During a year of unprecedented challenges, the Center for Reproductive Rights has been a leader in the global fight for reproductive health and rights. Through it all—the COVID-19 pandemic, a long-overdue reckoning over racism and inequality, authoritarian governments threatening democracy, and the hugely consequential U.S. election and changed Supreme Court—we stood steady, strong, and true. Our unwavering commitment to the power of law is more vital than ever.

We achieved major victories this year at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the U.S. Supreme Court, and courts and legislatures around the globe. Each success brought us closer to the world we envision, where reproductive rights are guaranteed and every person is free to make personal decisions without government interference. As we look to the future and new opportunities ahead, we stand ready to advance reproductive rights as fundamental human rights around the world.

We are deeply grateful to every friend and partner whose support made this year’s progress possible. Thank you for standing with us as we forge ahead to build on that progress in the years to come.

Nancy Northup
President & CEO

Amy Metzler Ritter
Board Chair

“It is now clear that my Paola was the victim of a terrible abuse that led her to suicide. Sexual aggressors will no longer be protected. Justice was finally done for my Paola!”

— Petita Albarracín, mother of Paola Guzmán Albarracín

Eighteen years after her daughter’s tragic death, Petita Albarracín finally secured justice. Paola Guzmán Albarracín was an Ecuadorian schoolgirl who took her own life at the age of 16 after experiencing sexual abuse by her school’s vice-principal. With Paola’s mother, we brought her case to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the most powerful human rights judicial body in the Americas, and secured a historic and far-reaching decision that will help protect girls from sexual violence across Latin America and the Caribbean. The ruling requires countries in the region to safeguard young people’s sexual and reproductive health and holds Ecuador responsible for failing to protect Paola from the sexual violence she suffered. We brought the case with our partner, the Ecuadorian Center for the Promotion and Action of Women (CEPAM-Guayaquil).

“We cannot and we will not stop until access to safe and respectful maternal health care is a reality for all birthing and postpartum people.”

— Jennie Jacoby, Federal Policy Counsel, the Center for Reproductive Rights

At a time when most other countries are making progress on maternal health, we are seeing rising maternal mortality and morbidity in the U.S. Black, Indigenous, and low-income communities are disproportionately affected—and the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the impact of structural racism on health and access to care. We are committed to addressing these inequities and improving access to maternal health care. Working closely with partners, we played a critical role in the passage of a Georgia law that extends Medicaid coverage for postpartum health care from 60 days to six months—in the state with the worst maternal health outcomes. We supported introduction of the Black Maternal Health “Momnibus” Act, a package of nine federal bills, and partnered closely with the Congressional Black Maternal Health Caucus to address the maternal health crisis and improve outcomes for the communities most impacted.

“The moment is now to draw the line on the decades of assaults on women’s rights.”

– Nancy Northup, President and CEO, Center for Reproductive Rights

We cannot rely on the courts alone to protect access to abortion care in the U.S. The Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA) is a critically important federal bill that would assure the right to access abortion care in every state, for every person. In February 2020, our president and CEO, Nancy Northup, testified before the U.S. House of Representatives—its first proactive legislative hearing on abortion in over 25 years—to highlight the need for WHPA to protect abortion rights from the onslaught of state-level restrictions. Along with the bill’s champions on Capitol Hill and over 100 reproductive health, rights, and justice partners in the Act for Women coalition, we are working to ensure the right to abortion is a reality for all. The bill is on track to be reintroduced in the next Congress.