Category Archives: Activism

Host a Rally at Your House!

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Join Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona and a Special Guest Speaker at Arizona’s Biggest Ever Statewide Get-Out-the-Vote Event!

When:    Saturday, October 27, 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Where:   Your house
Who:      Six or seven of your friends and neighbors
Why:      To ensure that everyone in Arizona who cares about women and their access to health care gets out and votes!

Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona (PPAA) is organizing Mini Rallies in living rooms and kitchens across our great state. These easy-to-organize gatherings will be PPAA’s biggest push to get women’s health supporters to the polls on Election Day, November 6. (See the event page on Facebook.)

Contact Kelly at 602-263-4240 or at kpaisley@ppaz.org to register to host a Mini Rally at your house.

PPAA needs YOU to gather a handful of friends in your home to:

  • Hear a LIVE address — just to us Arizonans — from our Special Guest Speaker
  • Review PPAA’s endorsements and complete mail-in ballots
  • Pledge to vote for PPAA-endorsed candidates
  • Tweet and post on Facebook
  • Contact voters … and more!

PLEASE HOST A MINI RALLY IN YOUR HOME! To make it fun AND successful, every host will receive a kit with everything you need to make your rally a success, including the fun stuff!

Call Kelly at 602-263-4240 or email at kpaisley@ppaz.org to register to be a host.

Besides casting your own ballot, this is THE MOST IMPORTANT thing you can do to ensure VICTORY on Election Day! THANK YOU!

Death of a Bill, Birth of an Activist

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Editor’s Note: Liza Love, an Arizona pro-choice activist, testified against House Bill 2838 at the Arizona House of Representatives on February 15, 2012. She shares her experience speaking out for reproductive rights.

I am one of millions. We all have some sort of story that reflects the positive impact of Planned Parenthood in our world. There are some of us who honor that role loudly, there are those who allow it to have a quiet sort of resonance, and there are even some who refuse to acknowledge it at all, but that makes it no less true.

We must get to a place where ridiculous ideology is unacceptable from our leaders, where science and facts are not vilified. That will happen when our voices are louder and more coherent.

I have wanted to give back to Planned Parenthood for a long time. Not having much monetarily to share, I have given what I could over the years, yet still felt a need to do more. When I read about HB2838, which would ban abortions at 20 weeks, even in the case of fetal anomalies, I was astonished! I had just moved and had a ton of unpacking to do, but I knew I would be at the hearing for HB2838 to make my voice heard. The plan was that I was going to show up at the Arizona House of Representatives early, meet with my fellow pro-choice activists outside, and get the story of someone who couldn’t be present so that I could share it on his or her behalf. It would allow me to support women and health and see the process of lawmaking all at the same time.

When I arrived at the Capitol, I ended up in this tiny room that was so full it would be an understatement to compare it to being packed like sardines! There were people everywhere!  Rep. Cecil P. Ash, the chairman, was reading some guidelines for the hearing, and then some proposed amendments from Rep. Matt Heinz were being explained to the panel, and ultimately, all but one was voted down. That alone was eye-opening. First of all, Dr. Heinz is a friend to women’s reproductive health and overall well-being, and his efforts to make sure his peers are informed with facts and details was refreshing. Continue reading →

At the Capitol, Women Are Watching

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Activists gathered at the Arizona Capitol to send the message to state legislators: Women Are Watching.

The sky was blue and the T-shirts were pink on January 9, the opening day of the 2012 Arizona State Legislature in Phoenix. More than 350 pro-choice women and men gathered in the rose garden between the House and Senate buildings to make sure Arizona legislators got the message that “Women Are Watching” and we will all be keeping track of the legislation they are putting forward, which will affect women’s access to abortion, health care, and birth control.

The legislators couldn’t get to their offices without walking through our exuberant group and being made aware that pro-choice supporters were putting them on notice.

I joined the contingency of supporters who “got on the bus” in Tucson and rode up I-10 to lend our voices and presence to those gathering at the Arizona Capitol. When we arrived and made our way through the crowd to the check-in table, I was happy to see how many people had showed up. What made me feel so hopeful was the wide representation of people: women and men, boomers and seniors, college students, and people from across the spectrum of races and cultures. Pro-choice voters from Planned Parenthood Arizona, Arizona List (thank you for the bus ride!), NARAL Pro-Choice Arizona, National Organization for Women, Arizona Women’s Political Caucus, the National Council of Jewish Women, and Business and Professional Women of Arizona all joined their considerable forces.

