Richards, who had transformedPlanned Parenthoodduring her 12-year tenure as president, also helped arrange snacks and move chairs.
She was one of the most powerful political figures in the US.
Richards herself was honored as aWoman of the Yearin 2015).
Pamela Hanson
After her diagnosis Richards turned her attention to a battle with multiple fronts.
She was fighting for herself, and fighting for us.
And she never stopped.
Cecile Richards with her daughter, Hannah Adams, in June
How did she do it?
How did she keep going?
Richardss answer was simple yet profound: How can we not?
I feel so lucky, she said on that sweltering June day in Baton Rouge.
Im fortunate to be able to do anything at this point that helps build constituencies and encourages young women.
Its been lightly edited and condensed for readability.
We cant imagine it.
Cecile Richards:How could you imagine it?
Right, its hard for any of us to understand.
I was born and raised in California, now I live in New York.
I havent experienced losing my rights.
You chose to move back to the South.
What do you think people don’t understand about this region?
The resilience of women to me in these parts is amazing.
Theres a long history of women and fighting back.
The power of women is just undeniable.
Yet, theres disproportionately gendered representation in politics.
People read about it, but it certainly sometimes feels like another world.
Theyre stronger than most people in blue states because theyre up against it.
Id love to change that perception.
Lets just chop em off and start our own country.
Or people who say to red state liberals, Why dont you just move out of the South?
People have been here for generations.
People say, Well, it’s possible for you to just leave and get health care somewhere else.
I think our experience has been that people are committed to the state for a reason.
Its important to support them and be allied with them in the fights ahead.
Abortion rights, its just the tip of the iceberg.
So its just one of a series of issues that we are going to have to fight back on.
I keep feeling weve hit bottom, but maybe not yet.
I worry we have not.
Yeah, but we will.
What made you buy a house in Louisiana after leaving Planned Parenthood?
What is it about the South you love so much?
I started out here as an organizer with my now husband.
I saw the same fight back then as Im seeing now.
Yet women in this state continually fight back.
Its like people have lost the ability to get information and news and hear about whats going on.
I wanted to come back here because its a state worth fighting for.
Its such a misunderstood part of the country.
What has it been like to see this project come to fruition?
On Friday night we hosted all the storytellers in a sweaty dining room in my house.
It felt like, This is what I want to be part of.
Thats what organizing is.
That was my experience at Planned Parenthood.
But Ive seen it so many times.
It was in the 90s.
Speaking of your own mother, this has been a very mother-centric project.
I wonder if you have any reflections on that.
I was really fortunate.
I was raised in a family where just being part of public service was just what you did.
Most people dont have that.
In fact, I remember my first job organizing hotel workers.
These women were just trying to get by, trying to support their kids.
I love that we can know each others families.
Im incredibly lucky that my kids have all found their path.
To me, its the most gratifying thing.
She was a young, feisty organizer with Planned Parenthood.
That to me is so gratifying, seeing a whole new generation of young women finding their way.
And thats going to happen here in Louisiana too.
How do we fix that?
I think particularly for young people, you cant guilt people into it.
I think its listening to them and meeting them where they are.
I am not surprised that young people are discouraged by politics.
Thats kind of always our challenge.
Being able to find ways for people to get in that fight, its really important.
Thats the only way we change things.
Its not from the top down.
Its going to be from the bottom up.
How do you keep fighting for reproductive freedom?
But youre still doing it.
I feel so lucky.
Im fortunate to be able to do anything at this point that helps build constituencies and encourages young women.
Its amazing the peoples willingness to share those stories and be public.
Its like, How do you harness that and continue to provide the support?
And in my mind, its not how to create interest.
Its just how to sustain it and support it.
