On Tuesday, April 4, the Florida A&M University and Florida State University chapters of Generation Action: Planned Parenthood went to the Florida State Capitol to meet with lawmakers with a mission in mind.
Generation Action is a collegiate-level organization that is under Planned Parenthood. The organization seeks to advocate for reproductive rights in Florida, which has been under attack since this summer with the overturn of Roe v. Wade.
“I got involved with Planned Parenthood after I had an abortion,” Trenece Robertson, a fourth-year sociology scholar and Vice President of Generation Action, stated. “After getting admitted to FAMU, I saw on the iStrike page that they were involved on campus. I really started getting involved during the first legislative session and heard ridiculous statements from politicians regarding abortions. I had decided from here on out I would be involved with complete determination.”
The ladies of Generation Action met with two legislative aides instead of the representatives they were scheduled to meet. The first was Representative Allison Tant, and the other was Representative Gallop Franklin’s aide.
When speaking with both aides, the ladies shared how these bills would affect them and the citizens of Florida. They moved the aides with personal stories and discussions as well as information. Each meeting closed with them asking if their respective representatives would cosponsor House Bill (HB) 1033, to which they agreed.
House Bill 1033 will provide safe and secure care for pregnant people in Florida.
In the wake of the overturning of Roe v. Wade, Florida witnessed multiple attacks on reproductive health. The first was the passage of House Bill 5, which established the 15-week abortion ban. As of April 3, Senate Bill (SB) 300 passed, which pushes the abortion ban up to six weeks. Robertson explains, “The passage of SB 300, also known as the ‘Near-Total Abortion Ban,’ will make abortion inaccessible for a lot of people. Not only just for the people of Florida but specifically in the South.”
It was confirmed that Republican Senator Corey Simon voted in opposition to this bill. When a Planned Parenthood lobbyist asked why he decided to vote the way he did, Senator Simon stated, “I think that 15 weeks is right; 6 weeks is just too much.” They thanked the senator for his impactful vote.
The ladies of Generation Action strongly encourage students to take a stand against elected officials in support of anti-reproductive freedom. Micah Barkley, a third-year broadcast journalism scholar and Secretary of Generation Action, stated, “This actually affects you more than you could understand because this could be you, and you might want options in the future that aren’t accessible to you.”