Rest in Power: Cecile Richards—Former President of Planned Parenthood, Daughter of First Texas Female Governor and Lifelong Feminist Activist

Cecile Richards at the 2012 DNC. (Jenny Warburg)

Cecile Richards—former president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America and president of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund from 2006 to 2018; founder of Supermajority, an organization dedicated to championing women’s leadership; daughter of Gov. Ann Richards, the first and only female governor of Texas; and a lifelong feminist and political activist and trailblazer—died Monday, Jan. 20, after a battle with brain cancer. She was 67.

Richards was a frequent contributor and newsmaker at Ms.: as a guest on On the Issues With Michele Goodwin, and as a source for reproductive rights and Texas-related stories.

Throughout her career, Richards was one of the strongest pro-abortion rights activists in the U.S. Despite her cancer diagnosis in mid-2023, Richards remained a strong and trailblazing force for women’s health. Later that year, she helped launch a new online chatbot named Charley to help abortion seekers in all 50 states find quick, accurate and confidential abortion information, tailored to their individual needs and circumstances. She was a speaker at the Democratic National Convention in August, where she also helped to cast Texas’ votes to nominate Vice President Kamala Harris for president.

Richards in Greensboro, N.C., in 2016. (Jenny Warburg)

Below is an excerpt from a piece she wrote for Ms., “We All Deserve the Freedom to Control Our Bodies,” in March 2023:

Restricting or criminalizing abortion does not eliminate abortion. These laws simply put lives at risk. …

The road ahead might feel long, but the power and strength of our movement gives me incredible hope. By working together, I know we can achieve the respect and freedom that we all deserve.

Rest in power, Cecile Richards.

This is a developing story; it will be updated in the coming days.

About

Roxanne Szal (or Roxy) is the managing digital editor at Ms. and a producer on the Ms. podcast On the Issues With Michele Goodwin. She is also a mentor editor for The OpEd Project. Before becoming a journalist, she was a Texas public school English teacher. She is based in Austin, Texas. Find her on Twitter @roxyszal.