Tag Archives: Roe v. Wade

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Graces Cover of GQ Magazine, Talks Possible Presidential Run

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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has you covered…

The 32-year-old Bronx-born Puerto Rican politician and activist, currently serving as the U.S. representative for New York’s 14th congressional district, appears on the cover of GQ’s October issue, the first female politician to grace the cover of the men’s magazine.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, GQ MagazineKnown simply as AOC, the New York congresswoman gave an extensive interview to GQ.

In it, she talked about Roe v. Wade, the January 6 insurrection, sexual assault, marriage, being ostracized by her own party and, possibly most candidly, about running for president.

“Sometimes little girls will say, ‘Oh, I want you to be president,’ or things like that,” Ocasio-Cortez told journalist Wesley Lowery. “It’s very difficult for me to talk about because it provokes a lot of inner conflict in that I never want to tell a little girl what she can’t do. And I don’t want to tell young people what is not possible. I’ve never been in the business of doing that. But at the same time…”

Lowery, a Pulitzer Prize winner, writes that at this point in his conversation with AOC “tears pooled in the corners of her eyes” as she spoke even more candidly.

“I hold two contradictory things [in mind] at the same time. One is just the relentless belief that anything is possible. But at the same time, my experience here has given me a front-row seat to how deeply and unconsciously, as well as consciously, so many people in this country hate women. And they hate women of color,” said Ocasio-Cortez. “People ask me questions about the future. And realistically, I can’t even tell you if I’m going to be alive in September. And that weighs very heavily on me. And it’s not just the right wing. Misogyny transcends political ideology: left, right, center. This grip of patriarchy affects all of us, not just women; men, as I mentioned before, but also, ideologically, there’s an extraordinary lack of self-awareness in so many places. And so those are two very conflicting things. I admit to sometimes believing that I live in a country that would never let that happen.”

Lin-Manuel Miranda & His “Hamilton” Musical Team Up with Prizeo for Fundraising Campaign to Support Abortion Access

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Lin-Manuel Miranda is taking a stand for women’s reproductive rights…

The 42-year-old Puerto Rican actor, rapper, songwriter, playwright and filmmaker and his Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Hamilton are teaming up with Prizeo on Ham4Choice, a fundraising campaign to support organizations providing abortion access and other reproductive health services.

Lin-Manuel Miranda“We are devastated by the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling eliminating the right to abortion which has been a right since 1973,” the production said in a statement. “In response, we are teaming up with organizations providing support, access and travel expenses to those seeking these services.”

The effort is part of the show’s larger Ham4Progress philanthropic platform, run by a collective of Hamilton cast members and staff.

Launched in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision in June, the show — which has its own constitutional connection — said funds raised through Ham4Choice will support the Abortion Support Network, ARC Southeast, Ciocia Basia, Deeds Not Words, Planned Parenthood, Profamilias Puerto Rico, The Brigid Alliance, The National Network of Abortion Fund and The Tuscan Abortion Support Collective.

“We’re stronger when we work together,” the statement, which urged fans to support reproductive access and reproductive choice, continued. “We can stand up for every person’s right to make decisions about their own body and their own lives.”

Ham4Choice asks fans to donate funds — as little as $10 — from Aug. 9 to Sept. 22, which will automatically enter them for a chance to win a special Hamilton package. The grand prize winner and a guest will be flown out to Hamilton‘s opening night in Hamburg, Germany, where the musical will be performed in German in its first non-English translation.

While there, they’ll meet Miranda at an exclusive pre-show reception and attend the post-show celebration before being flown out, along with tickets and hotel accommodations, where they’ll get to watch and meet the casts in London and New York. Signed memorabilia will be given to the winner to help commemorate the experience.

Each donation serves as a single entry, with no limit on the number of donations, which can be made at Ham4Choice.com. The fundraiser is just the latest Ham4Progress initiative, the collective focused on highlighting social justice causes, serving as a gathering place for discussion and acting as a platform for progress and organizations the group wants to support.

Miranda has worked with Prizeo in the past on similar efforts, including a 2017 fundraising campaign for Planned Parenthood that gave winners tickets to the Broadway show.

Ferrera Lends Her Voice to Lena Dunham’s Short Film About Planned Parenthood

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America Ferrera is showing her support for Planned Parenthood…

Lena Dunham premiered 100 Years, an animated short film about Planned Parenthood she co-directed, via her Lenny Letter and Now This Her, with the 32-year-old Honduran-American actress lending her voice as a narrator.

America Ferrera

“We’ve been working on the film for over a year in an attempt to shed light on Planned Parenthood’s remarkable history and ongoing battle to keep serving the people who show up to their health centers every day of the year,” said Dunham. “I really think it’s the best cartoon about the history of reproductive freedom ever made, but it may also be the only cartoon about the history of reproductive freedom ever made.”

In addition to Ferrera, Meryl Streep, Hari Nef, Mindy Kaling, Jennifer Lawrence and Constance Wu also collaborated on the film, lending their voices as narrators.

The film tells the history of Planned Parenthood, from when Margaret Sanger started the organization to when the birth control pill was created, and discusses abortion-related legislation like Roe v. Wade and the Hyde Amendment.

“The spirit behind this video will hopefully take us into the Women’s March on Washington this weekend, where we will be showing our new president that we’re not going to allow a hundred years of progress to disappear overnight,” said Dunham, referring to the Women’s March that thousands of women are expected to attend January 21.

Dunham shared that she plans to lobby against the defunding of Planned Parenthood in Sacramento on Tuesday. She also designed a boxing glove T-shirt to benefit Planned Parenthood.

In Lenny Letter, writer and activist Janet Mock interviewed the women organizing the Women’s March, touching on the initial problems the march had with intersectionality.

“Unity feels like a utopian, almost mythical goal in these United States of America,” writes Mock. “It is difficult, backbreaking work to build and organize among varying identities, experiences, and urgencies — even under the umbrella of womanhood.”

Mock explained how the founders of the march recruited more diverse leaders with experience organizing, steering the march “toward a more intersectional and inclusive lens.”

Carmen Perez, in her interview with Mock, explained that starting at 10 a.m. Saturday, speakers will talk about different issues and there will be performances; the march itself will begin at 1:00 pm, once the programming has concluded.

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