“These people are old and white and should not have a say in a woman’s body or their choices.”

Anyia Griggs, a 24-year-old University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee 2020 graduate. She received her bachelor’s degree in Political Science with an African Diaspora Studies minor. She has realized that anyone can achieve anything they put their mind to and has worked on many campaigns and projects since she graduated. Today she is working for a campus organization encouraging students to vote in the Supreme Court election on April 4.

Liliana Fannin: What big issue do you care about facing young people today?

Anyia Griggs: Reproductive rights for sure, especially because I think people look at it as a women’s issue and I look at it from a legal perspective as it being all of our issues because it can lead to a lack of medical care for everybody.

Q: As a woman, do you think you are personally effected by this?

A: Yes absolutely, currently in my state I cannot get an abortion if I want one. I would have to go out of state if I needed to, which sucks.

Q: How does that make you feel?

A: It makes me feel like there is someone in control of my body that should not be. Like I don’t have a say in something that directly effects and impacts my life, and I don’t think they should have a say. These people are old and white and should not have a say in a woman’s body or their choices.

Q: Do you think there is anything you can do personally to make a change, or are you left feeling hopeless?

A: I do actually. I am currently on campus doing campus organizing for the state Supreme Court election and I am mobilizing students to get out to the polls and vote for the liberal candidate. By doing that I feel like I am playing a huge role in getting someone into that seat that will support those choices and support women’s right to choose.  

Q: Do you feel empowered by standing up for what you believe in?

A: Yeah, I feel really empowered because I think a lot of people don’t think they can do anything, or they are helpless but really you can do absolutely anything you put your mind to. When I realized this, I went out and started working with community organizing and I have been working on campaign ever since I graduated.

Q: When it comes to the Supreme Court election coming up, do you personally feel very educated about it? Is lack of awareness a problem in general?

A: Personally, I do feel very educated about it because that is my current job. But I do know from my experience being on this campus the past month that not a lot of people know about it, or if they do know about it that they don’t know the implications of how important it is. They think it’s just another random spring election, not something that is going to dictate our lives for the next 10 years. I think educating students is super important and that’s why I am doing this.

Q: If there was one thing you could tell all students about the upcoming election what would you say?

A: Just get out to the polls and vote. If you are an out-of-state student and you go to UW-Milwaukee, you can vote in Wisconsin. A lot of out-of-state students don’t know that, and that can help a lot with a high youth turnout.