Life

Scarlett Johansson Says She Relied On Planned Parenthood While Growing Up

And she's standing up for the org while many politicians try to defund it.
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NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 24: Actress Scarlett Johansson attends the premiere of "He Named Me Malala" at Ziegfeld Theater on September 24, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Taylor Hill/FilmMagic)FilmMagic

Today, Scarlett Johansson is a movie star, stealing the screen as the Black Widow in The Avengers and Captain America franchise. But once upon a time, Johansson was a young girl, relying on Planned Parenthood's services while growing up in New York City. She talks about this with Cosmopolitan magazine in her new May cover story.

Planned Parenthood (PP) centers provide reproductive care to men and women across the U.S. In 2013, their 700 health centers served 2.7 million patients, according to PP. But various states—like Texas in 2013 and potentially Missouri this year—have voted to defund PP, as they fear state money is funding abortions. But Johansson makes a strong argument against those opposing PP: Abortions aren't just what PP offers young women, or even the majority of services. That's when she shares her own experience at a PP center with the mag:

"We're talking about preventing cervical cancer and breast cancers. Growing up, I used [PP's] services. All my girlfriends did—but not just for birth control but for Pap smears and breast exams. You read about the rise of back-alley abortions, women having to mutilate themselves and teenagers having to seek help in unsafe conditions, and for what?! We're moving backward when we're supposed to be moving forward."

According to PP, only about three percent of the 10 million services they provided between 2013 and 2014 were abortions. The majority of their work revolves around other important services, like STI/STD testing, cancer screening and prevention—like Pap smears and breast exams—and providing contraception to patients.

When Planned Parenthood is defunded or restricted, like in Texas, it makes it difficult for women to receive necessary reproductive services. Case in point: After Texas defunded and restricted PP and other family-planning providers in 2013—causing more than 80 clinics to close—a study showed that fewer women got birth control and more women got pregnant. And, scarily, Google searches for self-induced abortions have been on the rise since states began defunding abortion clinics, too.

This isn't the first time Johansson's spoken out in support of PP. In 2014, she teamed up with the PP Action Fund to raise awareness about women's health and rights. She also spoke at the Democratic National Convention in 2012 about the importance of PP for young women. The actress shared with the crowd that when she was growing up, she depended on public services like PP to receive the health care her family couldn't afford. The star even filmed a powerful video in 2011 with PP, explaining exactly why she stands with the group.

As the 2016 election heats up and presidential candidates share their plans for abortion rights—like Donald Trump's dangerous stance to ban abortion in the U.S.—expect to hear a lot more about the importance and value of centers like PP. Thanks, Johansson, for sharing your firsthand experience and why PP matters to you.

h/t Cosmopolitan

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