Top 11 Pro-Choice Moments In 2014

While all of us who support reproductive freedom faced tremendous challenges in 2014, it wasn't all bad news. These were a few of the inspiring moments that are going to fuel our fire well into 2015.

1. Ruth Bader Ginsberg dissents

When the Supreme Court ruled in favor of bosses at Hobby Lobby, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg's scathing dissent fired up feminists to keep fighting. Her words captured the very core of our beliefs and even inspired people to become RBG fans.

2. California expands abortion access

California drew a line in the sand when it said health insurance companies cannot refuse to cover abortion services. California's policy requiring coverage of abortion care by health-insurance plans is the first in the nation, and stands in stark contrast to the 25 states that ban abortion coverage, either in their health-insurance exchange or in the statewide private insurance market.

3. Obvious Child premieres

A rom com that honestly portrays a woman’s abortion experience without judgment and stigma? Yes! We rarely see major motion pictures deal with unexpected pregnancy dealt with such candor, authenticity, and humor, and Obvious Child accomplished all of this. Years from now we hope to look back at this movie as a turning point when pop culture started treating abortion for what it really is: a normal medical procedure that many women access. We were proud to cosponsor a screening and lively panel discussion with the cast and crew to encourage more people to see it and bring friends.

4. Google and Yahoo remove deceptive anti-choice ads

You’d think that when you search online for “abortion clinic” that you’d find what you’re looking for. Based on our research, that’s not what was happening on Google or Yahoo. We partnered with Ultraviolet and worked with Google and Yahoo to remove these misleading ads. Anyone who searches for an abortion deserves the truth, not deception.

5. TED Talks backpedals on its state policy against discussing abortion

We all love TED Talks. That’s why we were so disappointed when we had learned about TED Talks’ controversial abortion policy and took action. We mobilized hundreds of people to tweet at TED Talks, and in less than 24 hours, TED changed its tune.

6. Massachusetts and New Hampshire pass buffer zone laws

It was a dismal day when the Supreme Court struck down a buffer zone law, siding with clinic protesters over women’s ability to get abortion care without harassment and shame. But pro-choice advocates didn’t give up! Two states passed pro-choice legislation to protect women. NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts and their allies passed the Safe Health Care Access Bill, promoting safe access to reproductive health care centers. In a similar fashion, NARAL Pro-Choice New Hampshire helped to pass a 25-foot buffer zone law to protect women from protesters.

7. Cosmopolitan endorses pro-choice candidates

Cosmo has been making big changes under Joanna Coles’ leadership of the magazine, and doubled down on getting its readers to connect the personal with the political with its #CosmoVotes campaign where Cosmo endorsed candidates for the first time in its history. If that wasn’t awesome enough, Cosmo endorsed only pro-choice candidates. Amy Odell, the head of the magazine’s political efforts, put it this way, “We’re not going to endorse someone who is [anti-choice] because that’s not in our readers’ best interest…All young women deserve affordable easy access to health care, and that might include terminating a pregnancy, and that’s OK.”

8. Dr. Willie Parker shares his story of helping women

If you live in the South and need an abortion, there aren’t a whole lot of options. Fortunately for women in Mississippi, there’s Dr. Willie Parker. He’s one of two doctors who travels there from out of state to provide abortion care because he knows if he doesn’t, abortion care will disappear for countless women. But he’s not just a doctor, he’s an advocate and has testified in Washington, D.C. to support the Women’s Health Protection Act which would get rid of all the politically motivated attacks on abortion access.

9. Voters defeat outright attacks on abortion on the ballot

In a strange turn of events, as evidence by Ben Casselman’s tweet, voters showed their pro-choice values in the states even as they elected anti-choice candidates to Congress. Where we saw the clearest attacks on abortion in Colorado and North Dakota, voters overwhelmingly defeated the measures. Unfortunately, a ballot measure in Tennessee with intentionally vague language misled voters and was passed.

10. 7 in 10 Americans support access to legal abortion

Our recent polling showed that nearly 70 percent of voters say that government should not restrict access to abortion. The number shows that we are the majority and makes clear that anti-choice politicians are ignoring their constituents when they pass laws that block reproductive health care.

11. Boggs' nomination blocked

With the help of more than 40,000 activists and 41 progressive allies, we urged senators to reject the nomination of anti-choice, anti-civil rights, anti-LGBT Michael Boggs to the federal bench. It was an uphill battle, but 12 senators spoke out publicly against Boggs’ nomination. Because the session ended without the Senate taking action on Boggs, it means that finally, officially, his nomination is dead.