Planned Parenthood employees say they were fired for opposing policy changes

Former employees accuse Planned Parenthood Southeast of retaliating against them over concerns leadership was unaligned with the organization's mission and values.ATLANTA (CN) — Former employees of Planned Parenthood Southeast claim they were wrongfully fired for opposing a radical abandonment of the organization’s priorities and culture during 2025.“I’ve wanted to work for Planned Parenthood since I was 17 years old,” former PPSE Georgia State Director Kaylah Oates-Marable said in a statement Wednesday.“Now that dream is a nightmare not just for me but for everyone who counted on PPSE when there was nowhere else to turn,” she added.In a federal lawsuit filed Monday, Oates-Marable said she was fired just weeks after she raised concerns to Human Resources over other employees informing her of their increasing discomfort with former Executive Director Karen Rene.Hannah Davis and Kim Luong, two other former employees in the lawsuit, said Rene’s commentary on their child-bearing decisions felt intrusive, especially at an organization that champions reproductive autonomy.Planned Parenthood Southeast services Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia — states that, in the wake of the Supreme Court’s 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade, have enacted some of the nation’s most restrictive bans on abortion.It’s an affiliate of the nonprofit, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, which provides sexual healthcare and education in the United States and globally. However, the former employees argue the organization installed a new executive leadership team unaligned with the company’s mission and values.They claim former Planned Parenthood Southeast CEO Mairo Akposé told senior staffers after the 2024 presidential election that one of her goals was to rebrand the organization’s mission as less centered on abortion rights.Oates-Marable and former Vice President of Communications and Marketing Jaylen Black said they were retaliated against for objecting and cautioning Akposé about downgrading a key priority when Georgia lawmakers at the time were debating the criminalization of abortion from the onset of pregnancy.The former employees said they were also instructed in June 2025 to withdraw from participation in sexual public health campaigns aimed at the LGBTQ+ community, counter to Planned Parenthood’s national strategic priorities.“The simple fact is that we were fired from Planned Parenthood because we supported Planned Parenthood,” Black said Wednesday.“It would be ironic if it wasn’t so heartbreaking and illegal," she added.Black, who previously worked for several influential state and national figures in Georgia, including U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock, was told her position was being eliminated after she challenged the policy direction of the organization.She said this was also after she reported Akposé for openly referring to a transgender employee by their birth name during a staff call, a practice sometimes referred to as “deadnaming.”A few month later, Black says her role as vice president of external affairs was filled with a substantially less qualified candidate. Black claims she was ultimately dismissed while she was on disability leave, recuperating from life-threatening injuries.“These six brave women tried to save Planned Parenthood Southeast," said attorney Artur Davis, representing the former employees from HKM Employment Attorneys.“The many champions and funders of the Planned Parenthood Community deserve to know that something went badly wrong in their chapter down south. Restoring PPSE is not possible without providing justice and remedying the damages to these women," he added.In December 2025, Akposé resigned, roughly two months after an internal investigation into claims of mismanagement that reproductive health advocates said threatened to undermine the organization’s mission and alienate donors and partner organizations.Mitchell Robinson, a Planned Parenthood Southeast board member and chair of a special committee dedicated to overseeing the investigation, later said a law firm hired to review the claims “found no merit to the allegations.” However, the board also announced that the national Planned Parenthood Action Fund would be taking a more active role in leading advocacy and political work in Georgia and hire a state director.In a statement, Planned Parenthood Southeast said it is committed to both reproductive healthcare and a healthy workplace.“Planned Parenthood Southeast is committed to delivering affordable, compassionate reproductive care and sex education across Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi — including abortion care where allowable under state law. We strive to create a professional work environment where every member of our team feels valued and respected,” the organization said.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads