This blog is the fourth in our series on priorities for the Biden administration. Read our plans for advancing self-managed abortion, combatting reproductive coercion, and promoting gender justice.  President Biden’s order to rejoin the Paris Climate Accord on the first day of his presidency was a necessary step in recommitting the United States to multilateral cooperation on climate.  Along with halting the Keystone XL pipeline and taking steps to reverse the devastating and widespread consequences of the Trump administration’s anti-envir ..read more

This blog is the third in our series on priorities for the incoming Biden administration. Read our plan for combatting reproductive coercion, here, and our top-level priorities for the administration, here.    With the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden straddling the 48th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the incoming Biden administration has the opportunity to not only celebrate and protect the historic anniversary by codifying Roe, but also to act beyond it by offering specifi ..read more

“We are crying out here for [Biden] to repeal both the Helms policy and the Global Gag Rule,” said Monica Oguttu, founder and executive director of Kisumu Medical and Education Trust (KMET) in Kenya, in reference to the two US policies that place abortion-related restrictions on US foreign assistance and global health spending. When sharing these hopes, Monica was speaking as a panelist in the International Women’s Health Coalition’s Seize the Moment speaker series for IWHC Leadership Council members ..read more

This blog is the second in our series on priorities for the incoming Biden administration. Read our first installation, here. The incoming Biden administration provides an opportunity to not only reverse the harmful and unjust policies of the Trump administration, but also to advance policies that respect human rights, increase bodily autonomy, and set the US on a path toward gender justice. One of the key challenges facing President-elect Biden is the forced sterilization of women in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody and the continued legacy of reproductive coercion. This f ..read more

There’s no question that President Trump’s administration will be remembered as one of the most devastating efforts to undermine access to health and subvert human rights in history. Now, with the election of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, sexual and reproductive health advocates see light at the end of the tunnel and a path forward. IWHC is excited to work with the incoming Biden administration to not only repair the damage caused by the Trump administration, but also to advance US policies that truly supp ..read more

Seventy-five years after its founding, and faced with a new round of unprecedented challenges, the United Nations remains a global force for advancing human rights, defending the world’s most marginalized, and forging collective action to address our most difficult problems.   The challenges of 2020, including COVID-19, rising nationalism and authoritarianism, and increased conservative pushback to human rights has made the UN’s efforts to advance gender justice more important than ever.   Prioritizing Ge ..read more

The US State Department’s Commission on Unalienable Rights—an advisory body to provide guidance on human rights in US foreign policy—is a thinly veiled attempt to redefine human rights, prioritize religious freedom at the expense of other fundamental rights, and rollback decades of progress for women, LGBTQI people, and members of marginalized communities. The Trump administration has a long track record of undermining basic human rights, both at home and abroad. Under the direction of President Trump, Secretary of ..read more

In the last few days, a number of former and current staff have come forward to share how they experienced derogatory comments, oppression, or disrespect in our workplace. The board takes discrimination, racism, and bullying seriously, and apologizes to anyone impacted by such behavior. One of our core values as an organization is advancing diversity, equity and inclusion – both in our workplace and in our work with under-served communities around the globe. We recognize that we have not always lived up to these values. The board is fully committed to learning and growing as an organization. I ..read more

Content warning: This statement discusses police brutality, racism, and violence. To Our Community, The International Women’s Health Coalition is heartbroken about the senseless acts of racist violence that led to the murders of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, and Breonna Taylor—just a fraction of the persistent injustice this country has inflicted upon Black people for more than 400 years. Black people have, for far too long, watched their families and friends lose their lives while doing things that many privileged people take for granted. We can only begin to imagine the raw emoti ..read more

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues and lockdowns are enforced to stop the spread, abortion access—which is limited even in the best of times—has come under threat worldwide. While some governments have responded with efforts to expand access to abortion—including the easing of restrictions on abortion pills and self-managed abortion—others, including the United States, have rushed to declare abortion “nonessential,” shut down clinics, and pass legislation to further restrict access. Pregnancy does not stop during a crisis, nor does the need for quality, safe, affordable, and compassi ..read more