Cecile Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood, has been an outspoken activist since the 7th grade when she landed in the principal's office for wearing an armband in protest of the Vietnam War. For Richards, whose mother was the first Democrat...
Cecile Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood, has been an outspoken activist since the 7th grade when she landed in the principal's office for wearing an armband in protest of the Vietnam War. For Richards, whose mother was the first Democratic female governor of Texas, strong female leadership and activism is in her blood, but it was still something she needed to learn for herself. Richards spoke with SalonTV about her new book,
"Make Trouble: Standing Up, Speaking Out, and Finding the Courage to LeadMy Life Story", in which she tells her story of learning how to lead and how to make meaningful change for women's rights and social justice. "We [Planned Parenthood] are a healthcare provider to about two and a half million people every year. Abortion services are not the main part of what we do, but they're a critical part of what we do," she told Salon.
After over a decade in the trenches working to promote women's health, reproductive rights and social change at Planned Parenthood, Richards announced at the start of 2018 that she plans to step down later this year. She plans to continue helping women become more politically engaged. Richards told Salon, "Women are shaking the foundation of this country now, politically, culturally and every other way. I just want to make sure that in addition to marching and showing up at town hall meetings and calling congress, that we're voting because if we do we're going to change the future."