Task Force commemorates International Women’s Day

The Task Force today joins the world in commemorating International Women’s Day. Women’s rights have always been a critical part of our shared struggle for justice and equality, which is why we have advocated for women’s health, reproductive justice, ending violence against women, pay equity and much more.

Task Force Executive Director Rea Carey says:

As we commemorate International Women’s Day, we must not forget that the struggle for women’s rights is intrinsically tied to the fight for LGBT equality. While there have been major strides, women still face major inequities and disparities from health to income and education. We must not waver in our commitment to eradicate all forms of gender discrimination for all women — including lesbian, bisexual and transgender women.

In a recent Huffington Post piece, Rea described why we have to make the journey together in fighting for women’s rights and LGBT rights. In her article, Rea laid out the case why these two struggles are intrinsically connected and must not be separated. Read it here.

Issues of specific concern to women have been front and center in the U.S. of late with attacks on birth control and reproductive health. This includes the Blunt amendment, which unsuccessfully attempted to allow employers and health insurance companies to decide on their own what kind of health care coveragewomen should get on the basis of religious beliefs or moral conviction. Still, the margin was shockingly too close for comfort, spotlighting how vulnerable women’s lives continue to be.

The Task Force’s Sue Hyde wrote about this controversy in a Huffington Post piece, “Blunt Instruments, Transvaginal Probes, and What’s at Stake.”

We were also part of the public outcry that successfully demanded Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation reverse its decision to cut Planned Parenthood funding.

Among other key issues this past year we have worked on:

• During our Creating Change conference, we took almost 300 people to lobby the U.S. Senate for passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act, legislation intended to close the gender pay gap.
• We called for passage of an LGBT-inclusive Violence Against Women Act reauthorization bill.
• Transgender women and their lives were a big part of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, the largest-ever study on transgender people in the U.S. which found that they face rampant discrimination in every area of life.
• This past election, the Task Force traveled to Jackson, Miss., to phone bank and stand in solidarity with Planned Parenthood Federation of America and the Mississippians for Healthy Families campaign, which defeated Initiative 26, that sought to amend the state Constitution to establish legal “personhood” at the moment of fertilization.
• Task Force Deputy Executive Director Darlene Nipper took part in a women’s delegation to Georgia this week drawing attention to the impact of Georgia’s new anti-immigrant law on women and children.
• We stood outside the U.S. Supreme Court rallying in support of the women employed at Wal-Mart who brought a class action lawsuit to challenge pay and promotion practices that discriminate against them in that company.

The Task Force will continue to be at the forefront of fighting for women and their families every day of the year.

For more information on International Women’s Day events happening at home and abroad go here.