JRN 551 Breakthebarrier Final Version

Planned Parenthood Submarine: Kate Grove, Breann Clayton, Alicia DeGroat, Grace Sabisch, & Hannah Schmittler
League Public Relations Agency

#BreaktheBarrier Campaign
Planned Parenthood
November 16, 2020
Central Michigan University
Contents
Introduction (Hannah)...................................................................................................................3
Research..........................................................................................................................................4
Client Research (Hannah & Bre).................................................................................................4
Problem Research: Racism is a Public Health Crisis (Kate).......................................................6
Target Audience Research (Alicia & Grace)...............................................................................9
Objectives (Kate)..........................................................................................................................13
Impact objectives.......................................................................................................................13
Output objectives.......................................................................................................................14
Programming (Kate)....................................................................................................................15
Theme ........................................................................................................................................15
Key Messages............................................................................................................................15
Campaign Action (Bre)..............................................................................................................16
Principles of Effective Communication (Kate)..........................................................................18
Evaluation (Alicia & Grace).........................................................................................................20
Conclusion (Grace & Alicia)........................................................................................................22
Appendix (Bre & Kate).................................................................................................................23
Sample Instagram Posts.............................................................................................................23
Sample Email Script...................................................................................................................24
Sample Phone Script..................................................................................................................24
Mock Email Portal.....................................................................................................................25
References.....................................................................................................................................26
Introduction (Hannah)
Our firm, League Public Relations Agency, is working with our client Planned
Parenthood to execute a social media campaign about racism as a public health crisis on Central
Michigan University’s campus in the month of February. Due to the effects of racism, members
of minority communities experience high stress, accelerated ageing, and an increased risk of
non-communicable diseases (Devakumar et al., 2020). Health inequities are unfair and could be
reduced by the right mix of government policies (World Health Organization, 2017). Our agency
recognizes that this topic could be controversial and political. We determined through research
that this cause was appropriate to bring awareness to and a good fit for the Planned Parenthood
brand. Planned Parenthood has been a political advocate and educator since the organization’s
early beginnings.
This communication plan will provide a quick overview of the Planned Parenthood
organization, including its mission and issues of concern, like Healthcare Equity. It will then
reference current research on racism as a public health crisis, including peer-reviewed journals
and trade publications. Our agency surveyed and analyzed 136 responses from Central Michigan
University students to provide further research and construct our campaign. From there, our
agency developed an in-depth outline of the awareness campaign, including a campaign theme,
key messages, and impact and output objectives, which were implemented to create opportunities
for audience engagement and policy change. The communication plan will show the controlled
and uncontrolled media that were used. Our agency also wanted to highlight the principles of
effective communication that were foundational to the success of our campaign. The campaign
plan concludes with a comprehensive breakdown of how the campaign’s impact and output
objectives were evaluated and includes several samples of materials from the campaign.
Research
Client Research (Hannah & Bre)
Planned Parenthood started in 1916 and its beginnings can be accredited to the birth
control movement led by founder, Margaret Sanger. Margaret Sanger believed that women
should be in control of their bodies, and Planned Parenthood was founded on the idea that
women should have the information and care they need to live strong, happy lives. Today,
Planned Parenthood operates more than 600 health centers across America. Planned Parenthood
is the nation’s leading provider and advocate for high quality, affordable health care for women,
men, and young people. Planned Parenthood largely reaches low-income and rural patients.
According to a report that looked at Planned Parenthood patient data from 2010 to 2012, nearly
80% had incomes at or below 150% of the federal poverty level. Planned Parenthood strives to
make their services as low-cost and accessible as possible. Many people associate Planned
Parenthood with abortion, however only 3% of the services provided are abortions. Their
services include abortion, birth control, emergency-contraception, general health care, HIV
services, LGBT Services, Men’s Health Services, Patient Education, Pregnancy Testing and
Services, STD Testing, Treatment and Vaccines, and other women’s services including cancer
screenings. Planned Parenthood reaches 2.5 million women and men in the United States for
care annually and receives over 70 million visits on their website.
B. Company Mission
 To provide comprehensive reproductive and complementary health care
services in settings which preserve and protect the essential privacy and
rights of each individual. Further, to advocate public policies which
guarantee these rights and ensure access to such services.

