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reproductive freedom for all
Experts Warn of 'Devastating Damage' From Trump Reinstating Global Gag Rule
"People worldwide will have fewer points of service," said Doctors Without Borders. "It means fewer safe places to talk about their health options, and fewer providers to go to for help during medical emergencies."
Jan 27, 2025
Reproductive rights and medical experts on Monday continued to warn that U.S. President Donald Trump's highly anticipated reinstatement of the Mexico City Policy, which bans nongovernmental organizations that perform or promote abortion from receiving federal funding, will cause "devastating damage" for people around the world.
The global gag rule (GGR), as it is called by critics, has been imposed by every Republican president for decades, including Trump during his first term. After returning to office a week ago, Trump on Friday signed an executive order "to end the use of federal taxpayer dollars to fund or promote elective abortion" and revived the controversial rule with a presidential memorandum.
"As the single largest funder of international aid, the U.S. plays a powerful role in shaping the global health landscape—and women's and girls' lives are being used as pawns in this political game," Dr. Carole Sekimpi wrote Monday for the British journal The BMJ. "My work overseeing reproductive health programs in Africa for MSI Reproductive Choices gives me an understanding of the profound consequences that this will have on communities that Trump will never set foot in."
"It's prudent to first understand that the U.S. government never funds abortions," Sekimpi stressed, noting the rule punishes groups that participate in anything abortion-related with separate funding. "Last time Trump was in power, MSI was among those that refused to accept the terms of this policy. The U.S. funding we lost would have allowed us to serve 8 million women, preventing 6 million unintended pregnancies, 1.8 million unsafe abortions, and 20,000 maternal deaths. And that was just one organization."
Ibis Reproductive Health president Kelly Blanchard and Evelyne Opondo, an Ibis board member and the International Center for Research on Women's Africa director, also emphasized in a Monday Medium post that the rule's impact "is felt keenly by organizations that provide comprehensive sexual and reproductive healthcare—including contraception and abortion care—around the world," such as MSI and International Planned Parenthood Federation, "who refuse to abide by the terms because they support the human rights of all people and will not withhold information or critical reproductive healthcare from individuals who need it."
"The GGR flies in the face of both human rights and evidence-based public health," the pair asserted. "The GGR does not prevent abortion from happening but rather increases barriers to abortion access, reduces access to contraception increasing risk of unintended pregnancy, and could actually increase unsafe abortion, a key driver of maternal deaths around the world."
Melanie Nezer, vice president for advocacy and external relations at the Women's Refugee Commission, similarly declared in a Monday statement denouncing the GGR, "Let us be clear: this policy will not protect lives—it will endanger them."
"The goal of the global gag rule is to curtail access to safe sexual and reproductive healthcare, including access to safe abortion," she said. "The result is more suffering from the consequences of conflict-related sexual violence, more unintended pregnancies, more unsafe abortions, and more maternal death that would otherwise be entirely preventable."
Reproductive rights groups worldwide were similarly critical of the decision on Friday and throughout the weekend, with Planned Parenthood Federation of America president and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson calling it "dangerous" and arguing that "elected officials should not be interfering in personal medical decisions, in this country or anywhere in the world."
Like the critics on Monday, Rachana Desai Martin, chief government and external relations officer at the Center for Reproductive Rights, pointed to the fallout from GGR during the Republican's first term and said that "the reinstatement and expansion of President Trump's global gag rule is a direct assault on the health and human rights of millions of people around the world."
Also recalling the first Trump administration, Guttmacher Institute acting co-CEO Destiny Lopez highlighted how her group's "research has documented its severe ripple effects, including stalling and even reversing progress in expanding access to modern contraception in countries like Ethiopia and Uganda."
"Now history will sadly and shamefully repeat itself, and people in many countries will find it harder to access safe abortion, contraception, and other critical health services," she said, vowing to track the impacts and work to repeal the harmful policy.
Reproductive Freedom for All president and CEO Mini Timmaraju also pledged to battle the GGR and other Republican attacks on choice, saying that "these policies inflict harm on those who need access to reproductive healthcare, including abortion, in our country, and around the world—and we will fight back."
Previewing the fight ahead, National Abortion Federation president and CEO Brittany Fonteno warned that the GGR "will not be the last" attack on reproductive healthcare, adding that "for nearly a decade now, Donald Trump has shown us just how dangerous he is for abortion access, and it is clear that over the next four years, the anti-abortion movement will take every opportunity to strip away our fundamental right to reproductive freedom—both here and abroad."
RealClearPolitics, the first to report the rule's revival, noted that "the president timed the release of his executive actions to coincide with the annual March for Life on Friday when some of his most ardent supporters rallied on the National Mall. Vice President JD Vance addressed the march in person, while Trump recorded a video message Thursday to be played at the Friday rally."
Although Trump said on the campaign trail that he thinks abortion policies should be decided at the state level, rights advocates have cited his extensive record of dishonesty and bragging about the role he played in overturningRoe v. Wade, and expressed fear that the Republican-controlled Congress will send a national abortion ban to his desk.
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Gwen Walz Shares Her Fertility Journey Ahead of US Election
"Thank you Gwen Walz for powerfully sharing your fertility journey and committing to protecting fertility treatments for all Americans."
Oct 14, 2024
Minnesota First Lady Gwen Walz—whose husband, Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, is U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris' running mate—shared her full fertility journey in an essay published by Women's Health on Monday, just weeks away from the November 5 election.
The Democrats are set to face Republican former President Donald Trump—who is voting to uphold Florida's six-week abortion ban and brags about having appointed three of the U.S. Supreme Court justices who reversedRoe v. Wade—and Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), whose selection was seen as further proof that their administration would "stop at nothing to ban all abortion" at the federal level.
Since Harris took the torch from President Joe Biden this past summer, she has had widespread support from reproductive freedom advocates. They celebrated her choosing the Minnesota governor, who signed bills strengthening abortion protections and shielding people who seek or provide abortions or gender-affirming care from legal action by conservative states.
"Donald Trump is the one who took down Roe. I don't trust him. And frankly, I'm not willing to put my daughter's reproductive health in his hands."
Throughout the campaign, Tim and Gwen Walz have shared their difficult journey to conceiving their two children: 23-year-old Hope, and Gus, who turned 18 on Sunday. As the Minnesota first lady detailed in Women's Health, she had "felt pangs of frustration and anger since Roe was overturned" but was ultimately pushed to speak out by an Alabama Supreme Court ruling.
In February, Alabama's high court recognized frozen embryos as children who must be protected by the Wrongful Death of a Minor Act, halting in vitro fertilization (IVF) in the state and elevating fears of what Republican control of Congress and the White House would mean for the future of fertility treatments and reproductive freedom more broadly.
"I don't think anyone should be telling us when, if, or how to start families. But when the Alabama Supreme Court ruling came down, that was a moment when it was just like, okay, now we're here," Gwen Walz wrote. "We went through this difficult time for a purpose—to have our children—but there's another purpose now. We have an opportunity, in leadership roles as governor and first lady, and now on the campaign trail for Kamala Harris, to tell our story. So, we told it all across the country."
She recalled taking Clomid, "a medication that increases the hormones that stimulate egg production in your ovaries and can help you get pregnant," and coordinating her schedule with their "wonderful neighbor Mary," a nurse and mother of three who helped administer shots to boost her chances of pregnancy and successful fertilization.
"When we finally conceived Hope using intrauterine insemination (IUI), it was right before Easter. We'd been struggling with infertility for years by that point," Walz wrote. "You never imagine that your daughter is going to have fewer rights than you do. And in 21 states that have abortion bans or gestational limits right now, that is the case."
"Donald Trump is the one who took down Roe. I don't trust him. And frankly, I'm not willing to put my daughter's reproductive health in his hands. If he's elected, I think there will be a nationwide abortion ban," she continued. "But I plan on making my voice heard at the ballot box. There's a clear choice between Kamala Harris and my husband, Tim—who trust women—and Trump and JD Vance, who do not. Everyone has to understand that you have the power to make this choice, and the power to respect reproductive freedom for every single woman in every single family—so that if, when, or how you want to have a family is up to you."
Welcoming the essay on social media, Reproductive Freedom for All said, "Thank you Gwen Walz for powerfully sharing your fertility journey and committing to protecting fertility treatments for all Americans."
Reproductive Freedom for All has endorsed the Harris-Walz ticket and has been working to reach voters in key states. The group's president and CEO, Mini Timmaraju, said earlier this month that "one of the most powerful ways we can mobilize voters is by speaking to the people we know in our own communities."
"Voters have never been so fired up about abortion," she added. "Our reproductive freedom is at stake and we can't afford to do anything less than leave it all on the field."
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Abortion Rights Advocates Celebrate Walz Choice and Look Beyond Roe Restoration
"The stakes of this election could not be higher, the contrast between the two tickets could not be clearer, and the state of sexual and reproductive healthcare in this country could not be more dire," an expert said.
Aug 06, 2024
Two rights groups on Tuesday celebrated Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris' choice of running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, calling it the most pro-reproductive freedom ticket in history, while two other groups called on Democratic leaders to act boldly to establish new federal abortion protections.
