IMMIGRATION: Out Of The Shadows
Choice: Closely Aligned
Environment: Only Way To Win Is By Working Together
HOUSING: 'We Are All In This Together'
Labor: A Decades Long Partnership
1 A lot of people think about choice issues as nothing more than abortion; for the record, can you explain what the choice movement is about?
Choice is as American as apple pie. The freedom of self-determination, autonomy and equality are the bedrock foundations of the pro-choice vision. We believe that all people deserve to be informed by appropriate and comprehensive sex education, have universal access to contraception and birth control and to be able to consult one's doctor about if or when to start a family. Choice is not just a "social issue" because these decisions are often issues of economic justice. Women especially don't have the luxury of separating their reproductive rights from their pocketbooks. Choice is part of a long list of economic equality issues that have become some of the hottest issues of our day: Equal Pay, Universal Pre-K, paid sick days and healthcare as a human right are all burgeoning movements. The biggest anti-choice elected officials are the same folks who time and time again vote against economic justice for women and all people, be it abortion rights or fair pay for fair work.
2 Why did you, as an out gay man, decide that you needed to work for NARAL?
There have been two coming out experiences that changed the course of my life: my own coming out as a gay man and my mother's coming out as having had an abortion. The key to any movement for social justice is the meaningful process of brave people sharing their stories with loved ones. Without that critical step, anti-equality opponents are free to paint whatever narrative they wish to stigmatize us. Once that catalyst of a loved one connecting with me about accessing abortion care occurred, abortion rights were no longer some abstract concept. I immediately became ready to engage and NARAL Pro-Choice America was there to plug me in as a volunteer, intern and later on as a staff member.
3 What does the choice movement mean to the LGBT community and the broader struggle for equality?
This could not be a more timely question. Our movements have always been closely aligned, and for many folks it is the same movement. This has never been truer than after the Supreme Court Hobby Lobby decision allowed bosses unprecedented control over the healthcare decisions of their employees. As NARAL Pro-Choice America said it best: "Every American could potentially be affected by this far-reaching and shocking decision that allows bosses to reach beyond the boardroom and into their employees' bedrooms. The majority claims that its ruling is limited, but that logic doesn't hold up. Today it's birth control; tomorrow it could be any personal medical decision, from starting a family to getting life-saving vaccinations or blood transfusions."
It is no coincidence that, in the wake of the Hobby Lobby case, LGBT organizations are seeking stronger protections to prohibit similar discrimination from bosses on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity. We have common enemies who use the same tactics against both of our movements. We must have common strategies and active collaboration to counter efforts to curtail our civil rights.
4 What would be your three big messages to the LGBT community about the Choice movement?
One, we are the majority. LGBT rights and reproductive rights are supported by a clear majority of Americans. Seven in 10 Americans support Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court ruling legalizing abortion rights. Among the millennial generation, 7 in 10 support marriage equality, among a host of LGBT civil rights issues.
Two, we are growing. The Millennial generation is the most pro-equality generation in American history on both reproductive freedom and LGBT rights. The Millennial generation (born between 1980 and 1991) is 77 million strong. By 2020, they will make up 40 percent of the electorate, which will be the largest age-demographic voting bloc ever recorded.
Three, Economic Justice = Reproductive Rights. Four in ten mothers are either the sole or primary source of income for their families. Sixty percent of women who access abortion care already have children. Our opponents win by framing reproductive freedom, especially abortion rights, in a frame that completely ignores the reality of the everyday economic lives of women. Even more outrageously, these same anti-choice opponents consistently vote against other common sense programs to help advance women, be it expanding healthcare, supporting equal pay and fair wages or making more family friendly workplaces.
5. Please explain what NARAL does for those who are unfamiliar with the organization.
For 45 years, NARAL Pro-Choice America has served as a leader in mobilizing our nation's pro-choice majority. We put our values into action by electing candidates who share our vision of reproductive freedom and supporting pro-choice legislation at the municipal, state and federal levels.
Every day, NARAL Pro-Choice America is lobbying state legislatures and members of congress to protect and expand access through pro-choice measures. We also run campaigns against any entity that attempts to interfere with a woman's right to choose.