B. Issues Planned Parenthood Prioritize
 Planned Parenthood is a strong leader in the Reproductive Health and
Rights Movement and is 13 million supporters, activists, and donors
strong. In 1987, Planned Parenthood’s president founded the Planned
Parenthood Action Fund. This is a 501c organization that creates
engagement in public education campaigns, grassroots organizing, and
legislative and electoral activity. Planned Parenthood champions the
following issues: Abortion Access, Attacks on Planned Parenthood, Birth
Control, Health Care Equity, Judicial Nominees, Sexual Assault, Sex
Education, Attacks to Access at the State Level, and Voting Rights.

Problem Research: Racism is a Public Health Crisis (Kate)
In the spring of 2020, the American public learned the names of George Floyd, Breonna
Taylor, and many others whose lives were taken by police brutality. As details surrounding
these murders were shared on social media, protests were held across the nation, and the Black
Lives Matter movement was re-galvanized. With the images of George Floyd’s final moments
seared into the consciousness of the American public, conversations about how systemic racism
is “intertwined with the structures and actions of and within society,” began receiving
mainstream attention (DeBerry-Spence et al., 2020). Set against the backdrop of a global
pandemic, the topic of health inequity was centered in many of these conversations, along with
calls from public health officials for racism to be officially recognized as a public health crisis.
Public health officials recognize racism as the root of health inequity. In relation to public
health policy, Jones (2020) defines racism as “a system of structuring opportunity and assigning
value based on the social interpretation of how one looks that … saps the strength of the whole
society through the waste of human resources.” Racism and discrimination are clear
determinants of poor health; they dramatically affect the health and safety of communities of
color on many different levels. The effects of racism take a toll on the body; members of
minority communities experience high stress, accelerate ageing, and an increased risk of non-
communicable diseases. The trauma of systemic racism is then inherited by younger generations
both biologically and psychologically, further damaging the health and wellbeing of these
communities, (Devakumar et al., 2020; Evans et al., 2020).
One of the most easily recognizable ways racism damages the health for communities of
color is through police brutality. Alang et al. (2017) reported that “young Black men were nine
times more likely than other Americans to be killed by police officers”. Furthermore, a study
conducted in 2019 found police use of force to be one of the leading causes of death for young
men of color between the ages of twenty and thirty-five. Approximately 1 in every 1,000 Black
men will have a fatal encounter with the police at some point in their life. In encounters with the
police that don’t result in a fatality, Black people are still nearly five times more likely than
White people to be injured (Edwards, Lee, & Esposito, 2019). These statistics about police
brutality are even more troubling when disabilities and mental illnesses are considered. The
Ruderman Family Foundation found that almost half of all people killed by police have a
disability or mental illness (Perry & Carter-Long, 2016). Altogether, these statistics position
members of the Black community at a heightened risk for having an encounter with the police
that dramatically damages their health, especially if they hold several marginalized identities.
Another way in which racism damages the health of communities of color is through
racial segregation and environmental racism. As stated in Jones (2020), “segregation by race,
poverty, education, and other social factors accounts for more than a third of total deaths in the
United States in a year.” Living in neighborhoods that are racially segregated due to redlining
has a negative effect on the health of people of color. Hospitals in these neighborhoods are more
likely to be underinvested in, placing them at a greater risk for closure and increasing the chance
of overcrowding in the remaining open hospitals. Furthermore, these neighborhoods often lack
access to supermarkets and healthy food, and experience higher rates of pollution. (Yearby,
2018). Black people are 1.5 times more likely than White people to live within one mile of a
facility that releases carcinogenic air pollutants. Breathing in these pollutants results in higher
rates of respiratory diseases, cardiovascular diseases, and premature death for members of these
communities (Richmond-Bryant et al., 2020).

