FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 25, 2017
Contact: Casey Olesko 201.647.5502 / [email protected]
Hundreds of Planned Parenthood supporters attend “Take Action House Parties” across New Jersey
With access to women’s health care at stake, grassroots activists write letters to raise women’s voices
TRENTON, New Jersey — Supporters of Planned Parenthood Action Fund of New Jersey gathered in communities across the state this weekend at “Take Action House Parties.” During the gatherings, hundreds of activists wrote letters to the editors of local newspapers in support of women’s health care funding and gubernatorial candidate Phil Murphy. The house parties were organized by the volunteers themselves, taking meaningful grassroots actions and engaging with their friends, neighbors, and colleagues.
“I wanted to host a house party to make sure that folks that support Planned Parenthood and women’s issues get elected,” said Darryl Giovanna, a house party host in Denville. “The status quo is no longer any good.”
Darryl was joined by seven other activists and friends of hers at the house party, which she held at her dining room table. Together, the house party guests discussed the impact that the Christie administration has had on access to women’s health care in New Jersey over the past eight years, and why this upcoming election will shape New Jersey’s future when it comes to protecting and expanding access to care. Then, each house party guest wrote a letter to the editor of their local paper, expressing the importance of electing Phil Murphy in order to ensure that New Jersey is a national leader when it comes to women’s health.
Under the Christie administration, state funding for family planning services — including cancer screenings, birth control, and testing and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) — was eliminated in 2010. In that same time period, New Jersey has experienced a 35 percent increase in bacterial STDs and an increase in breast and cervical cancer cases with communities of color disparately impacted. Noting the current reproductive health crisis, house party guests across the state drafted letters to expose the ongoing threat to funding for women’s health care and to spotlight gubernatorial candidate Phil Murphy’s support of women’s reproductive rights.
In contrast to Christie, Murphy promises to restore funding for family planning services — services that can address the dangerous increases in STDs and cancer cases. Murphy also has pledged to be a strong leader for accessible birth control, ensuring that contraception remains available to New Jersey women with no out-of-pocket costs. Given the current efforts in Congress to cut health care access and family planning funding, leadership at the state level is more important than ever before.
“This weekend’s Take Action House Parties showed that our supporters are taking action and making their voices heard in this election,” said Christine Sadovy, Legislative and Political Director with Planned Parenthood Action Fund of New Jersey. “They will keep fighting to ensure that all New Jerseyans can get the care they need, when they need it – no matter what.”