Interview, Fireside Chat
Cecile Richards - Co-Founder of Supermajority
- Cecile Richards served as president of Planned Parenthood for 12 years and currently serves on the board of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
- Richards co-founded Supermajority, an advocacy organization with the primary goal of creating gender equity in the United States and increasing women's political engagement.
- Richards' book, Make Trouble, Stand Up, Speak Out, and Have the Courage to Lead, documents her history of activism.
- In seventh grade, Richards was suspended for wearing a black armband to protest the Vietnam War; her principal, Tom Heston, released her after confirming her mother's knowledge of the protest.
- Ann Richards, Cecile's mother, was the keynote speaker at the 1988 Democratic National Convention, a moment that launched her national political career.
- Ann Richards served as State Treasurer before becoming the Governor of Texas.
- Ann Richards advised women to seize opportunities immediately without waiting for specific credentials or ideal life circumstances, stating "this is the only life you have."
- Richards recalled calling her mother in a panic before a Planned Parenthood interview; her mother advised her that she would regret not trying to lead the most important women's healthcare organization in the country.
- Ann Richards advised Cecile to consider "the worst thing that could happen" to overcome fear of failure.
- Cecile Richards served as Deputy Chief of Staff to Nancy Pelosi, the first woman in U.S. history to hold a leadership position in Congress.
- During the Iraq War, Nancy Pelosi whipped the Democratic caucus to vote against the conflict, despite initial support from House Speaker Dick Gephardt.
- Pelosi's leadership philosophy centered on the principle that "all politics is local" and required deep knowledge of constituents' backgrounds and families.
- The U.S. Census Bureau reported that women constituted 55% of the voters in the most recent election cycle prior to this interview.
- Supermajority launched with 100,000 members within its first two months.
- Supermajority's co-founders include Alicia Garza (co-founder of Black Lives Matter) and Ai-jen Poo (founder of the National Domestic Workers Alliance).
- Supermajority organizes "house parties" to train women to host conversations on gender equity across lines of race and income.
- Richards argues that issues like equal pay and affordable child care are fundamental economic issues affecting all families, not just women.
- Richards cites Stacey Abrams' gubernatorial campaign in Georgia as an example of expanding the electorate by inspiring historically disenfranchised voters.
- Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood, advocated for women's control over their own bodies as a means to radically increase their economic and social opportunity.
- The legalization of birth control via the 1965 Griswold v. Connecticut ruling is linked to a dramatic increase in women's workforce participation and educational attainment.
- Supermajority operates on the belief that gender equity must be achieved through bottom-up organizing rather than top-down mandates.
- Richards asserts that the media narrative of national divisiveness is false and that Americans share more values than daily discourse suggests.