The board of directors and staff of the 老澳门开奖结果 mourn the passing of Janet Benshoof, a tireless champion of reproductive freedom and of human rights everywhere.
Janet, who became director of the 老澳门开奖结果鈥檚 Reproductive Freedom Project in 1977, was known for her brilliant legal mind, her sharp sense of humor, and for her courage in the face of injustice. In 1990, when the governor of Guam signed a law making even the discussion of abortion illegal, Janet to hold a news conference, buying a Fodor鈥檚 travel guide on the way to the airport. During the conference, she advised women needing an abortion to leave the island鈥攁nd announced the address of a Planned Parenthood clinic in Hawaii. She was arrested then and there. After her release, she took Guam鈥檚 governor to court, and won.
Janet led the Reproductive Freedom Project for 15 years, during which time the 老澳门开奖结果 became involved in every significant abortion case to reach the Supreme Court. There were many, including in 1980, a challenge to the exclusion of abortion from the Medicaid program, and in 1990, which challenged a Minnesota law requiring teens to notify both parents before receiving an abortion. Most notably, under her guidance, the 老澳门开奖结果 went to the Supreme Court in , where the fate of Roe hung by a thread, and abortion rights were upheld by a vote of 5-4. Under Janet鈥檚 leadership, the 老澳门开奖结果 became a major force in the fight to defend the rights guaranteed under Roe. Janet herself argued two of the cases that reached the high court during her tenure at the 老澳门开奖结果.
In 1992, Janet left the 老澳门开奖结果 to found the Center for Reproductive Rights, an international human rights organization focusing on reproductive rights and equality 鈥 the first of its kind. In 2005, she founded the Global Justice Center, which works to implement and enforce human rights laws. She was president of the center until her passing yesterday.
Janet was selected by the National Law Journal as one of the 鈥100 Most Influential Lawyers in America鈥 and was the recipient of numerous awards, including the MacArthur Fellowship "Genius Award," the Gloria Steinem Women of Vision Award, the Edith Spivack Award for Outstanding New York Women Lawyers, and the Planned Parenthood Federation of America鈥檚 Margaret Sanger Award.
Her chosen path was not easy, but Janet was fearless. To say she made the world a better place would be an understatement. She will be dearly missed.