On the check-in table there were buttons, stickers, brochures, and important information sheets that listed the names, legislative districts, and office phone numbers of legislators who need to be contacted by phone or email and told that we will hold them accountable for legislation that wages war on women. Continue reading →

PPAA Volunteers Visit Washington

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PPAA volunteer with Rep. Raul Grijalva

This summer I had the awesome opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C., with Emily Herrell, PPAZ advocacy coordinator, and three other students for the annual Planned Parenthood Youth Conference. We spent three days in the city going to workshops, meeting other activists and listening to speakers like Cecile Richards and Jon Lewis.

The experience was especially valuable to me as the newly elected University of Arizona VOX chapter president. In one workshop I got to meet other VOX leaders and we bounced event ideas and strategies to increase membership off of each other. While there are some pro-choice groups on my campus, it’s rare for us as activists to be able to connect with other than Planned Parenthood student volunteers. I was relieved to find that most VOX leaders struggled with the same problems (i.e. membership) that we do at the UA. Continue reading →

Time to Mobilize to Protect Women’s Health

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Thanks to everyone who attended the Roe v. Wade Happy Hour on Friday, January 21st. We had a great turnout at the Javalina Cantina on Friday, including State Senator Linda Lopez. Senator Lopez addressed the crowd, telling us that we face a difficult environment in the state legislature for women’s health. But now is not the time to retreat; now is the time to mobilize to protect women’s health.

You can stand up for women’s health by signing up for Women’s Health Lobby Day. We will be meeting with our state representatives and addressing pending legislation that will impact women’s health in the state of Arizona. This is a great opportunity to learn how our state government works, as well as to meet other pro-choice advocates from around the state.

Follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on the latest action alerts. And if you haven’t already signed up to volunteer with Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona, send us an e-mail to find out when the next volunteer training will be. We’d love to have you join our fabulous Community Action Team.

Thanks again to everyone for celebrating Roe with us on Friday. We can’t wait to see you at Women’s Health Lobby Day, and other events in the future!

Speak Up at Women’s Health Lobby Day

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Volunteers at 2010 Women’s Health Lobby Day

Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona invites you to our 2011 Women’s Health Lobby Day at the State Capitol. Be our guest for lunch, listen to great speakers, and meet with your legislators!

Join us at the Capitol in Phoenix to learn about important issues affecting access to health care and reproductive rights in our state. Learn how the process of law-making works and how YOU can make a difference by advocating for a more pro-choice, pro-woman and compassionate Arizona. Continue reading →

Roe v. Wade: Here to Stay, or Fading Away?

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You’re invited to join Planned Parenthood’s Community Action Team and Feminists for Choice for a casual happy hour event this Friday, January 21st at 6:00 PM as we celebrate the 38th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision.

Meet other pro-choice advocates from the Tucson area and find out how you can stand up for choice in 2011. We’ll provide information about the different volunteer opportunities with Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona, including our upcoming Women’s Health Lobby Day. We’ll also have a raffle and other fun activities.

There is no cover charge to attend the event, but guests should plan on buying their own food and drinks. For more info, please send us an e-mail. To RSVP, please visit our Facebook page.

Despite Being a Red State, Arizonans Support Choice

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Tabling with VOX at Terry Goddard's rally at the UofA

I started volunteering for Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona when I moved to Tucson for my sophomore year of college. I was drawn to Planned Parenthood because I saw in the organization a combination of two things I wanted to be a part of: pro-choice feminism and political activism. My first event was a crowd canvass at a local street fair. I was not the sort of person who regularly spoke to strangers, let alone asked them for their signatures on pro-choice petitions. But I quickly got over the awkwardness and discovered I loved it. People were overwhelmingly supportive and grateful for our presence. There were those who ignored us and moved on, but they were few and far between. I remember the men and women who smiled, not the ones who rolled their eyes.

The next few events I attended were much of the same. People were friendly and supportive. I kept volunteering for the rest of the year and began attending VOX (Voices for Planned Parenthood) meetings as well.

This past summer I returned home to Illinois to spend the school break with my family. Bored and unemployed, I applied for an internship with Planned Parenthood of Illinois, and a few months later got the job. Continue reading →