stool of Planned Parenthood
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Health Care in Utah Planned Parenthood provides high-quality health care to millions of people nationwide: 1 in 5 women have relied on Planned Parenthood at some point in their lifetime. In Utah, we have a strong 50+ year legacy of providing accessible sexual and reproductive health services and accurate, inclusive information with compassion, dignity, and care.
Planned Parenthood Provides Health Care Across the State Logan Health Center
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West Valley Health Center
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Ogden Health Center
3,4 Metro and Salt Lake Health Centers
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South Jordan Health Center
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St. George Health Center
Health Services in 2020
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Why we fight At Planned Parenthood, we advocate for sexual and reproductive health care. We believe access to quality health care is a human right. Planned Parenthood Action Council of Utah (PPAC Utah) is an independent, nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization formed as the advocacy and political arm of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah. PPAC Utah is dedicated to educational and electoral work — including public education campaigns, grassroots organizing, and legislative advocacy — to protect and expand Utahn’s access to sexual and reproductive health care and education. We know there’s no reproductive freedom without racial justice, and we take seriously our responsibility to create belonging and respect for the patients and partners we serve. We have the fundamental goal to defend health care for the people most harmed by racist and discriminatory systems. At Planned Parenthood, we smash stigma, build bridges, learn and grow, and fight for the rights of all. We fight back when certain politicians and their extremist allies use shame as a tactic, try to ban abortion, reduce access to affordable birth control, and reduce access to patient care at Planned Parenthood health centers. We fight alongside our partners when the basic human rights of our patients, volunteers, supporters, activists, and staff of all races, faiths, genders, and identities are under attack. Through our advocacy work we, • • • • • •
Educate and organize the public; Register, inform, and mobilize voters; Stand in solidarity with racial and social justice partners to fight back against hate and discrimination; Promote policies that help all people access health care; Work with elected officials who are sexual and reproductive health champions; Promote political candidates who advocate for sexual health, sex education, and reproductive rights.
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In solidarity with our patients, our supporters, and the thousands of people whose lives and futures depend on access to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care, we demand that these basic principles guide elected officials and those in power as they consider policies that impact our health and lives. Stand with us if you believe: 1. I should be able to access inclusive, affordable, comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care. Cost should never be a barrier to accessing basic health care. 2. I deserve to decide when and whether to have a child. My right and ability to decide this is essential to my own health, my family’s health, and economic well-being. 3. My doctor must be able to provide me with medically accurate information and quality medical care based on the latest medical research — not based on political agendas or religious beliefs. 4. I deserve access to inclusive sex education programs that give me, my friends, my kids, and everyone else the reliable, accurate information we need to make responsible decisions and stay healthy. 5. I must be able to access abortion and other confidential sexual and reproductive health care services without coercion, intimidation, or harassment. 6. If I or any other person experiences sexual violence, there should be access to compassionate health care without delay, government interference, or intimidation.
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Intersectionality “There is no such thing as a single-issue struggle, because we do not live single-issue lives.” Audre Lorde, author and poet
Intersectionality is the complex, cumulative way in which the effects of multiple forms of discrimination (such as racism, sexism, and classism) combine, overlap, or intersect, especially in the experiences of marginalized individuals or groups. Columbia Law Professor Kimberlé Crenshaw coined the term intersectionality in 1988 to represent a black woman in a court case about employment discrimination. Crenshaw wanted to explain to the judge how multiple systems of oppression – sexism and racism – work against black women in the struggle for equal pay at work. Today she sees intersectionality as a way to observe and analyze power imbalances and as a tool to eliminate those power imbalances.
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Image source: ENDING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS: Evaluating a decade of Australia’s development assistance OFFICE OF DEVELOPMENT EFFECTIVENESS dfat.gov.au/ode
Here in Utah, Planned Parenthood staff have been reflecting on our own practices and have shifted the way that we show up in our communities and fight for reproductive rights and access. As we become a more equitable and intersectional organization, there have been noticeable changes in the way that we ask our Ambassadors to show up. We want to continue to build and flex these new muscles with you, our Hive!
