Pro-life protesters at over 200 Planned Parenthood facilities in 44 states will call for the defunding of the abortion giant Saturday.

The protests are coordinated by #ProtestPP. The same coalition spearheaded protests in 2015 after undercover videos by the Center for Medical Progress revealed that Planned Parenthood sold aborted babies’ body parts.

Protesters will also gather at the International Planned Parenthood Federation London headquarters, which no longer receives U.S. funding because of the reinstatement of the Mexico City Policy by President Donald Trump in January.

People Really Pay Attention

The goal of Saturday’s protests is to engage the media and the public about the defunding effort, said Eric Scheidler, national organizer of #ProtestPP and executive director for Pro-Life Action League, one of #ProtestPP’s primary sponsors. “People really pay attention to a national event that’s going on all over the country,” he told The Stream.

Other sponsors include Citizens for a Pro-Life Society, Created Equal, 40 Days for Life and the Susan B. Anthony List. In total, over 70 pro-life organizations cosponsor #ProtestPP.

The pro-life movement has long called for the defunding of the nation’s largest abortion provider. Republicans in Congress are now closer to making that happen than ever before.

While the Hyde Amendment prevents the federal government from directly funding abortions, Planned Parenthood still receives around $500 million in federal funds annually toward its other services.

The extent of those other services is overstated, Scheidler said. “They provide two percent of the nation’s annual manual breast exams, zero percent of the nation’s annual mammograms. … They provide one percent of the nation’s pap tests every year, while providing 34 percent of the nation’s abortions. Tell me again Planned Parenthood provides other healthcare.”

“Four out of five women will never step foot inside of a Planned Parenthood,” he added.

In addition to defunding Planned Parenthood, #ProtestPP calls for those funds to be redirected to other facilities that offer comprehensive healthcare for women and children.

“These comprehensive clinics outnumber Planned Parenthood facilities 20 to one nationwide and provide far more services,” Susan B. Anthony List president Marjorie Dannenfelser said in a press release.

Such facilities also offer healthcare for children, Scheidler said. “Planned Parenthood talks about how poor women and families depend on them. Where’s their pediatric care?”

Planned Parenthood’s Undeserved Image

After Saturday’s protests, Scheidler said participants should contact their representatives in Congress, asking them to defund Planned Parenthood and instead fund federally qualified health centers.

#ProtestPP is also asking people to share facts about Planned Parenthood with their friends and family. Planned Parenthood enjoys “an undeserved, positive public image that we need to debunk,” he said.

Finally, the coalition asks people to pray that Planned Parenthood will be defunded.

Read more about Saturday’s protests, including a list of locations. Follow the protests on Twitter by searching the hashtag #DefundPP.