Statement by NOW President Toni Van Pelt and Rhode Island NOW President Hilary Levey Friedman:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Rhode Island legislature’s passage of a bill to codify Roe v. Wade, and Gov. Gina Raimondo’s swift signing of the measure, puts Rhode Island in the vanguard of states that are confronting the real threat to reproductive rights and the health and safety of women and girls. 

We commend lawmakers for recognizing that abortion care is health care, and that women’s fundamental right to access reproductive health care must never be taken away.  With a Supreme Court that could at any time reverse or subvert Roe to make abortion inaccessible and unaffordable, Rhode Island women need to know that their constitutional rights will be protected.   

Gov. Raimondo and the legislators who passed this law know that if women don’t have access to a complete range of affordable health care services, then maternal and infant death rates will rise. We must never turn back the clock on women’s health.  This action from Rhode Island protects women, upholds health care rights and saves lives, and NOW recommends that other states take notice.

Contact

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

Statement from NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the National Organization for Women celebrates Juneteenth, commemorating the day 154 years ago when Texan slaves learned that the Civil War was won and they were free. On June 19, 1865, over two years after the Emancipation Proclamation, Major General Gordon Granger and his regiment arrived in Galveston, Texas and issued General Order Number 3, finally making emancipation a reality in the region. 

Juneteenth is an annual tradition that grew nationally out of the festivities and joy that Granger’s announcement brought. It is a day of celebration, liberation and defiance, and for remembering the strength and achievements of African Americans, while also recognizing the horrors of slavery. 

Yet this important date still receives little attention — and often outright hostility — from those outside the Black community. School textbooks identify the Emancipation Proclamation as ending slavery, ignoring that it persisted for years in some regions. The relative obscurity of Juneteenth in our national dialogue serves as a reminder that white supremacy is still entrenched in how Americans understand our history — and its impact on the present. 

This Juneteenth, we recognize the importance of dismantling the legacy of slavery in our society in order to truly realize the importance of equality and liberation for African Americans. NOW’s intersectional approach to feminist advocacy asserts that women of color will not be free without a women’s movement that is both anti-sexist and anti-racist. This understanding informs all our work to protect reproductive rights, advocate for economic and racial justice, end violence against women, assert LGBTQIA+ equality and eradicate gender discrimination. 

Contact

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

Statement from NOW President Toni Van Pelt:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Altruistic, non-commercial surrogacy is often utilized to help LGBTQIA+ couples and women struggling with fertility to build their families. While this practice has the support of NOW, we caution against legalization of commercialized surrogacy, which is currently being considered in New York State Assembly.

Commercial surrogacy does not depend on the willing choice of friends or family to help loved ones, instead it relies on the commodification of women’s bodies. History has shown us that the buying, selling and renting of their bodies does great harm to women.

Altruistic surrogacy agreements rely fully on consent. Women choose to become surrogates solely on the condition that they want to help someone build their family and they are not forced to continue with surrogacy plans in order to make a living. But commercial surrogacy changes the reality of consent. Once for-profit agencies and large sums of money are involved, women may be drawn into surrogacy due to financial desperation, a choice made when there are no other choices.

Commercialized surrogacy industries in other countries have a reputation for coercing poor and vulnerable women into contracts. Even when protections exist, they are incredibly difficult to enforce. A steady supply of women’s bodies is needed in order to meet the demands of rich couples who can afford to pay extravagant fees to agencies.

Surrogacy is a complicated issue. Altruistic surrogacy should be legal and accessible in every state, but commercial surrogacy will do great harm to women, especially those in vulnerable populations.

Contact

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