Women’s Group Praises Inclusion of Abortion Question at Democratic Presidential Primary Debate; Says Roe Should be the Floor, Not the Ceiling for Abortion Rights in the US
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, October 16, 2019
CONTACT: Brett Abrams
Women’s Group Praises Inclusion of Abortion Question at Democratic Presidential Primary Debate; Says Roe Should be the Floor, Not the Ceiling for Abortion Rights in the US
UltraViolet Challenges Networks and Candidates to Ask About Preventing Workplace Abuse
Statement from Shaunna Thomas, co-founder and executive director of UltraViolet Action, a leading national women’s group, on last night’s debate:
“Women make up the majority of the country’s voters, and the majority of Democratic voters, yet issues critical to women have been shockingly absent from the discussions so far. That’s why, it was good to hear that moderators asked the candidates about their plans to safeguard and expand access to abortion rights in the face of right-wing attacks.
“But one question on an issue critical to so many is hardly a victory worth celebrating. We need our candidates and our moderators to continue to ask about important issues like abortion and the need to address sexual abuse in workplaces, pay equity for women, and combatting police violence against Black and Brown women.
“If the debate moderators fail to bring these important issues, it is incumbent upon the candidates to proactively talk about these issues. Women deserve to hear answers to the issues that impact their daily lives – and if the Democratic Party expects women to help propel the party to victory in 2020, they would do best to include our issues in the conversation.”
Ahead of the debate yesterday, UltraViolet Action called on the Democratic National Committee to pull the upcoming debate on MSNBC from the network until Comcast and NBC News take steps to address the culture of sexual abuse at the network.
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