Planned Parenthood says it will not 'back down' under Trump presidency

During his presidential campaign, Donald Trump stood up against the legalisation of abortion and promised that if elected his government would block funding to health centres like Planned Parenthood until they changed their policies.

Following the election results and Trump's win, Planned Parenthood Federation of America's President Cecile Richards has stressed that the organisation would continue the work it has been doing and would continue to fight even under the new administration.

"Planned Parenthood has been here for 100 years, and one thing is clear: We will never back down and we will never stop fighting to ensure that patients have access to the care they need, people who come from communities that need our continued support in this new reality – immigrants, people of colour, the LGBTQ community, people of faith, and more," she said in a statement.

Abortion has always been an important factor in the elections and despite being pro-choice earlier, during his campaign, Trump said that "the abortion aspect of Planned Parenthood should absolutely not be funded".

"Planned Parenthood has done very good work for millions of women," he told reporters in Florida. "But we're not going to allow and we're not going to fund, as long as you have the abortion going on at Planned Parenthood. We understand that, and I've said it loud and clear."

Clinton on the other hand was in support of Planned Parenthood and had said that "defending women's health means defending access to abortion".

"Health care should not be political," Richards opined adding, "Every morning, Planned Parenthood health center staff across the country wake up and open their doors, as they have this morning, to care for anyone who needs them, regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, gender, income, or country of origin."