Cecile Richards, former president of Planned Parenthood, in 2019.Photo:Gary Gershoff/Getty
Gary Gershoff/Getty
Cecile Richards, who served as president of the women’s health organizationPlanned Parenthoodfrom 2006 to 2018, died on Monday, Jan. 20, her family confirmed to PEOPLE. She was 67.
Her death follows a 2023 diagnosis of glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.
“Cecile Richards was an indomitable force. In her 12 devoted years of service to our organization, Cecile brought Planned Parenthood Federation of America to new heights in our health care, education, and advocacy work. She led us through fights that transformed the reproductive health and rights landscape and made Planned Parenthood Action Fund the advocacy and political force that it remains to this day," current Planned Parenthood president and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson said in astatementshared on Monday.
Cecile Richards in 2016.Jennifer Graylock/WireImage
Jennifer Graylock/WireImage
Before serving as the president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and president of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, Richards was a longtime political activist who first helped her mother, former Texas governorAnn Richards, with her gubernatorial campaign before going on to serve as the deputy chief of staff for former SpeakerNancy Pelosi.
“It was my privilege to work directly with Cecile for many years and to I have a front-row seat to her sharp intellect, strategic thinking and relentless effectiveness. As my deputy chief of staff when I was Democratic Whip and Leader, she was a critical part of ensuring that Team Pelosi stayed connected to the needs and priorities of grassroots,” Pelosi said in astatement.
She added, “As she ascended to other leadership roles, we never stopped working together to defend the rights of women and working families.”
Richards was also one of the founders of America Votes, a nonprofit organization aimed at increasing voter turnout.
After leaving Planned Parenthood, she co-founded the groupSupermajority, which aimed at making women the most powerful voting bloc in the county. She was also the board of the Ford Foundation.
Richards was diagnosed with glioblastoma in 2023, theTexas Tribunereported. Per theMayo Clinic, there is no cure for glioblastoma, although treatments may help improve symptoms or slow the growth of the cancer, which begins in the brain or spinal cord and spreads quickly.
Even after her cancer diagnosis, Richards continued to advocate for reproductive rights, especially in the wake of the Supreme CourtoverturningRoe v. Wade, effectively making theprocedure illegal in multiple states. In a Jan. 2024instagrampost, she wrote “In my experience, having cancer doesn’t suddenly fill you with profound insights on life. What it does is make it really clear what’s important. And there is no more important work right now than the fight for abortion rights.”
Cecile Richards in 2024.David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty
David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty
PresidentJoe Biden— who awarded Richards with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in November 2024 — issueda statementon her passing on Monday. “Jilland I are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Cecile Richards. Cecile fearlessly led us forward to be the America we say we are. Carrying her mom’s torch for justice, she championed some of our Nation’s most important civil rights causes," he said.
He added, “She fought for the dignity of workers, defended and advanced women’s reproductive rights and equality, and mobilized our fellow Americans to exercise their power to vote. She was a leader of utmost character and I know that her legacy will continue to inspire generations to come.”
Biden’s statement was issued on Inauguration Day, just hours beforeDonald Trumpwas sworn in as 47thPresident of the United States.
The statement from Richards' family continued with recommendations on ways to honor her: “If you’d like to celebrate Cecile today, we invite you to put on some New Orleans jazz, gather with friends and family over a good meal, and remember something she said a lot over the last year: ‘It’s not hard to imagine future generations one day asking: ‘When there was so much at stake for our country, what did you do?’ "
They added, “The only acceptable answer is: ‘Everything we could.’ ”
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source: people.com
