KALAMAZOO, Mich. (Michigan News Source)- A Kalamazoo YWCA in West Michigan has asked Kalamazoo County Commissioners for a whopping $100,000 to support their “comprehensive reproductive health fund.” Their website explains, “YWCA Kalamazoo believes everyone deserves access to reproductive, sexual, and gender-affirming health care services – especially those who identify as Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC), undocumented people, low-income people, and those who identify as LGBTQIA+.”
They go on to say, “We are on a mission to expand reproductive rights by launching the first of its kind in the nation comprehensive reproductive health fund for residents in Kalamazoo County. The fund will eliminate financial and transportation barriers to increase access to abortion services, doula care and gender-affirming care as well as on-site access to emergency contraception kits. The comprehensive reproductive health fund represents a larger step towards reproductive justice in Kalamazoo County.”
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They explain, “By reducing barriers to accessing comprehensive reproductive health services we can ensure that our community members – especially Black and Brown communities – can live their full and authentic lives.”
The services provided by their fund, which started last year, includes money to help residents more easily get gender-affirming surgery and abortions by using the taxpayer money for supportive things like transportation, postage to mail documents, housing, childcare and other expenses. Private donations are used for actual abortions and things like gender-affirming surgery.
Michigan News Source reached out to Right to Life of Michigan and Anna-Marie Pluymert, Director of Communication/Education gave us this statement about the YWCA’s request for funding: “The YWCA’s request for taxpayer money to support their efforts to increase abortion, while not actually paying for those services, seems disingenuous. If the funds are to pay for childcare, transportation, and lodging, why not ask the commission for money for those specific items rather than asking for money for their reproductive health fund? This seems like an effort to politicize the commission and force them to declare their allegiance to abortion.”
Pluymert continues, “If the money is going specifically to help people access services from Planned Parenthood, why isn’t Planned Parenthood providing childcare, transportation, and lodging for their own patients rather than expecting a non-profit like the YWCA to provide those services for their patients? Perhaps Planned Parenthood is unwilling to provide transportation, childcare, and lodging for its own patients because it would cut into its multi-million-dollar per year profit margin. $100,000 is a lot of money for Uber rides and childcare, especially considering the YWCA served only 247 clients last year; that equals over $400 per client. The YWCA intends to expand its reproductive health fund to non-residents, so, the question must be asked whether Kalamazoo taxpayers want to spend their hard-earned money supporting abortion for abortion tourism for non-residents.
During the commissioners meeting on April 18th, Demetrias Wolverton, interim chief of staff for the Kalamazoo YWCA said that although the fund only assists county residents, they are considering expanding it to others. In the meeting, a presentation was made that showed 2022 impact data which showed 6% of the budget going to supportive services like transportation, emergency contraception and lodging; 8% for double care; 52% for gender-affirming care; and 34% for abortions services. The presentation also said that more than 220 Kalamazoo County residents were served by the fund, 50% of them being “people of color.” 62% of the clients they served with the fund had an annual income of less than $24,600 and only 40% were employed.
The Kalamazoo County Commissioners, who will be voting on the issue, includes six Democrats and three Republicans – in a county where in 2020, Joe Biden won 58% percent of the presidential vote. When Michigan News Source reached out to the commissioners to see how they stood on voting for YMCA’s fund, only Commissioner John Taylor Got back to us. He said, “I am still awaiting legals opinion on whether it violates the Hyde Amendment. I support the concept but do not want to put the county into legal liability.”
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The YWCA is an acronym for “Young Women’s Christian Association.” They are a nonprofit organization with a focus on empowerment, leadership, and rights of women, young women, and girls in more than 100 countries. According to their website the YWCA has over 200 local associations around the country. They serve more than 260,000 women and girls with economic empowerment programs and engage with more than 160,000 people each year through their racial justice education and training programs.
