Cecile Richards reflects on her advocacy for women's rights and reproductive healthcare access during the years of the Obama presidency, throughout which she served as president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund. Richards recounts her development as an organizer and activist, and shares memories of her first encounters with Barack Obama and he r support for Obama on the 2008 presidential campaign. She focuses on the politics of reproductive healthcare during the Obama years, and provides details about Planned Parenthood's advocacy for the inclusion of reproductive healthcare provisions in the Affordable Care Act (ACA), including meetings with Democratic Party leadership and Obama administration officials, internal deliberations surrounding which versions of healthcare reform Planned Parenthood would support or oppose, and the economic impact of the ACA for women. Richards also describes the increased partisan polarization around reproductive healthcare during the years of the Obama presidency, and she discusses the targeting of Planned Parenthood by congressional Republicans and her efforts to communicate publicly about the range of healthcare services Planned Parenthood provides and its significance as a healthcare provider in communities across the country. Also discussed are Obama's speech to the Planned Parenthood conference in 2013, when he became the first sitting president to address the organization; Planned Parenthood's organizing against legislative initiatives before the Texas state legislature; the role of Planned Parenthood in the 2012 presidential election; the importance of positive statements in support of abortion access; and the involvement of young people in the contemporary movement for reproductive rights
Women's rights--United States; Presidents--United States; Human reproduction--Law and legislation--United States; Reproductive rights--United States; Abortion--Law and legislation--United States; Health services accessibility--United States; Richards, Cecile; Obama, Barack; Planned Parenthood Federation of America; United States; Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
Format
oral histories
Genre
Interviews
Date
2021
Physical Description
41 pages
Note (Biographical)
Cecile Richards is a cofounder of Supermajority, an organization dedicated to advancing gender equity. She was president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the Planned Parenthood Action Fund from 2006 to 2018, and before that she served a s deputy chief of staff to Nancy Pelosi. In 2004, Richards founded and served as president of America Votes, a coalition of national grassroots organizations working to maximize registration, education, and voter participation. Additionally, Richards is the author of "Make Trouble: Standing Up, Speaking Out, and Finding the Courage to Lead"
Note
Interviewed by Terrell D. Frazier on November 19, 2021. This interview is part of the Columbia University: Obama Presidency Oral History
Note (Provenance)
Cecile Richards, Gift, transferred from Columbia Center for Oral History Research 2023