Hi all,
It’s hard to believe that this semester is almost over! 2019 so far has brought not only a lot of new experiences my way, but also helped me recenter and develop my current ones. The most prominent definitely being my work with Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast (PPGC). With this second term completed, I have had the chance to evaluate my role as part of the PPGC team and in the context of the reproductive rights and health work here in New Orleans.
I worked to research legislation passed over the past four years. Using the Louisiana State Legislature website archives, I identified acts related to reproductive healthcare, abortion, child welfare, insurance, sexual education, STIs, and LGBTQ+ topics. The goal of this project is to use this legislation to gain a sense of which legislators frequently or infrequently support PPGC’s mission statement. Specially, legislators in the Orleans, Jefferson, East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge, and St. Bernard parishes will be of focus, particularly due to the locations of PPGC health centers. As an economics/neuroscience major, I was pretty unfamiliar with the legislation here. With the completion of this research, I am truly shocked at the motions that Louisiana is taking towards limiting the public’s access to reproductive healthcare as well as the provider’s ability to properly delegate these essential services. At the same time, it has been extremely interesting to read legislative language. With such particular and vague terms, it can be easy to
misread an act. There were several acts that I thought at first didn’t appear too harmful. However, after discussing these with my supervisor, I learned that there can be so many implications hidden within a single term.
Wrapping up this semester, I am proud of how far I’ve come. From my Conceiving Equity poster presentation (pictured here) to developing closer relationships with my colleagues, I have had the chance to grow my professional network and skill-set. I am so blessed to have had this opportunity to expand my worldview and cannot wait to continue with Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast into the summer!
-Isabelle Lian