'Pink The Night Out' For Planned Parenthood June 21

PORTLAND, OR — To emphasize the importance of the Planned Parenthood organization and its services, patients and supporters on June 21 will host Pink The Night Out rallies in cities across the U.S., including Portland.

Gathering outside health centers at sunset, participants will share their own Planned Parenthood stories and demand the U.S. Senate oppose the American Health Care Act (or Trumpcare), all while illuminating the twilight sky with pink lights. The rally in Portland will be held for an hour, from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m., on Wednesday, June 21, at the Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette's Regional Service Center, located at 3727 N.E. Martin Luther Kind Jr. Blvd.

"Simply put, Trumpcare is the worst bill for women's health ever, and it must be stopped," Mary Nolan, executive director of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Oregon, said in a statement. "Trumpcare would 'defund' Planned Parenthood and block people in Oregon from access to birth control, cancer screenings and STI testing. Oregonians are not going to sit silently while D.C. politicians negotiate away their access to health care. That's why we're rallying all across the country, demanding that politicians like Congressman Greg Walden oppose Trumpcare. The Senate needs to listen to the 80 percent of voters who support Planned Parenthood and reject efforts to block people from getting care at Planned Parenthood."

According to Planned Parenthood officials, the organization over the past few months has seen a resurgence in support and activism with people across the state and nation attending town hall meetings and making regular calls to their congressional offices as advocates for Planned Parenthood. Organizers estimate supporters have made more than 122,000 phones calls to members of congress and hosted more than 1,500 events.

In Oregon, officials said, more than 60,000 people annually rely on Planned Parenthood's array of services, which include contraception services, STI/STD screening services, and cancer screening services, to name a few.

Nationally, Planned Parenthood sees more than 2.5 million people annually.

If the GOP successfully passes its last known iteration of Trumpcare, cuts to Medicaid would require the two-thirds of patients who use federal dollars for Planned Parenthood services to pay out of pocket.

The primary argument against Planned Parenthood and in favor of Trumpcare revolves around removing the ability for people to use federal dollars for abortions. But since 1977, when the Hyde Amendment was passed after Roe v. Wade made it legal for women to get abortions at all, it's been illegal for any state to use Medicaid to fund abortions except for in extreme cases involving rape, incest, or anything that could put the mother's life at risk.

The abortion argument is misleading at best. At worst, it's a flat out lie meant to engender controversy for an already controversial topic.

In 2014, abortion services at Planned Parenthood accounted for only 3 percent of all the organization did that year. Most of its services, more than 40 percent, were for STD screenings and treatment.

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