The Quickie: Planned Parenthood Honors Trans Lives on Transgender Day of Remembrance

Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.

In today’s Quickie: PP honors trans lives on Transgender Day of Remembrance and mourns the victims of the Club Q tragedy, PP reacts to news of the alleged leaking of the Hobby Lobby decision, PP storyteller shares their abortion story with the BBC, and voters want repro rights!

PLANNED PARENTHOOD HONORS TRANS LIVES ON TRANSGENDER DAY OF REMEMBRANCE: Yesterday, Planned Parenthood honored transgender people who have lost their lives due to senseless transphobic violence. Transgender Day of Remembrance, observed every year on November 20, seeks to honor the lives of trans folks who have been murdered for their gender identity or expression. Planned Parenthood is committed to stopping violence against trans people and fighting for their rights.

Read more about TDOR at GLAAD and find resources on Transgender Awareness Week at PPFA.

PLANNED PARENTHOOD MOURNS VICTIMS OF CLUB Q TRAGEDY: Yesterday, Planned Parenthood mourned and honored the victims of the tragic shooting at Club Q, an LGBTQ+ nightclub in Colorado Springs. Planned Parenthood stands in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community and condemns all acts of hate toward people because of who they are or who they love.

Read more from the Washington Post.

PP STORYTELLER SHARES ABORTION STORY WITH BBC: Planned Parenthood storyteller Ayoka joined BBC’s Health Check to share her experience with receiving abortion care in Georgia two years ago, and spoke on the harmful impacts of the state’s recent six-week ban. Though she wanted to become a mother, Ayoka decided to have an abortion after her fetus tested positive for Fragile X, a serious genetic condition. She ended her pregnancy at 17 weeks, which has not been possible in Georgia since the overturn of Roe sent the state’s six-week abortion ban into effect. The ban was overturned last week, but a new law could be passed to reinstate it. Ayoka explained that the cruelty of this law – which is not based in science – is that this ban would prevent people from making necessary decisions about their pregnancies:

“[It’s not] just about my ability to become a mother. I’m really thinking about the broader impact that it’s going to have on women like me who may not have access to the resources that I have, who can’t go to another state, who don’t have access to prenatal care, who may not find out that they’re genetic carriers for any type of disease until they’re 8 weeks along. They don’t even usually do that type of testing until you’re 8 weeks. So it’s really cruel to put women in this position where they can’t make decisions based on the health of their fetus and their own personal health.”

Ayoka is currently undergoing IVF treatment in hopes of getting pregnant again, but is concerned that she may not be able to receive abortion care in Georgia if the fetus once again tests positive for Fragile X:

“... I’m trying to remain optimistic, but Georgia’s not really a safe place to be pregnant right now.”

Listen to the full interview here.

NEWSFLASH: VOTERS WANT REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS: A new article from Rolling Stone makes it crystal clear: Americans from California to Kentucky want to protect abortion access, and voters support reproductive rights — period. “What last week’s election results proved is that voters — even in the reddest states — are broadly supportive of reproductive freedom, even as the lawmakers they have sent to their state legislatures are not,” Rolling Stone reports. And as Planned Parenthood Action Fund President Alexis McGill Johnson explains, “More than anything, what these ballot referendums have shown is how out of sync many state lawmakers and state houses are with their constituents.”