In calling for racism to be considered a public health crisis, public health practitioners
stress the importance of acknowledging slavery’s legacy of “racism, injustice, and brutality,” in
the field of medicine (Jones, 2020). Early advancements in American medicine came from
physicians who experimented on the bodies of enslaved people without consent or regard for
their health and wellbeing. Fast forward to today, racism continues to be present in the field of
medicine in many ways. One example of this is physicians with unconscious racial biases that
give Black patients and White patients different levels of care. Several studies have found that
physicians with unconscious racial biases believe that these differences are caused by patients
mistrusting their providers, or being too unintelligent and uneducated to properly follow
physician's medical advice, rather than caused by their own hidden prejudices, (Gollust et al.,
2018; Yearby, 2018). Though not all physicians have conscious or unconscious racial biases,
those that do have a significant impact on the field of medicine, meaning that patients of color
are unlikely to receive the same level of care as White patients.
With the Black Lives Matter movement reemerging into the public consciousness,
Millennials and Gen Zs are demanding that racism be addressed in every major institution – from
government to health care to business (Beaubien, 2020). While systemic racism is “a
multilayered issue that requires a multilayered approach,” little is being done to acknowledge
this issue on a large scale (Moore, 2020). According to the Pew Charitable Trust, only three
states, thirteen cities, and eight counties have officially declared racism a public health crisis
(Vestal, 2020). For racism to have a less devastating impact on the health of communities of
color, several interconnected issues must be centered: the legacy of slavery in America, the
prevalence of police brutality, and the ways in which people of color disproportionally
experience health inequity.

Target Audience Research (Alicia & Grace)

