Media Advisory from the National Organization for Women:

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA – Immigrant families are being inhumanely locked away in horrific and immoral detention facilities in Southern California and around the nation and women and girls are suffering the most. Those fleeing to the U.S. are often seeking refuge from sexual violence, assault and poverty and they deserve a fair and humane immigration process. If they are to be held in these prisons, at a minimum, we have an obligation to give them access to vital human needs such as reproductive health care, feminine hygiene products and mental health care, among other provisions. They must be free from physical and sexual abuse, strip searches by guards, invasive personal and intimate questioning and tracking of their periods by U.S. government officials. 

The National Organization for Women (NOW), in collaboration with our coalition partners listed below, are launching the “Unlock the Future” campaign with our first rally in San Diego. We are also issuing a Bill of Rights that will be delivered to top level government officials and launching an #UnlockTheFuture social media campaign. 

Rally details include: 

Who: Joining NOW President Toni Van Pelt and Vice President Christian F. Nunes will be:

• Dolores Huerta, Labor, Civil Rights and Feminist Icon; Co-founder, National Farm Workers Association and Founder, Dolores Huerta Foundation 
• Tia Oso, International Activist and Strategist for BLD PWR Initiative  
• Justine Gonzalez, Former President of the City of Los Angeles Human Relations Commission and LGBTQ Advocate and Community Engagement Strategist 
• Local entertainer Rose Mac and other speakers to be announced.  

 What: “Unlock the Future” Rally to demand humane treatment for the women and girls held in immoral immigration prisons. 

Where: Larsen Field at the Cesar Chavez Recreation Center, 455 Sycamore Rd, San Ysidro, 92173  

 When: Oct. 6th, 2019; 12:00pm Pacific.  

 More information: Visit our website, read our Bill of Rights or visit our Facebook Event Page.   

Media Contact: For more information, contact press@now.org  

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Unlock the Future Co-Sponsors: 

National Partners 

Dolores Huerta Foundation 

Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES) 

Feminist Majority Political Action Committee 

UltraViolet 

MANA 

Catholics for Choice 

The Outrage 

AFDW 

Go With The Flow  

First Church UCC  

Legal Momentum  

S K Burt Law  

Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice 

Direct Support for Immigrants  

Sister Song  

African Coalition  

CASA  

Black women’s blueprint  

UNITE HERE! 

The Global Women’s Institute 

PERIOD. The Menstrual Movement 

San Diego Partners 

California NOW 

Hollywood NOW 

San Diego Area NOW  

Senator Pro Temp Toni Atkins  

Heart of LA Democratic Club 

Field Team 6 

Stonewall Democratic Club 

Women’s March California 

Women’s March San Diego 

The Strategic Insights Group

And additional sponsors to be announced  

For a full list of Unlock the Future Partners, please see our Bill of Rights.  

Contact

Kimberly Hayes, Press Secretary, press@now.org, 202-570-4745

Statement from NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

Washington, D.C. — It’s not enough for Donald Trump and his henchman at the Department of Health and Human Services to attack abortion rights and put women’s health at risk.  At this week’s United Nations General Assembly, HHS Secretary Alex Azar tried to erase the words “reproductive health and rights” from the dictionary. 

At the UN’s first high-level meeting on universal health coverage, Azar called on the United Nations to remove what he called “ambiguous terms” relating to sexual and reproductive health in policy documents. 

At the same meeting, Trump cozied up to dictators and strongmen who share his contempt for democracy and human rights. Azar announced the U.S. was speaking on behalf of autocracies like Brazil, Egypt, Libya and Sudan that criminalize abortion.  Trump can’t ban abortion in all 50 states with a tweet, but he thinks he can put language that objectively describes reproductive health care on a list of banned expressions. 

We’re not surprised—after all, Donald Trump boasted during his UN visit that he “took over” the United States on his election, and his thirst for absolute power grows more dangerous every day.  

Donald Trump left the United Nations in the shadow of impeachment, and Alex Azar should join him there.  

Contact

Kimberly Hayes, Press Secretary, press@now.org, 202-570-4745

Statement by NOW President Toni Van Pelt and NOW Board Member Arizona Senator Victoria Steele (Seneca and Mingo):

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Violence. Erasure. Subjugation. Today, we acknowledge the role that the wage gap plays in the many forms of centuries-long oppression of Native American Women. 

2019 has marked a year of highs for American Indian and Native Alaskan women, including the election of two Native congresswomen to the U.S. House of Representatives. Yet women are still murdered at ten times the national average in some tribal communities, often at the hands of non-tribal members. Just as shocking, four out of five Indigenous women and girls are victims of violence at some point in their lifetime. 

Native Women’s Equal Pay Day serves as a reminder of the breadth of oppression women in Indian Country face every day. The abuse extends beyond gender differences and is rooted more deeply in the injustices – in the forms of racism and genocide – that Indigenous peoples have been subjected to for hundreds of years. There is so much hurt and hate still inflicted upon Native women that our country neglects to reconcile. The wage gap is just one portion of the atrocities. 

On average, Native women are paid only 57 percent of the wages White men receive, compared to the 79 percent White women make. This is a stark reminder that we must advocate for all women, especially those from Indian Country, in our effort to close the wage gap. The patriarchy, White supremacy, and systemic racism must all be dismantled in feminist efforts to achieve equity. 

Our activism only improves if we focus on the intersectionality of women’s identities. Today, we pay special attention to American Indian and Native Alaskan women in our advocacy for their safety, visibility and equality. 

Contact

Kimberly Hayes, Press Secretary, press@now.org, 202-570-4745