A collection of the most moving and upsetting things said by and about women this year.
the best
“I oppose it out of concern for our democracy.”
— Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s prescient reaction to the Trump v. United States Supreme Court decision that presidents cannot be prosecuted for criminal acts related to their office.
“For 248 years, this country has waited for its first female president. As this wait continues, we are reminded that the question is if and when we will have the opportunity to break through this glass ceiling. I know.”
—Teresa C. Younger, President and CEO of Ms. Foundation for Women.
“Today, female cats have more freedom than women in Kabul. Cats may bend over to feel the sun on their faces or chase squirrels in parks. In today’s Afghanistan, squirrels have more rights than girls, as the area is off limits to women and girls.Birds may sing in Kabul, but girls may not sing in public. I can’t.”
-Meryl Streep at an event on women’s rights in Afghanistan at the United Nations General Assembly.
“I want all the women who have been raped to say, ‘Madame Perico did it, I can do it too.’ Don’t let them be ashamed anymore. It’s not for us. It’s for them.”
– Gisele Perico testified against her husband and 50 other men on trial for drugging and rape. Ms. Pericot chose a public trial so she could waive her anonymity and share her story publicly.
“Who’s to tell him that the job he’s currently looking for might just be one of those ‘black jobs’?”
-Michelle Obama at the DNC, referring to President Trump’s recent comments about illegal immigrants taking “black jobs.”
“It’s no coincidence that these truly awful men specifically targeted abortion pills. Our ability to safely, privately, and shamelessly end a pregnancy in the comfort of our own homes with just a few pills has given them the ability to At least when we went to the clinic they could stand outside and call us “sluts.” Abortion pills have robbed the men who hate us of our most important birthright: the ability to degrade women for doing things they don’t like. ”
—Feminist author and columnist Jessica Valenti.
“What was really at stake was the status of American women, who now must beg in court to be spared death or serious injury from legally mandated medical malpractice.”
– Moira Donegan, in the Guardian on the EMTALA Supreme Court case.
“I was losing so much blood that security put me in a wheelchair. The standard treatment for my miscarriage is exactly the same as a medical abortion. But at the second hospital, the staff said, ‘Now. “It’s not working,” and told me to go home and wait. In the end, it took me a few weeks to finish my pregnancy at home, but I was really scared. This experience opened my eyes to how black women die without proper maternal care. ”
– Louisiana resident Caitlin Joshua suffered a miscarriage at 11 weeks and was faced with the harsh reality of the state’s near-total abortion ban.
“People ask me, ‘Are you proud to be the first Mexican-American woman elected to the Texas Senate?’ I say, ‘Yeah, but I’m also disgusted. ” I’m tired of it taking so long. ” … In the entire history of Texas, only 24 women have served in the Texas State Senate, including the eight currently serving. During 88 Congresses, 24 women served alongside 952 men… so it’s a bittersweet story. I celebrate because I did it, but I also feel sad and disappointed because it took so long. ”
-Texas State Senator Judith Zaffirini, currently the first female Texas Senate President.
“You have to know that sometimes when people open the door for you, you leave it open. Sometimes when they don’t, you have to kick that damn door down. .”
– Vice President Kamala Harris speaking at the Asia Pacific American Congressional Institute (APAICS) Legislative Leadership Summit.
“I am a woman who took my rapist to court and won. I am a woman who took my rapist’s lawyer to court and won a case for traumatizing me. This is a woman who will receive compensation for her actions. Lesson: Don’t underestimate women.”
– Ellie Wilson, who filed a lawsuit alleging that her rapist’s lawyer asked inappropriate questions during cross-examination, said her client simply “fell in love with the wrong person” and refused to apologize. Ta.
“I’ve been treating these cases, and that moment was on a knife’s edge. Within minutes, a woman could go from bleeding and stable to unstable or dying. There are ignorant, anti-choice legislators with no medical knowledge who are making these laws. They haven’t seen what I’ve seen.”
–Dr. Emergency doctor Nadija Reaser.
“Young people have no illusions that if they vote, everything will be okay. They see states making it harder for young people to vote by targeting Black and Indigenous voters, people with disabilities, and rural voters. But they’re still voting. …Young people are informed, they’re engaged, they’re speaking out, they’re angry, and they’re voting anyway.”
—Kimberly Inez McGuire during a panel discussion hosted by the Guttmacher Institute.
“If a child were brought to the ER and had kidney failure, no hospital would require the mother to donate one of her kidneys to the child. No hospital would require the parent to donate blood to the child. My parents who died in a tragic accident are still alive. There is no requirement that a child donate an organ to a child in need, or to anyone, as a special category of substandard health care. Only pregnant women are classified as
―Jill Filipovich, “Do pregnant women have the same rights as everyone else under the law?”
worst
“For 54 years (sic) they tried to stop Roe v. Wade, but I did it and I’m proud that we accomplished it. We did something miraculous. .”
– Former President Donald Trump during a Fox News town hall.
“Bayer invented aspirin. Put it between your knees.”
—Arizona Senate Majority Leader Sonny Borelli (R) suggests contraceptives aren’t necessary if women aren’t so promiscuous.
“If you dress like that and get raped and I’m on the jury, he’ll be let go. … A man will be a man.”
— Pastor Bobby Leonard, a North Carolina pastor, became an online sensation in late February when he criticized women for wearing shorts in a sermon.
“I said, ‘I’ll do it whether the women like it or not.’ I’ll protect them.”
—President-elect Donald Trump is doubling down on his campaign claim that he is a “protector of women,” despite our consent.
“The rule was not to check the facts.”
— J.D. Vance said during the vice presidential debate after the moderator clarified that the Haitian immigrants in Ohio, whom he continues to demonize, have legal status.
“I believe Texas law is working as designed.”
– Amy O’Donnell, communications director for Texas Alliance for Life, said Samantha Casiano was forced to give birth to a daughter with an incurable disease and then struggled to pay for her funeral. As a result, he strengthened his support for banning abortion.
“Abortion in this country is not about saving a mother’s life. It’s about killing a child because they weren’t responsible enough to pull their skirts down.”
– North Carolina Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson’s comments appeared in a campaign ad for his gubernatorial rival, Attorney General Josh Stein.
“I think the most diabolical lie has been told to you, women. Some of you may go on to have successful careers in the world, but if I had to guess, all of you I think the majority of people are most excited about their marriage and the children they will bring into the world.
– Kansas City Chiefs player Harrison Butker used his commencement address at Benedict College as an opportunity to promote his misogynistic, homophobic, and anti-abortion views.
“By the way, birth control really messes with women’s brains. … It makes young women very angry and bitter.”
—Charlie Kirk, right-wing activist and founder and executive director of Turning Point USA.
“My suspicion is that too many women are preachy. … ‘Don’t drink beer, don’t watch football, don’t eat hamburgers, this is not good for you.’ All of this is destroying the planet” is too feminine a message. Must eat peas. ”
–Democratic strategist James Carville blames women for President Biden’s low approval ratings.
“You know what I like about 16 (weeks)? It’s even. It’s four months.”
–Donald Trump, according to an anonymous source. Two sources said President Trump supports a nationwide ban on abortions at 16 weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest and to save the mother’s life.
Finally, I wasn’t quite sure how to categorize this, but it deserves recognition. You know what they say about the enemy of my enemy…
“I’ll tell you the truth about why I’m not a speaker. It’s because a lawmaker wanted me to stop filing an ethics complaint because I slept with a 17-year-old.”
-Kevin McCarthy on the ethics investigation into Matt Gaetz, which remains stalled after Gates was dropped from President Trump’s nomination for attorney general.