FRANKFORT — Standing in front of a Planned Parenthood backdrop in a pink suit, a Republican Kentucky lawmaker said Thursday “the ability to control one’s own fertility” is “at the very heart” of the right to pursue happiness.
Rep. Vanessa Grossl, R-Georgetown, said “supporting families means ensuring they have the tools to plan their own futures,” including access to contraception.
She is the first Republican lawmaker to speak at a Planned Parenthood rally in Kentucky, an organization spokeswoman said. About 40 people attended the annual rally, which was held in the Capitol Education Center instead of the usual Capitol Rotunda venue as the capitol is under multi-year construction.
In another first, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear spoke to the rally via a video message in which he said Kentuckians deserve access to health care with “no exceptions, no asterisks.”
Beshear has regularly said he supports exceptions for rape and incest. Kentucky’s strict abortion ban does not currently have those exceptions despite bipartisan efforts in the legislature over the last several years to add them.
Grossl, who said she has been a past Planned Parenthood patient, said she did not go to that clinic “to make a political statement. I went there for health care.”
“I grew up in Eastern Kentucky as the daughter of a teen mom,” Grossl said. “I am enormously proud of everything my mother and I have both achieved against the odds, but my takeaway from that experience is simple: It shouldn’t have to be that hard.”
She didn’t shy away from her party affiliation.
“In my party, we pride ourselves in limited government and individual liberty, and there is no greater liberty than the right to make your own health care decisions without a bureaucrat standing between you and your doctor,” she said, to applause.
In his video message to the rally, Beshear told attendees to “keep fighting for the state we all love.”
“Whether you’re a woman, a person of color or a member of our LGBTQ+ community, you deserve quality health care, and even more important, you deserve the freedom and the right to make your own choices about the health care you receive,” Beshear said. “I understand that right now that access and that freedom feels out of reach. Federal leaders and even our own state legislature have stripped your rights away.”
Politics and periods
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Charles Booker told the crowd “I’m proud to stand for abortion care” in brief remarks at the end of the rally.
“The attack on abortion care is not just about abortion. The attack on sexual education, the attack on reproductive health is not just about your health,” said Booker. “It’s about freedom. They’re attacking freedom. This is right out of the authoritarian playbook. Taking away the autonomy of ourselves, of our bodies, taking away our freedom, is how they take away democracy.”
Several speakers at the rally focused on sex education and better access to period products like tampons and pads.
“When we talk about reproductive freedom, we often focus on laws and court decisions,” said Candice Crawford, the director of Louisville nonprofit For Lady’s Sake, which helps provide period products to people who need them. “Those conversations are important, but reproductive freedom also lives in the everyday experiences of young people, especially when they begin to understand and care for their bodies. For many young people, that moment is their first period.”
Yewande Olusesan-Adu, who introduced herself as a college student, daughter of immigrants and U.S. soldier, said she is “extremely concerned about the direction we are headed when it comes to reproductive freedom and access to health care” in Kentucky.
“My generation is deciding whether we can build our future here, whether Kentucky is a place where we can safely study, work, serve our communities and eventually raise families,” said Olusesan-Adu. “The message being sent to young people right now is very clear that our health, our futures and our autonomy are not being prioritized.”
Young people feel their health is not a priority, Olusesan-Adu added, pointing additionally to the disproportionate impact pregnancy and reproductive-related health issues have on Black women and women of color.
“The people who already face the greatest barriers are the ones who suffer the most. In a state that is already struggling with maternal health outcomes, limiting access to care will only increase those risks,” she said. “I love Kentucky, and I want to build my future here, but that future must include safety, dignity and bodily autonomy for everyone who calls the state home.”
Delilah Calderon, a Ballard High School student who works with Planned Parenthood’s Teen Council and is vice president of the Period Poverty Initiative, said resources mixed with proper education can empower youth, but many have to choose between necessities.
“What would you do if you had to choose between buying groceries for your family or buying menstrual products? What would you do if your period came but you didn’t have the supplies you needed to get through the day?” she asked. “Would you miss school? Would you miss work? Or would you stay home out of embarrassment or fear? For too many people across Kentucky, these aren’t hypothetical questions. They are daily realities.”
Other speakers included Rep. Lisa Willner and Rep. Sarah Stalker, both D-Louisville.
Stalker slammed what she called the “criminalization of being pregnant” in the United States, saying “the doctor’s office has been replacement by a courtroom.”
“This isn’t just a legal battle. It has become a war on the vulnerable, and we know who gets targeted first. It’s the poor, it’s the people of color and those without the social safety net,” Stalker said. “Our health is not a crime, our autonomy is not up for debate and our reproductive lives are none of the government’s damn business.”
This article was originally published by the Kentucky Lantern.
