CHOICE USA CHANGES NAME TO URGE: UNITE FOR REPRODUCTIVE & GENDER EQUITY
National Pro-Choice Organization Will Continue Youth Mobilization MissionKate Londen
klonden@urge.org
434-466-4645
July 11, 2014 Washington, DC – Choice USA announced today that the organization will be re-branded as URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity. The new name highlights the diversity of work that the organization was already undertaking across the country. URGE’s mission will stay the same and the organization will continue to mobilize the diverse, upcoming generation of leaders.
“For 22 years, the young people we work for and with have guided our organization, as they began to view pro-choice issues in a more complex way, so did we,” said Kierra Johnson, URGE Executive Director. “This name change reflects better symbolizes the kind of work we have been doing for years and the values we already hold.”
URGE is the leading organization for young people advocating for reproductive rights, sexual health, and gender justice. Through leadership development programs, trainings, conferences, and a network of university campus chapters, URGE’s programs reach young people in every region of the country. URGE’s campus chapters and young activists tackle issues specific to their community, speak out about state policy, and contribute to national campaigns.
“Young people are still fiercely committed to choice, but we also know that working for choice is not possible without widening our scope to include all of the issues that impact any person’s ability to choose,” said Athena Matyear, recent alum of the URGE chapter at University of Texas, El Paso. “URGE is a name that encompasses this outlook and this type of advocacy.”
