‘You represent us’: What it’s like to lobby for abortion rights from a red state

Personal stories have taken center stage in reproductive rights advocacy. The 19th shadowed three women who took their stories to the Hill — and hoped their Republican lawmakers would listen. 

By Grace Panetta, The 19th News

Yolenna Regmi was on a mission.

The 19-year-old college student from Nebraska was at the Capitol to lobby her representatives—all of them Republicans—for reproductive health. She cares deeply about comprehensive sex education and wants more access to abortion, including in red states like hers.

“I'm here, and I'm very passionate about what we're doing,” she said.

Regmi spoke to three Republicans’ offices throughout the day. Some staffers really listened, she said, while she felt others condescended to her.

She wasn’t too nervous going in. Her advocacy journey began with serving on the Teen Council at her local Planned Parenthood and over the years, she said, she’s gotten much more comfortable talking about sex education. If teenagers can speak openly about those topics, she reasoned, so can adult policymakers.

“In the past, that would have been so scary, but it pushed me to come out of my shell,” she said.

Regmi was among 17 advocates and storytellers from a dozen states who, through a program run by Planned Parenthood, came to the U.S. Capitol for a day of lobbying and advocacy rooted in their own experiences.