Statement from Cecile Richards on the Anniversary of Hillary Clinton’s Historic Beijing Speech
For Immediate Release: Dec. 10, 2015
Statement from Cecile Richards, President of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, on the Anniversary of Hillary Clinton’s Historic Speech on Women’s Rights in Beijing
“Twenty years ago, at the 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, then-First Lady Hillary Clinton helped solidify the idea that human rights are women’s rights, and women’s rights are human rights. She continued her unwavering commitment to gender equity as senator and secretary of state, and continues to elevate women's rights as candidate for president. Governments also made a promise to women at the 1995 conference when they signed a progressive blueprint for advancing gender equity. Since then, we’ve seen a number of global milestones for women’s health, including notably this year the creation of new global goals to replace the UN's Millennium Development Goals when they expire. These goals contain strong language about sexual and reproductive health care that could have great implications for health access here in the U.S. and around the globe. However, we still have a long way to go. Unacceptable challenges remain, including a gender gap in equitable pay, high rates of violence against women, unequal representation of women in political office, and continued attacks on reproductive rights. We all, including our own government, need to look toward the next twenty years and to double down on our commitment to fight for the world we want.”