If you’re a regular consumer of BSA breakfast or lunch, then you’ve probably noticed the Planned Parenthood table in the cafeteria every Friday.
Normally, the table is run by two or so Planned Parenthood employees, displaying and giving out different contraceptive items, showcasing the services Planned Parenthood provides, and offering answers to the questions everyone has but are too nervous to ask about.
Planned Parenthood is one of the most well-known vendors of accessible healthcare. The Planned Parenthood Federation of America—affectionately known as Planned Parenthood—is a US nonprofit organization that provides easily accessible healthcare for little to no cost.
The PPFA was founded in Brooklyn, at the first birth control clinic in 1916. 108 years later, they are still providing methods of contraception, different healthcare services such as STI treatments and screenings, as well as pregnancy tests and options counseling.
Planned Parenthood also takes action surrounding education about sexual and reproductive health. They have also scaled up from just Brooklyn, with many different locations across the United States, and some international locations as well.
While Planned Parenthood has a minor station accessible to all BSA students at the end of every week, Planned Parenthood also takes the time to host assemblies to delve further into certain topics.
Planned Parenthood hosted assemblies on January 24 for each grade at BSA. During the meetings, Lindsay Roemer, a local PPFA educator, spoke to students about the importance of consent, and how vital it is in relationships.
To make it easier to remember the foundation consent, Roemer explained an acronym she often uses when teaching about the subject: F.R.I.E.S.
F – Freely Given
R – Reversible
I – Informed
E – Enthusiastic
S – Specific
Roemer dove into the importance of every letter and how if all boxes aren’t checked you and your partner should reevaluate the situation. If not, it could lead to situations where one or more parties are forced into an uncomfortable and unwanted position, which is sexual assault.
Roemer spoke upon how consent cannot coexist with coercion. Ego and pleasure don’t ever go over someone else’s boundaries. If your partner isn’t ready, or you aren’t either, Roemer states, “You gotta be ready to take that L respectively.”
However, consent wasn’t the only topic Roemer discussed. At the very beginning, students were introduced to the services that Planned Parenthood provides.
These services ranged from easy access to condoms and birth control, to gender affirming care, personal exams and pap smears, and much more.
While the topics of sex and reproductive health have been called too taboo for schools, students don’t expressed the importance of learning about it in an educational setting. This way the information is accurate, instead of hearing it from someone’s shady older sibling in a school bathroom.
“During the assembly I felt really secure,” stated sophomore actor October Redman. “Planned Parenthood created a safe space to discuss issues in our community, while also engaging us. Lindsay is very good at her job of communicating with students, she is knowledgeable and has a personality that can portray serious topics still as serious, but lighten the tone to almost conversational.”
And if the thought of learning about sex from an adult is too intimidating or embarrassing, Planned Parenthood is one step ahead of you.
Planned Parenthood has a peer education program, where teens can take classes and undergo training to be educated about sexual health.
“It’s really such a great experience, I’ve grown so much as a person throughout the program and I’ve met so many like minded people,” says BSA’s very own trained peer educator and sophomore Maya Hughes. “It has been super eye opening for me and I’m so glad to be a part of the community. It is such a safe and comforting space to be a part of and an amazing group of people.”
Hughes is one of the newest peer educators at BSA and Planned Parenthood encourages others to join!
While learning about sexual health from Planned Parenthood or a trusted adult can be good, it can seem like a leap that is a little too far.
“Having peer educators in schools is so important because it gives students a way to ask questions and learn about safe sex and reproductive health from someone their age. It is so much less intimidating this way and it makes a huge impact on students when they speak and connect to someone their own age who can help support them,” Hughes continued.
One of the last things Roemer discussed was the overall goal of Planned Parenthood. This is to offer basic health necessities that should be easily available to everyone. “We try to make sure it’s as accessible as possible,” stated Roemer during the assembly.
“Our mission is to enable all Marylanders to have access to a wide range of high quality, affordable reproductive health care services. By providing medical services, education, training, and advocacy, PPM seeks to help individuals make informed decisions about their reproductive health, family planning options, and sexuality,” states their website.
If you are curious to learn more about Planned Parenthood and the services they provide, Planned Parenthood staff are available in the cafeteria every Friday for student questions and discussion.
To contact this writer, email Muse Newspaper at musebsa@bsfa.org.
Featured photo of Lindsay Roemer captured by Lucy Garcia for the BSA Muse.