Both Planned Parenthood Action Fund (PPAF) and Reproductive Freedom for All (RFA) applauded Walz's pro-choice record and called him a "champion" of reproductive rights.
The ACLU and Physicians for Reproductive Health (PRH) called for bolder action to secure abortion rights, with the ACLU pushing for a number of federal reforms, and PRH urging more fundamental protections for abortion and gender-affirming care that go beyond the standards once set by Roe v. Wade.
"Unfortunately, Roe v. Wade was never enough to ensure our communities obtained the care they needed," Dr. Jamila Perritt, PRH's president, said in a statement. "It was, in fact, barely a starting point."
BREAKING: This morning, we sent a letter to the White House asking for immediate action to center the needs of people who have abortions and gender affirming care. It was signed by 430 of our closest friends. Read the letter here: https://t.co/luoyTPaehv
— Physicians for Reproductive Health (@prhdocs) August 6, 2024
Walz, who served in U.S. Congress for 12 years before becoming governor of Minnesota at the start of 2019, has a sterling pro-choice record on abortion. He earned a consistent 100% on RFA's congressional report card during his time as a congressman, and signed a pair of key state bills into law as governor.
The first, signed in January 2023, strengthened and codified abortion protections, even as neighboring states restricted abortion rights, turning Minnesota into "the Midwest's abortion access center." The second, passed three months later, sought to shield people who seek or provide abortions or gender-affirming care from legal action by conservative states.
Both bills narrowly passed the Minnesota state Legislature, where Democrats have had a slight majority since the 2022 election and used it to push through a wide array of progressive laws. These included expanded funding for birth control access, family planning services, and Medicaid reimbursements.
Walz was by Harris' side when she became the first vice president to visit an abortion provider in March, at a Planned Parenthood in St. Paul. Reproductive rights advocates generally regard Harris as stronger on the issue than President Joe Biden, who is Catholic and has struggled to say the word "abortion" publicly, though his administration has pushed pro-choice policy.
"The Biden-Harris administration did more for reproductive freedom than any other, and a Harris-Walz administration is poised to build on that legacy," RFA president Mini Timmaraju said in a statement.
Biden and Harris have emphasized the need to restore Roe, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling from 1973 that established a federal right to abortion up to roughly 24 weeks for the next five decades, before it was reversed by the 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization ruling.
However, PRH on Tuesday sent Biden and Harris an open letter, signed by 430 healthcare providers, that called for them to be bolder, citing the limitations of the Roe framework:
While Roe provided a constitutional right to abortion, it never ensured access to that right for all those who needed it. The promise of Roe, the legal right to abortion care, was never fulfilled. This is especially true for communities facing the most barriers to care. When abortion care is treated as anything other than basic, essential healthcare and is so willingly stigmatized by supporters and nonsupporters alike, ensuring true access to our communities is not possible. We urge the administration and lawmakers across the country to broaden their efforts, moving beyond Roe's framework, and talk about the future our patients deserve boldly and bravely. We ask you to champion policy solutions that are not premised on returning us to the narrow protections Roe created.
The ACLU warned of the erosion of reproductive rights following Dobbs, which left states to determine abortion policy; 14 Republican-controlled states have since banned abortion altogether, while eight others have passed bans on abortions at 18 weeks of gestation or less. In a statement, the nonprofit human rights group praised Harris for her pledge to restore reproductive freedom and vowed to hold her accountable.
The ACLU's "roadmap" for Harris includes overturning the Hyde amendment, which restricts Medicaid coverage for abortion and "has forced 1 in 4 low-income women seeking an abortions to carry an unwanted pregnancy to term," the ACLU said. The group also calls for increased federal funding for Title X, which helps low-income people secure healthcare services, a federal push to ensure that all hospitals that receive Medicare funding provide emergency stabilizing treatment, including abortion.
Amnesty International on Monday issued a detailed report on the negative impact of the abortion bans and restrictions in Republican-led states, saying they "cause extensive harm" and "violate human rights."
Reproductive rights advocates warn that much worse is to come if Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump wins back the White House in November. Project 2025, a right-wing blueprint written by people affiliated with Trump, proposes "mobilizing an array of government agencies to curb access to abortion," The Guardianreported Monday.
PPAF implicitly nodded to the threat Republicans pose in making the case for the Democratic ticket in its statement on Tuesday.
"The stakes of this election could not be higher, the contrast between the two tickets could not be clearer, and the state of sexual and reproductive healthcare in this country could not be more dire," said Alexis McGill Johnson, PPAF's president. "Kamala Harris and Tim Walz are the only people we can trust to ensure that everyone has the freedom to make decisions about their own bodies."
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