Planned Parenthood Great Plains increases visibility of transgender services in Little Rock

(Little Rock, Ark.) —Planned Parenthood Great Plains is proud to announce the launch of a marketing initiative to promote our transgender health services that will be rolling into a bus stop near you. Little Rock residents will see advertisements proclaiming “Every body deserves expert care” on public buses around the city until early 2019.

“Every day, our goal is to make each person who comes through our doors feel welcome, comfortable and respected while providing the best possible care,” said Dr. Janet Cathey, Planned Parenthood Great Plains physician and director of transgender care. “By increasing the visibility of these services, we are letting folks throughout Little Rock know that we are proud to offer affirming health care to all of our transgender patients. This is a critical time for us to speak clearly and without hesitation about our commitment to standing with the LGBTQ community beyond our health center doors.”

Planned Parenthood expanded its sexual health services in Arkansas in 2016 to include gender-affirming hormone therapy, making it one of the few comprehensive health care providers to offer this care in the entire state.

The ad campaign debuted just after The New York Times reported that the Trump administration is considering rolling back civil rights protections for transgender people by redefining gender as unchangeable once assigned at birth. What’s more, The Guardian also recently reported that the administration is pushing to eliminate the word “gender” from all policy statements, which would erase the collective representation and existence of transgender people around the world.

Since 2016, the Trump administration has also attempted to impose a ban on transgender people interested in serving in the military, removed sex discrimination protection language from the Department of Health and Human Services and refuses to count LGBTQ people in the 2020 census.

“The Trump administration is concocting yet another policy aimed at harming millions of transgender people across the country — including thousands of trans people here in Arkansas,” said Gloria Pedro, Planned Parenthood Great Plains manager of public policy and organizing in Arkansas.

“While the Trump administration plays politics with the health and lives of transgender people, Planned Parenthood Great Plains will continue to serve our patients proudly: we see you, we stand with you, and we are here for you, no matter what.”

For more information about Planned Parenthood Great Plains and to schedule an appointment visit: www.ppgreatplains.org.

Planned Parenthood Great Plains (PPGP) has provided access to sexual and reproductive health care to women, men, and families since 1935. PPGP currently operates eleven health centers serving more than 75,000 women, men and teens each year in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. PPGP provides community education in its major population centers and has an active public policy program in all four states.

Copyright The Gayly – November 16, 2018 @ 1:45 p.m. CST.