Online surveys tend to vary across the board. Some have only quantitative research,
which consists of close-ended questions, numerical data, and hard measurements, and some have
only qualitative research which is open-ended and respondent descriptive based on observations.
As for our public relations agency, we decided it would be most fulfilling to have a mixture of
both quantitative and qualitative data. With the input of our fellow Central Michigan University
students, our group was able to determine their general idea of the Planned Parenthood
organization, racism in America, and racism as a public health crisis.
Out of our 136 respondents, seniors at CMU were the majority (28.5%) of our survey.
Secondly comes Juniors, which take up just over one fifth of our survey respondents (21.5%).
Our group thought it was important to include a fifth year and above category, thus thirdly, the
fifth year and above comes in at 17.7%. Conclusively, this means that over two thirds of our
survey respondents were upperclassmen. A grand majority (83.8%) of our 136 respondents were
women. As far as our respondent's sexual orientation, over half (64%) of our participants were
heterosexual. Coming in second (34%) is bisexual and the remaining two percent consists of:
homosexual, pansexual, queer, or prefer not to say. Lastly within the demographic's realm, out of
our 136 respondents, over three fourths of our respondents were Caucasian. The second most
represented race/ethnicity was Hispanic/Latino (7.4%), followed by Black/African American
(4.4%). The remaining percentage consisted of: Native American, Asian/ Pacific Islander, and
biracial/black and white.
Of the 136 respondents, a majority (58.1%) recorded that they rely on public health care
services. Slightly upon a third of the respondents said they do not rely on public health care
services and others (4.4%) preferred not to say. On a scale from one to five, our respondents
were asked to choose how likely they were to support Planned Parenthood, 1 being not likely at
all and 5 being extremely likely. An overwhelming majority (87.5%) ranked their support for
Planned Parenthood at a five, which means they were very likely to support. Just under six
percent ranked their support for Planned Parenthood at a four which means likely and slightly
over four percent ranked three, which means indifferent. Not a single respondent ranked their
support for Planned Parenthood at a two, but three respondents ranked their support – or lack of
support – at a one.
When 136 respondents were asked which Planned Parenthood services they knew about,
an overwhelming majority knew that the organization offered: abortion care services (98.5%),
contraceptives/birth control (97.1%), STI treatment/cancer screening (93.4%), comprehensive
sex education (83.1%), and prenatal care (77.9%). The remaining three percent of respondents
said they prefer not to say, and one respondent submitted the information “they do pregnancy
tests too!”. Out of our 136 respondents, only 134 respondents completed the question about
which Planned Parenthood services, if any, have they utilized. A stunning majority (70.1%) said
they had never used any of Planned Parenthood’s services. Roughly a fifth of respondents had
utilized the organization’s contraceptives and birth control, and eighteen respondents (13.4%)
indicated they had used STI testing and treatment/cancer screening services. Less than thirteen
percent of participants said they had utilized Planned Parenthood’s comprehensive sex education
services.
Most (72.8%) of our respondents said they knew somebody who had utilized Planned
Parenthood's services. A little under a fifth of respondents said they were not sure, and the
remainder of respondents (11%) answered no, they didn’t know of anybody who had utilized
Planned Parenthood’s services. Of the respondents who knew someone who had utilized a
Planned Parenthood service, a majority (63.8%) had sought out the contraceptive/birth control
services. Over half of respondents said their peer utilized STI treatment/testing and cancer
screening and following closely in third was abortion care (46.5%).
Out of the 136 survey respondents, only 127 responded to the survey question regarding
Planned Parenthood’s services and if they have benefited their health. This question was almost
50/50, the majority (50.4%) answered that Planned Parenthood had not benefited their health,
while over forty-four percent said Planned Parenthood benefited their health. A small fraction
(5.5%) preferred not to say.
Most respondents (71.3%) had never utilized a Planned Parenthood service before. There
was a portion of the respondents (1.5%) who were unsure if they have ever used the services. Of
the respondents who said they had utilized these services, less than a quarter (19.9%) used
Planned Parenthood one to three times. The rest of the respondents utilized the services four to
six times (5.1%) and three respondents had used the services more than ten times.
In order to learn the opinions of others on the quality of service Planned Parenthood
offers, we asked our participants their level of satisfaction with the care they received at Planned
Parenthood. Nearly half of the respondents were very satisfied (47.9%) and 15.5% of the
respondents said that they were satisfied. Another larger majority of the respondents say that
they are neutral (35.3%). None of the respondents claimed that they were dissatisfied with their
service, however, 1.4% said that they were very dissatisfied with their service.
Most of the respondents (91.2%) said that they find it very necessary that the U.S. has
access to health care providers like Planned Parenthood. A small portion of respondents (6.6%)
rated a 4 on a scale of 5 in relation to the necessity of access to organizations like Planned
Parenthood. The rest of the respondents rated a 3 (1.5%) and 1 (0.7%) on the Likert scale.
When asked if the respondents believed racism is a problem in the U.S. today, 97.8% of
respondents said yes. The remaining respondents (2.2%) disagreed. Of the 136 respondents,
97.1% believed that racism impacts the health and safety of people of color in the U.S. Those
who said no stand at 2.2%, and 0.7% were unsure. The survey asked participants if they believed
racism should be considered a public health crisis. The majority said yes (85.3%). The rest were
unsure (10.3%), or simply said no (4.4%).
We asked our participants if they would be willing to send an email to their state
representatives about racism as a public health crisis if provided a template. The over half of the
respondents (61.8%) said yes. A over a quarter said maybe (28.7%). The remaining answers said
no (5.9%) or prefer not to say (3.7%).
In order to gain knowledge about our target audience, and their social media habits to
best deliver our messages, we asked respondents what social media platform they use most. They
responded with: Instagram (36.8%), Twitter (27.2%), TikTok (19.9%), Facebook (14%), and the
remaining answers (Pinterest, Reddit, and none) each had 0.7%.
Of the respondents, 61.5% said that they were active on their student email accounts, and
34.1% said they were active on their personal email accounts. The remaining participants said no
(4.4%). When asked about residency, 93.3% of respondents are in-state and 6.7% are out-of-
state. None of the respondents said that they were international residents.
Objectives (Kate)
These objectives will be accomplished between January 2021 and February 2021. All
objectives are directed towards Central Michigan University students.
 Impact objectives:
o Informational
 To broaden target audience's understanding of racism as a
public health crisis by 10% between January 2021 and February 2021.
 To raise awareness between January and February of Planned
Parenthood’s stance on racism as a public health crisis by 25%.
 To increase awareness of H.R. 40 by 20% between January and
February.
o Attitudinal
 To promote greater support of racism as a public health crisis by 5%.
 To reinforce favorable opinions of Planned Parenthood
as an essential organization over the duration of the campaign.
o Behavioral
 To generate 40,000 email, phone calls, and social media posts calling for
elected officials to support racism as a public health crisis and pass H.R.
40.
 To persuade 30% of target audience to share campaign posts on their
personal social media accounts during the month of February.

