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When Emma Burke and a handful of her friends discovered that there was a local Planned Parenthood chapter only a few blocks from campus, they wondered why more Syracuse University students weren’t aware of its presence.

This shared thought eventually grew into the establishment of an SU chapter of Planned Parenthood Generation Action last fall. Despite starting with under ten members in the club’s first semester, PPGen at SU is now approaching one year on campus.

“There wasn’t an official organization on campus that was working alongside (Planned Parenthood) at the time,” Burke said. “Especially with the political climate, it was vital that this organization have a voice and student leaders on campus.”

Burke was one of the founding members of PPGen, a gender-inclusive club advocating for increased access and awareness of reproductive healthcare across campus and in the broader Syracuse community. Ahead of the impending 2024 United States general elections, several PPGen leaders said they hope to grow the group’s campus presence.

The club held its first tabling event of the semester Tuesday during SU’s student involvement fair. PPGen members gave students information about their upcoming events and handed out supplies like menstrual products and condoms.

Now that the club has been established for a year, PPGen has several objectives for the upcoming semester. Its members hope to increase voter turnout, provide educational resources, implement on-campus contraceptive vending machines and support historically marginalized groups in the healthcare system, said Julia Kirezi, the club’s current president.

Kirezi said part of the organization’s mission is to create spaces on campus to encourage discussion surrounding reproductive, mental and physical health. This year, PPGen will also focus on advocating for abortion rights and affordable healthcare, as legislation addressing access to these resources will be on the ballot in several states come November.

“We want to get people educated on why it’s important to vote because, again, women’s rights are on the line,” Kirezi said. “As an (organization), we really can’t tell you who to vote for… but we at least want people to know why their vote is important.”

Though the PPGen chapter established a presence at SU last fall, the Planned Parenthood Action Fund has established a vast network of college campus PPGen chapters, with over 350 across the country.

As a Latina woman, Burke said her identity inspired her to advocate for healthcare access among historically marginalized groups, which led her to initially help found the organization.

Similar to Burke, Kirezi said she was first inclined to join PPGen due to her past experiences with healthcare as a Black woman. After joining the club in its founding year, Kirezi eventually decided to run for its president seat.

Collin Snyder | Contributing Photographer

SU’s chapter of Planned Parenthood Generation Action aims to promote understanding of reproductive health care rights across campus and the broader Syracuse community.

“There are many inequalities, economic disparities and racial disparities, in our healthcare system,” Kirezi said. “I want to do my part to advocate for people who look like me, people who are mistreated when they’re trying to receive good, accessible health care.”

PPGen was also founded on the principle of establishing a connection with the Syracuse community to facilitate communication with students, local Planned Parenthood organizations and other city residents, Burke said.

To achieve its goals this academic year, PPGen hopes to introduce several new initiatives and community outreach opportunities, Kirezi said. The group wants to “build a bridge” between the university and the broader city, including by facilitating volunteer opportunities where SU students can distribute educational and healthcare resources to the surrounding community.

PPGen Vice President Sophia Castro, a sophomore majoring in psychology and womens and gender studies, said the club hopes to conduct additional menstrual and contraceptive product tabling events for students like it did at Tuesday’s activity fair. Castro also said she wants to expand the group’s goals to focus more on educating the LGBTQ+ community, of which she identifies as a member.

“There are resources, but sadly, not a lot of people know about them,” Castro said. “Our mission is to really just make (these) services known, services that are already in place.”

The PPGen team also plans to place posters and informational pamphlets with information about accessing healthcare in Syracuse across campus, Kirezi said. The group would also like to distribute reproductive care kits.

PPGen will host its first general body meeting of the semester in the coming weeks. A large focus of that meeting will be a discussion on voting in the general election, Castro said.

Kirezi said she’s optimistic about PPGen’s goals to increase involvement with her club, as many of her classmates have expressed interest in joining.

“It makes me really happy that people actually care and are really wanting to be involved in something so important to every aspect of any human life,” Kirezi said.

Published on September 10, 2024 at 10:38 pm

Contact Kate: kjacks19@syr.edu