[[link removed]] | MARCH 2024
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From the desk of Ellie Smeal...
Dear John,
This month’s newsletter reflects the paradox our community faces in the battle for equality, and personal freedom, and democracy.
On the one hand... we face an unprecedented onslaught by extreme forces of reaction. Whether it’s the latest attempt to limit or deny access to the abortion pill as seen by the recent case before the Supreme Court, or the crushing gender apartheid across the globe in Afghanistan; there’s a ruthless war on women.
On the other hand... there’s great news about the positive and proactive steps achieved by our community when we rally and work together. You’ll see this indomitable spirit of determination, persistence, and cooperation reflected in the stories on our win for reproductive justice through the Nevada ERA.
And when it comes to positive and proactive, I’m delighted to report that our National Young Feminist Leadership Conference was a huge success. You’ll find more about it in this month’s newsletter. I also want to add that the exuberance, dedication and sheer energy shown by the hundreds of students who attended from all around the nation, is proof that young voters will play a decisive role in the critical 2024 elections.
As we mentioned last month, we are racing to assemble one of the largest team of college campus organizers ever mobilized. Right now we’re recruiting in battleground states across the country to get out the student vote in record numbers. We will be reporting on this in the next newsletter.
Meanwhile, I’m also pleased to report that work on placing the already-ratified ERA in the Constitution as the 28th Amendment is making great progress. Working with Sign4ERA, our national petition and organizing efforts have succeeded in getting 210 members of the House to sign a discharge petition that will require the House of Representatives to vote on the Joint Resolution requiring that the ERA be enshrined in the Constitution. 218 votes are needed. So, as you can see we’re very, very close.
Thank you for being such an important part of our efforts and for your continuing support and commitment to future successes. I look forward to updating you again soon.
For equality,
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Ellie Smeal, President
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Student activists share their activism pledges on stage with FMF Executive Director, Kathy Spillar.
The 2024 National Young Feminist Leadership Conference mobilizes hundreds of student activists
EMMA HALL | MARCH 28
The weekend of March 23rd, hundreds of young feminists from all over the country gathered for the Feminist Majority Foundation’s 2024 National Young Feminist Leadership Conference. This annual event, which had been paused due to COVID-19, was eagerly anticipated by young activists. More than 250 young feminists and 70 speakers made their way to Washington D.C. for a series of panels, skills workshops, and discussions focused on feminism and social justice issues.
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Student activists lead a panel on how to organize on campus.
The conference kicked off with a General Assembly featuring incredible feminist leaders including former Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, NOW President Christian Nunes, ERA Coalition President Zakiya Thomas, VA House Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn, Pandia Health founder Dr. Sophia Yen, Afghan women’s rights activist Dr. Sima Samar, legal scholar Michele Goodwin, and Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights founder Dr. Lauren Beene.
NYFLC drew participants from both high school and college, with everyone contributing unique perspectives to the strategies for mobilizing the feminist movement. NYFLC panels covered everything from the importance of the ERA to the harsh reality of gender apartheid in Afghanistan and attendees gained tangible skills surrounding voter mobilization, digital organizing, and defending abortion clinics from extremists.
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Behind the scenes with FMF interns setting up the Feminist Store.
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FMF attends rally at Supreme Court on March 26th in support of mifepristone.
Supreme Court Hears Arguments in Mifepristone Case
GWENDOLYN COMAI | MARCH 27
The Supreme Court began oral arguments on March 26th for the case FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine [[link removed]] , diving into the contentious issue of access to the abortion pill, mifepristone, which is used in more than 60% [[link removed]] of all abortions across the nation. The case focuses on two key changes by the FDA in 2021 that expanded mifepristone access: the availability of telemedicine prescriptions and mail delivery of the medication, both of which are now under threat. This is the first abortion centered case that the Supreme Court has heard since the Dobbs decision in 2022.
The challengers of the abortion pill argued for restrictions on the basis of the drug’s safety, but the judges, both liberal and conservative, seemed skeptical [[link removed]] . Erin Hawley, representing the conservative anti-abortion group, Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, argued that the FDA overstepped by broadening access to mifepristone in 2016 and 2021. However, much of the Supreme Court’s questioning [[link removed]] centered around anti-abortion doctors’ claims of moral objections. They claimed that they were suffering because of the FDA’s actions and that having to distribute these pills was against their moral conscience
Both Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson and Justice Neil M. Gorsuch pointed out flaws [[link removed]] in this argument. They noted that while doctors may have moral objections, restricting access to mifepristone would harm patients in need. “They’re saying, ‘Because we object to having to be forced to participate in this procedure, we’re seeking an order preventing anyone from having access to these drugs at all,” Jackson said. [[link removed]] “And I guess I’m just trying to understand how they could possibly be entitled to that.”
Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar, speaking for the FDA, also highlighted the absurdity [[link removed]] of a nationwide ban based on a few doctors’ objections, emphasizing the extreme harm it would cause to women seeking abortions. She argued that a nationwide ban to restrict a widely used drug because of a few doctors’ objections was illogical: “They don’t prescribe mifepristone,” she said. “They don’t take mifepristone.”
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FMF at an ERA rally in DC in December.
State Equal Rights Amendment provides huge win for abortion access in Nevada
HANNAH IRVINE | MARCH 22
The Eighth Judicial District Court of Clark County has overturned the Medicaid abortion coverage ban [[link removed]] in Nevada using the state’s Equal Rights Amendment. Following the overturning of Roe v Wade in 2022, the people of Nevada overwhelmingly voted for adding the Equal Rights Amendment to the state’s constitution. The lawsuit challenging the coverage ban was filed by the Silver State Hope Fund and represented by the ACLU [[link removed]] , who cited the state’s ERA as its leading legal argument.
The Silver Spring Hope Fund [[link removed]] is a Nevada based nonprofit that provides financial aid to help low-income individuals pay for abortion care. Medicaid is meant to help low income people achieve equal access to quality healthcare. However, the abortion coverage ban denied anyone who relied on Medicaid from receiving abortion funding, except [[link removed]] in cases of rape or incest or life-threatening health complications. Instead, they had to turn to organizations like the Silver Spring Hope Fund to fund their treatment.
The state ERA played a massive role in this win for reproductive health. The judge on the case overturned the ban on the basis of it being a sex driven inequality. There has never been a clearer reason why we must enshrine the ERA in the United States Constitution. It is the single most important tool at our disposal to ensure that women’s rights are protected, enforced, and taken seriously.
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A new academic year begins in Afghanistan without girls as the Taliban continues to deny their education
ANSELMA ELLINGWOOD | MARCH 21
Spring is a season that signifies fresh opportunities, growth and hope. This month is also marked with the celebration of International Women’s Day on March 8th. However, for Afghan women and girls, the reality [[link removed]] is very different as they continue to be oppressed by an extreme gender apartheid.
In Afghanistan, the school year begins in the Spring, on March 23rd. For the third year in a row, girls have been banned from attending secondary school beyond the 6th grade. According to the U.N. children’s agency, UNICEF, more than 1 million girls [[link removed]] are impacted by the Taliban decrees restricting education and more rights of women and girls. Afghanistan is the only country in the world with this policy.
The ban on education was seen as a temporary measure, as the Taliban de facto authorities promised that certain conditions would be needed for girls to return to school, but no progress has been made in over the past 2 years. Since their return to power, the Taliban has issued over 100 harsh edicts [[link removed]] directed towards women and girls and shifted towards madrassas, or religious schools, rather than literacy and numeracy skills. Religion and culture hold value but cannot be weaponized to deprive people of their basic human rights.
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Caitlin Clark Smashes NCAA Records, Embodies Title IX Feminist Aspirations
EMMA HALL | MARCH 11
On Thursday, Caitlin Clark, an Iowa University senior, made waves when she became the all time NCAA lead scorer [[link removed]] . Her win not only surpassed the current women’s basketball score record, but the total overall record for both men and women’s collegiate basketball. Iowa University’s game against Ohio State became the most watched [[link removed]] women’s basketball game in over two decades. Clark is an inspiration for many women athletes as well as an example of the progress made for women athletics over the past decades due to state Equal Rights Amendments and Title IX.
Clark’s success could not have happened without the landmark passing of Title IX [[link removed]] in 1972, which banned sex-based discrimination in all federally funded education programs, for both students and employees. Title IX revolutionized the opportunities available for women and girls to participate in athletics around the country, but also prohibited sex discrimination in higher education, career guidance, student financial aid, health and insurance benefits, employment in educational institutions, and sexual harassment.
Eleanor Smeal, President of FMF, not only championed the passage of Title IX but also worked with Pennsylvania NOW to extend the protections of state ERAs to safeguard the rights of women and girls in sports. In a landmark 1975 case [[link removed]] , Commonwealth By Packel v. Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA), Pennsylvania NOW successfully argued that Pennsylvania’s state ERA ensured female student athletes the same opportunities as their male counterparts in interscholastic sports. The court ruled against the PIAA by-laws [[link removed]] , which prohibited girls from competing or practicing against boys, declaring it a violation of both the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment and the state ERA. This case serves as a compelling illustration of how state ERAs can serve as a legal foundation for advancing equality.
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