 Output objectives:
o To create a campaign website
o To establish a social media calendar
o To draft an email script for campaign participants
o To write a campaign phone script
o To craft sample social media posts for campaign participants
o To prepare 40 Instagram posts with facts about racism as a public health crisis
o To distribute press releases to three media outlets about the campaign
o To prepare a fact sheet about racism as a public health crisis
o To share campaign materials with five student influencers
o To schedule informational meetings about the campaign with four registered student
organizations
Programming (Kate)
 Theme
o #BreaktheBarrier
 Key Messages
o Planned Parenthood is dedicated to educating the public about how racism is a
crisis affecting the public health.
o Planned Parenthood is committed to aiding the passage of House Resolution 40.
 Media
o Controlled Media
 Fact sheets distributed to social justice student organizations
 Posters displayed in lecture halls and residence halls
o Uncontrolled Media
 Feature story submitted to CM Life, Grand Central Magazine,
and HerCampus
 Press release distributed to local media outlets
o Social Media
 Instagram

Campaign Action (Bre)
Planned Parenthood will create a social media campaign on Instagram to raise
awareness about racism as a public health crisis. Seeing as Planned Parenthood is a health care
provider, the campaign will emphasize the racial disparities in the American health care system,
along with other key areas where racism impacts the health of Black and Brown communities.
The campaign will run through the month of February, which is Black History Month.
The structure of the campaign will consist of 40 posts being sent out one a day for the
first half of the month and two a day for the second half. Each post will consist of a fact about
racism in the United States shown in a graphic fit for Instagram. The content of the facts will
stem from one of the following categories:
 How racism effects the body
 Police brutality
 Environmental racism
 Disparities in health care treatment
 Mental health disparities
The focal point of this campaign will be facts about racism in the health care
industry. The hashtag for this campaign will be #BreakTheBarrier. The barrier referred to in this
phrase is meant to refer to the barriers or obstacles that people of color face while trying to
access health care. At the end of the campaign, all the posts will be compiled into a graphic to
form a brick wall where each post looks like a brick. This image will be featured on the front
page of the campaign website. When the image is clicked on, the bricks will fall away to reveal
that the website is about the American health care system and inequities faced by people of
color. Planned Parenthood will enlist the help of at least five Instagram social media
influencers from Central Michigan University to help get the word out about this campaign.
In addition to the website being a source of information and education, there will be a
link to email, phone call and social media post templates for people to use to contact their
representatives. Specifically, people will be asked to contact their representatives about House
Resolution 40. This bill has the opportunity to create transformative change that would
mitigate some of the damaging effects racism has had on communities of color. A summation of
H.R. 40 is included below:
This bill establishes the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for
African Americans. The commission shall examine slavery and discrimination in the
colonies and the United States from 1619 to the present and recommend appropriate
remedies. Among other requirements, the commission shall identify (1) the role of federal
and state governments in supporting the institution of slavery, (2) forms of discrimination
in the public and private sectors against freed slaves and their descendants, and (3)
lingering negative effects of slavery on living African Americans and
society. (Congress.gov)
Planned Parenthood’s goal is to have forty thousand collective emails, phone calls and
social media posts sent to elected officials, telling them to support this proposition. The website
will contain a live counter to show how close the goal is in the hopes of encouraging people to
post and email.

