Texas Lawmakers’ Response to Disaster and Crisis is Fatally Inadequate
Right now, 4.4 million Texans are without reliable power, 12 million Texans are without clean water, and 27,000 more are without reliable housing. The polar vortex has created an unprecedented climate disaster, exacerbating the ongoing devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed over 41,000 lives in the state. The catastrophe has heightened disparities between wealthy and low-income Texans, as the latter struggle without water, power, economic relief, or the means of basic survival. Statement from Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director, URGE: “What we are seeing in Texas is the deadly confluence of preventable climate disaster and failure to invest in the survival of low-income families, immigrants, and people of color. This crisis only compounds the suffering of millions of Texas already pushed to the brink by a deadly and ongoing pandemic, not to mention chronic underfunding of essential programs. It’s time for Texas lawmakers to take… Read more »
Biden Begins to Restore Pre-Trump Status Quo with Administrative Action on Reproductive Health – Young People Say More is Needed
(Washington, DC) — Statement from Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director of URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity in response to the Biden-Harris Administration’s executive actions on sexual and reproductive health. “Today, the Biden-Harris Administration took steps to address some of the Trump–Pence Administration’s damage to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and undo some of their appalling sexual and reproductive health policies.” “While we applaud the administration’s actions: to revoke the global gag rule, open Medicaid enrollment under the ACA, withdraw from the anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ+ Geneva Consensus Declaration, and plans to restore Title X contraception funding, we are here to remind them: there is much more work to be done.” “Black women, people of color, queer and trans folks, and families with low incomes are facing multiple crises: a deadly pandemic, economic devastation, and systemic racism. At the same time, abortion access is vanishing. The racist Hyde Amendment continues to deny abortion coverage to families pushed to the economic brink and hundreds of abortion restrictions combine to render the legal right to end a pregnancy meaningless for many. The Biden-Harris Administration must listen to those most harmed… Read more »
Young People Demand More from President Biden
(Washington, DC) — Statement from Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director of URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity in response to the statement from the Biden-Harris Administration on the 48th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court case that legalized abortion in the United States. “Today, the Biden-Harris Administration outlined their commitments around abortion access. While we applaud the Administration’s affirmation that reproductive health care should not depend on a person’s race, income, zip code, or immigration status, we cannot achieve that vision without more robust actions from President Biden. While this is a start, it is not nearly enough.” “Between the Day 1 press conference failure to reaffirm President Biden’s commitment to end the Hyde Amendment and the conspicuous absence of the word ‘abortion’ from today’s statement, I’m worried that abortion stigma is alive and well in the Biden-Harris Administration. People who have abortions deserve the dignity of recognition — it’s time to say… Read more »
Supreme Court Capitulates to Trump, Reinstates Abortion Pill Restrictions
(Washington, DC) — Statement from Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director of URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity regarding the Supreme Court’s decision to lift an injunction that prevented the Trump administration from enforcing a rule to require people seeking medication abortion to see their healthcare provider in-person before being given mifepristone, a safe and effective pill used by 40 percent of people seeking an abortion. “This decision will force people seeking abortion into difficult requirements that aren’t backed by science and that block people from needed care,” said Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director of URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity. “People are already trying to survive a pandemic, struggling financially, and in many cases getting to a clinic is difficult or impossible. There’s no good reason to hold… Read more »
As Far-Right Attempts Coup, Young Black Voters in Georgia Make History
(Washington, DC) — Statement from Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director of URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity and M.K. Richards, URGE Georgia State Organizer, in response to historic Senate runoff elections in Georgia as American democracy faces an unprecedented test. “Yesterday, just hours before a white supremacist far-Right mob stormed the U.S. Capitol in a violent attempt to overturn the results of the presidential election, we learned that young Black people in Georgia made history by electing Raphael Warnock to be the first Black Democrat from the South to ascend to the U.S. Senate,” said Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director of URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity. “At the same time, they also delivered a victory to Jon Ossoff, a 33-year-old son of an immigrant who will become… Read more »
URGE Employees’ Staff Union Receives Voluntary Recognition
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the staff union at URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity, WURGE: Workers United for Reproductive & Gender Equity, announced they received voluntary recognition from URGE management. “We are proud to have reached voluntary recognition of an inclusive staff union. URGE staff work every day toward achieving our vision of reproductive justice,” said representatives of WURGE. “We look forward to working together with URGE management to create a work environment that embodies our values as a reproductive justice organization.” “URGE builds young people power for reproductive justice. That vision necessarily includes the interwoven struggles for economic justice and labor organizing, gender justice, and dismantling white supremacy. Every time young people, BIPOC communities, women and queer and trans folks self-advocate, the bricks in the wall of systemic… Read more »
Young People Play Decisive Role in 2020 Election
(Washington, DC) — Statement from Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director of URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity, in response to President-Elect Joe Biden’s victory in the U.S. Presidential election: “We voted, we waited, and now we have the outcome: thanks to historic voter turnout and the tireless organizing of Black women and young people of color, Kamala Harris will become the first Black woman to take office as Vice President alongside Joe Biden, who will become the 46th President of the United States. According to data from CIRCLE, young Black, AAPI and Latinx voters, respectively, voted for Biden by overwhelming margins of 77, 72, and 49 points. “No more can young people be shamed or blamed for their civic participation. This year, amid a global pandemic and despicable voter… Read more »
Young People Undaunted by SCOTUS Confirmation
(Washington, DC) — Statement by Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director of URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity in response to Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation to the Supreme Court of the U.S. “Today, after ignoring the will of the American people and dismissing our determined pleas for COVID relief, the Senate succeeded in strongarming the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court of the U.S. “But even as anti-abortion activists and extremist politicians celebrate their ill-gotten gain, they should know that their victory will be short-lived. Because judicial power, like every branch of government, needs checks and balances. We, the people, are that check and balance. “They should know that, even as we condemn the confirmation of a Supreme Court justice who will serve their insidious ends, we are comforted by the knowledge that the tides of power are turning. “Young people are a rising wave. In this country, there are more… Read more »
SCOTUS Pick Exposes Need to Recenter Power
Washington, DC) — Statement by Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director of URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity in response to the nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court of the U.S. “Today, President Trump nominated Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court of the U.S. By selecting a woman to uphold his regime and to shame and punish women and people of color is particularly repulsive. We’re not fooled.” “Barrett’s nomination signals a new era of judicial hostility toward women, trans, nonbinary people, and people of color. Not only has she tried to prevent immigrants from accessing public supports, but she also ruled that young and older job applicants did not have the right to sue employers for age discrimination. Her record on abortion has exposed her… Read more »
Supreme Court Upholds Religious Exemptions for Birth Control Coverage
(Washington, DC) — Statement by Kimberly Inez McGuire, Executive Director of URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity in response to the Supreme Court of the U.S. ruling in Little Sisters of the Poor v. Pennsylvania. “We are deeply disappointed by today’s Supreme Court ruling that employers with religious objections to birth control can legally deny birth control coverage for their employees. This decision represents yet another blow to low-income young people, people of color, undocumented people, people with disabilities, as well as trans and nonbinary people at a time when access to reproductive services, including abortion care, are under attack by anti-choice zealots.” “As COVID-19 strains health care systems in states that offered limited reproductive care before the pandemic and as the Hyde Amendment that cuts off abortion access… Read more »