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Reproductive Justice Intersectionality and equitable access were not a foundational part of Planned Parenthood, so we are not a Reproductive Justice organization. We work alongside Reproductive Justice organizations and respect the framework created to address the disparities and inequitable access to care. The values that drive the Reproductive Justice movement are aspirational and inspire our work. The term Reproductive Justice (RJ) was coined in 1994 by a group of Black women who recognized that the women’s rights movement was not representative and could not defend the needs of women of color and other marginalized communities that live in the intersections of race, class, and gender. They created their own national movement to uplift the needs of the most marginalized women, families, and communities. Reproductive Justice focuses on analyzing and dismantling the inequalities that are at the foundation of reproductive oppression. RJ is rooted in intersectionality by centering the most marginalized and using a reproductive rights, human rights, and social justice framework.
Reproductive Justice means that every person has the human right to: 1. Decide if and when they will have a baby and the conditions under which they will give birth. 2. Decide if they will not have a baby and their options for preventing or ending a pregnancy. 3. Parent the children they already have with the necessary social supports in safe environments and healthy communities, and without fear of violence from individuals or the government. Source: SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective
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REPRODUCTIVE JUSTICE Reproductive oppression is the result of the intersections of multiple oppressions and cannot be alleviated without strategies to address them all
REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS Constitutionally framed legal protections for health services
REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH Necessary sexual and reproductive health services
Planned Parenthood works within the Reproductive Health and Reproductive Rights realms and partners with Reproductive Justice organizations to help advance reproductive freedom for all.
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Now it’s your turn The most important thing you can do as a Planned Parenthood Ambassador is to share your story. Let’s do it!
Step 1: What is my objective? What goal do you want to achieve as an Ambassador?
Step 2: Why is this work important? What personal values move you to take action?
Step 3: What is my passion? What life experiences inspire you to fight for reproductive freedom?
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Step 4: Develop your story Refer back to your answers in steps 1-3. Now tell your story using this framework.
I stand with Planned Parenthood because...
Remember... • Be positive, confident, and conversational. • Personalize each telling of your story depending on the situation in which you’re speaking and the person with whom you’re speaking—make it relatable.
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Community Lobbying As a Planned Parenthood Ambassador, you will be asked to contact elected officials or local policy makers. That could be a school board member, a city council member, or a state legislator. Here are some tips. Finding your legislator Go to www.le.utah.gov to find: • Information about bills and hearing schedules • How to contact your legislator
Finding other policy makers/elected officials For county, city, school boards, or other local officials, look up the relative website.
Phone Call/Text Tips • •
• • •
When to do it: When there isn’t time for a visit or letter because a vote has already been scheduled. Who you will speak with: Often, you will speak directly with the legislator or policy maker if it is an evening or weekend. During the legislative session, an intern may review your message and forward it to the legislator. Texting is a good option for many legislators. Verify that you live in the elected official’s district by giving your name and address. One subject per call or text Keep calls or texts short and to the point.
Examples: “I support [bill name/number/issue], because [list 2-3 reasons], and I urge [policy maker’s name] to vote for this bill.” “I do not support [bill name/number/issue], because [list 2-3 reasons], and I urge [policy maker’s name] to vote against this bill.”
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Letter and Email Writing Tips First paragraph should clearly state: 1. That you are the elected official’s constituent 2. Your full name 3. Bill name and number if applicable 4. Your position on the issue 5. What you want your elected official to do One subject per letter Use your own words and experiences to describe how it affects you. If you know the elected official’s position on the subject, acknowledge it. Request a reply • If you receive a reply that supports your position, send a thank you note. • If you receive a reply that does not support your position, thank them for their response and write again to explain your stance and help them better understand your concerns.
Remember
Just like you, elected officials are citizens of Utah. If you stay on message, there is no incorrect way for you to lobby. You don’t need the policy maker to like you, you need them to see you as a member of their community. A democratic society means that everyone has the right to participate in government processes and require accountability from their elected officials. Your voice matters. Adapted from American Civil Liberties Union of Utah (ACLU), A Guide to Being an Effective Citizen Lobbyist, www.acluutah.org
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Now what? Connect with us on social media
• Join the Ambassador Facebook group • Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter • Share our posts
Share your story with friends and family
Come to events
Be at the ready for action
Know how to contact your representatives and elected officials
Get creative! Get in touch with us if you have new ideas. 18
For more info: www.ppau.org www.ppacutah.org Facebook
@plannedparenthoodut @ppacutah
@plannedparenthoodutah @ppacutah
@ppacutah
engagement@ppau.org
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Planned Parenthood Association of Utah Planned Parenthood Action Council of Utah 654 South 900 East Salt Lake City, Utah 84102 801-532-1586 www.ppau.org www.ppacutah.org © 2021 Planned Parenthood Association of Utah