Principles of Effective Communication (Kate)

 Source Credibility
o Source credibility is the most important principle of effective communication for
this campaign. Planned Parenthood is an organization that was founded by White
people and is predominately run by White people. In order to not be seen as yet
another organization co-opting the racial justice movement or displaying
performative allyship, it is vital that the #BreaktheBarrier campaign establishes
Planned Parenthood as a credible, well-informed, and compassionate voice in the
conversation about racism as a public health crisis. To be viewed as credible, it’s
important the #BreaktheBarrier uses well-researched information and centers the
voices and experiences of people of color.
 Audience Participation
o For #BreaktheBarrier to be successful in raising awareness for racism as a public
health crisis and getting House Resolution 40 passed, the target audience must
directly interact with the campaign’s actions. Because this is a social media
campaign, it’s important to demonstrate to the target audience that this issue is
worth their time, and that their actions, while mostly digital, are still a powerful
and effective form of activism. Not only that, but the positive feelings they get
from participating in this online activism could bolster the positive attitude they
have about Planned Parenthood.
 Opinion Leaders
o While 87.5% of the survey respondents indicated that they support Planned
Parenthood, that does not guarantee that they follow Planned Parenthood’s
Instagram page. To reach CMU students outside of Planned Parenthood's digital

sphere of influence, #BreaktheBarrier will utilize student influencers to act as
opinion leaders. Hearing the campaign's key messages from a peer they see as a
leader will help the campaign feel more personable and less “corporate”.
Additionally, for students who do actively engage with Planned Parenthood on
social media, the use of opinion leaders will amplify the campaign's message and
make participating in the campaign seem more desirable.

Evaluation (Alicia & Grace)

 Impact objectives:
o Informational
 To broaden target audience's understanding of racism as a public health
crisis by 10% between January 2021 and February 2021.
 Evaluation: Conducted a post-campaign survey and compared
results to the pre-campaign survey in September 2020.
 To raise awareness between January and February of Planned
Parenthood’s stance on racism as a public health crisis by 25%.
 Evaluation: Conducted a post-survey and noted an increase in
awareness of Planned Parenthood’s stance on racism as a public
health crisis among the target audience
 To increase awareness of H.R. 40 by 20% between January and February.
 Evaluation: Post-campaign survey found an increase in target
audience’s awareness of H.R. 40
o Attitudinal
 To promote greater support of racism as a public health crisis by 5%
 Evaluation: According to the post-campaign survey, the campaign
promoted greater support of racism as a public health crisis among
the target audience
 To reinforce favorable opinions of Planned Parenthood as an essential
organization over the duration of the campaign
 Evaluation: The post-campaign survey indicated that the target
audience maintained favorable opinions of Planned Parenthood as
an essential organization throughout the campaign.
o Behavioral
 To generate 40,000 emails, phone calls, and social media posts calling for
elected officials to support racism as a public health crisis and pass H.R.
40
 Evaluation: Counted the number of e-mails, phone calls, and social
media posts made by campaign participants
 To persuade 30% of target audience to share campaign hashtag on their

personal social media accounts during the month of February.
 Evaluation: Used social media analytics to count how many
students in our target audience shared the campaign hashtag
 Output objectives:
o To create a campaign website
 Evaluation: Created a campaign website.
o To establish a social media calendar
 Evaluation: A social media calendar was established.
o To draft an email script for the campaign
 Evaluation: An email script was drafted.
o To write a campaign phone script
 Evaluation: Wrote campaign phone script.
o To craft sample social media posts for campaign participants
 Evaluation: Crafted sample social media posts for campaign participants.
o To create 40 Instagram posts with facts about racism as a public health crisis
 Evaluation: Created 40 Instagram posts that shared facts about racism as a
public health crisis.
o To distribute press releases to three media outlets about the campaign
 Evaluation: Distributed press releases to three media outlets.
o To prepare a fact sheet about racism as a public health crisis
 Evaluation: Prepared a fact sheet about racism as a public health crisis.
o To share campaign materials with five student influencers
 Evaluation: Shared campaign materials with five student influencers.
o To schedule informational meetings about the campaign with four registered
student organizations
 Evaluation: Scheduled informational meetings about the campaign with
four registered student organizations.
Conclusion (Grace & Alicia)

The #BreaktheBarrier campaign is a partnership between Planned Parenthood and
League Public Relations Agency to raise awareness among Central Michigan University
students about the issue of racism as a public health crisis. This social media campaign used
Instagram to encourage CMU students to generate 40,000 emails, phone calls, and social media
posts calling for elected officials to support racism a public health crisis and pass House
Resolution. 40. CMU student’s participation in contacting elected representatives
about H.R. 40 created an opportunity for transformative change that will mitigate some of the
damaging effects racism has had on communities of people of color. This social media
campaign is informational, educational, and important to the growth of our country and the
communities affected by the barriers and obstacles that people of color face while trying to
access health care.

Appendix (Bre & Kate)

Sample Instagram Posts
Sample Email Script

Subject: We Demand You #BreaktheBarrier
Dear [INSERT REP.’S NAME],
Your constituents have spoken. We demand you make a public statement in support of
House Resolution 40.
For too long we’ve ignored how racism acts as an institutional barrier that prevents
people of color from having access to the same health and safety as other Americans. Racism is a
public health crisis in our country, and we need strong leaders like yourself to speak out and
stand up. We urge you to break the barrier by helping to pass H.R. 40.
By taking a deep look at the legacy of slavery in America and the devastating effect
racism has on communities of color, we’re fighting alongside Planned Parenthood to make
strides towards racial justice and transformative change in our country.
Join our fight by passing H.R. 40.
Sincerely,
[INSERT YOUR NAME]
Sample Phone Script
Hello, my name is [INSERT YOUR NAME] and I’m calling to urge [INSERT REP.’S
NAME] to support House Resolution 40. Racism is a public health crisis in our country, and
along with Planned Parenthood I’m fighting to ensure we have legislation that recognizes that.
H.R. 40 would mitigate some of the damaging effects racism has had on communities of color.
For too long we’ve ignored how racism acts as an institutional barrier that prevents people of
color from having access to the same health and safety as other Americans. As one of your
constituents, I’m asking that [INSERT REP.’S NAME] help break the barrier by making a public
statement in support of H.R. 40 and doing everything in their power to get this bill passed. Thank
you for your time.
Mock Email Portal

This is what the portal used to send emails to elected officials would look like. To the
right of the portal would be the text for the sample email.
References
10 facts on health inequities and their causes. (2017, April 21). Retrieved November 05, 2020,
from https://www.who.int/features/factfiles/health_inequities/en/
Alang, S., McAlpine, D., McCreedy, E., & Hardeman, R. (2017). Police Brutality and Black
Health: Setting the Agenda for Public Health Scholars. American Journal of Public Health,
107(5), 662-665. doi:10.2105/ajph.2017.303691
Beaubien, G. (2020, July/August). When Words and Actions Diverge, Brand Support for Black
Lives Matter Can Backfire. Retrieved September 10, 2020, from
https://www.prsa.org/article/when-words-and-actions-diverge-brand-support-for-black-lives-
matter-can-backfire
DeBerry-Spence, B., Bennett, A. M., Cross, S. N., Ekpo, A., & Sobande, F. (2020, August 04). A
Call for Further Research at the Intersection of Race, Marketing, and Public Policy. Retrieved
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Devakumar, D., Selvarajah, S., Shannon, G., Muraya, K., Lasoye, S., Corona, S., Achiume, E. T.
(2020). Racism, the public health crisis we can no longer ignore. The Lancet, 395(10242).
doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(20)31371-4
Edwards, F., Lee, H., & Esposito, M. H. (2019). Risk of being killed by police use of force in the
United States by age, race–ethnicity, and sex. Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences of the United States of America, 116(34), 16793-16798. doi:10.31235/osf.io/kw9cu
Evans, M. K., Rosenbaum, L., Malina, D., Morrissey, S., & Rubin, E. J. (2020). Diagnosing and
Treating Systemic Racism. New England Journal of Medicine, 383(3), 274-276.
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Planned Parenthood Submarine: Kate Grove, Breann Clayton, Alicia DeGroat, Grace Sabisch, & Hannah Schmittler

League Public Relations Agency

Client Research (Hannah & Bre)

services include abortion, birth control, emergency-contraception, general health care, HIV

care annually and receives over 70 million visits on their website.

 To provide comprehensive reproductive and complementary health care

rights of each individual. Further, to advocate public policies which

guarantee these rights and ensure access to such services.

 Planned Parenthood is a strong leader in the Reproductive Health and

Rights Movement and is 13 million supporters, activists, and donors

strong. In 1987, Planned Parenthood’s president founded the Planned

Parenthood Action Fund. This is a 501c organization that creates

engagement in public education campaigns, grassroots organizing, and

legislative and electoral activity. Planned Parenthood champions the

following issues: Abortion Access, Attacks on Planned Parenthood, Birth

Control, Health Care Equity, Judicial Nominees, Sexual Assault, Sex

Education, Attacks to Access at the State Level, and Voting Rights.

Problem Research: Racism is a Public Health Crisis (Kate)

communities, (Devakumar et al., 2020; Evans et al., 2020).

communities (Richmond-Bryant et al., 2020).

are unlikely to receive the same level of care as White patients.

government to health care to business (Beaubien, 2020). While systemic racism is “a

experience health inequity.

Target Audience Research (Alicia & Grace)

organization, racism in America, and racism as a public health crisis.

represented race/ethnicity was Hispanic/Latino (7.4%), followed by Black/African American

biracial/black and white.

contraceptives/birth control (97.1%), STI treatment/cancer screening (93.4%), comprehensive

screening and following closely in third was abortion care (46.5%).

(5.5%) preferred not to say.

rated a 4 on a scale of 5 in relation to the necessity of access to organizations like Planned

unsure (10.3%), or simply said no (4.4%).

no (5.9%) or prefer not to say (3.7%).

remaining answers (Pinterest, Reddit, and none) each had 0.7%.

objectives are directed towards Central Michigan University students.

 To raise awareness between January and February of Planned

Parenthood’s stance on racism as a public health crisis by 25%.

 To increase awareness of H.R. 40 by 20% between January and

 To promote greater support of racism as a public health crisis by 5%.

 To reinforce favorable opinions of Planned Parenthood

as an essential organization over the duration of the campaign.

elected officials to support racism as a public health crisis and pass H.R.

 To persuade 30% of target audience to share campaign posts on their

personal social media accounts during the month of February.

o To create a campaign website

o To establish a social media calendar

o To draft an email script for campaign participants

o To write a campaign phone script

o To craft sample social media posts for campaign participants

o To distribute press releases to three media outlets about the campaign

o To prepare a fact sheet about racism as a public health crisis

o To share campaign materials with five student influencers

o Planned Parenthood is dedicated to educating the public about how racism is a

crisis affecting the public health.

o Planned Parenthood is committed to aiding the passage of House Resolution 40.

 Fact sheets distributed to social justice student organizations

 Posters displayed in lecture halls and residence halls

 Feature story submitted to CM Life, Grand Central Magazine,

 Press release distributed to local media outlets

awareness about racism as a public health crisis. Seeing as Planned Parenthood is a health care

provider, the campaign will emphasize the racial disparities in the American health care system,

stem from one of the following categories:

 How racism effects the body