Defending Human Rights
For the first time ever, the US has been named a "backsliding" democracy due to our recent failures to defend civil liberties. We need policies that defend the rights of marginalized communities and Americans' basic freedoms.
"It’s easy to think, now that we have our human rights, they will be there forever. They cannot be taken away. But they are like the air you breathe. You don’t think about it until you are gasping for your last breath. Know and defend your rights – and the rights of others."
- The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
The issue
2-in-3 Americans believe they will lose freedom and rights over the next decade. Researchers echo that the US is facing “declines in civil liberties that indicate serious problems with our democracy." Women’s reproductive rights are under attack from our illegitimate Supreme Court. We’re witnessing “a very aggressive push to restrict voting in many states,” with laws that disproportionately [hurt] low-income, racial minorities, the elderly, and the disabled. Our right to privacy is endangered as the US continues to lag behind all other OECD nations in data protection laws. Our freedom of choice – from smoking weed to expressing one’s gender identity – is being challenged. We must defend the basic rights that allow all Americans to live with dignity.
Read the detailed policy fact sheet:
How we fix it:
👩 Protect women's sexual and reproductive rights
Enshrine abortion at the federal level
Legislation like the Women's Health Protection Act legalizes abortion nationwide and protects healthcare providers who perform them. We can also promote abortion access for young women by providing medication abortion on public college campuses; MA is leading this charge.
Invest in a federal natal care program
US maternal mortality rates are the highest in the developed world, and we're among the only nations not to provide a national natal care program. The Maternal CARE Act would fund specialized care for mothers during pregnancy, childbirth and in the postpartum period.
Promote access to freestanding birth centers
Promote equitable access to infertility care
1-in-5 US women experience infertility, and 2 in every 100 children are conceived through IVF. Recent Supreme Court rulings like Roe v. Wade are "clouding the future of IVF” by redefining embryos’ rights. Every woman who struggles with infertility should have the right to pursue alternative avenues to motherhood; legislation like the Right to Build Families Act will protect our right to infertility services
Continue investing in family planning services
Family planning services reduce the number of unintended pregnancies, unplanned births, and maternal deaths. But only one-third of low-income women access publicly-funded family planning. We must increase federal funding for these services.
“Freestanding birth centers” provide cost-effective, quality natal care independent from a hospital system. These centers are significantly underfunded, despite having equally positive maternal health outcomes as hospital systems and producing better outcomes for low-income mothers. We need legislation that expands these services.
🗳️ Defend Americans' right to vote
Enact automatic voter registration
29% of Americans still aren’t registered to vote. Automatic voter registration has been found to significantly increase registration – and the more people participating in our democracy, the better.
Facilitate online, early, and mail-in voting
One-third of Americans don’t vote because they can’t get the time off. Long polling lines disproportionately impact minority communities. We need to promote alternate forms of voting that ensure all Americans can easily vote.
Fight discriminatory voter ID laws
Voter ID laws (e.g., requiring government identification to vote) suppress voter turnout and disenfranchise low-income voters, racial minorities, the elderly, and the disabled. These restrictions were outlawed during our civil rights movement, and they must stay that way.
Restore voting rights to those with convictions
Today, all but two states bar citizens with felony convictions from voting in US elections. These individuals are already serving sentences for their crimes; taking away their voting rights is an additional punishment that robs them of their political voice.
Federally mandate time off to vote
Only 23 states mandate paid time off for voting; this largely impacts unsalaried blue-collar and minority workers. The Time Off to Vote Act mandates employers provide at least 2 consecutive hours of paid leave to vote in a federal election.
Outlaw unwarranted voter roll purges
Voter roll purges are when names are deleted from voter registration lists en masse... but these purges are often "highly inaccurate" and discriminatory. We must enforce NVRA standards prohibiting illegal voter purges.
Crack down on deceptive election practices
The Brennan Center writes that “dirty tricks have long been part of politics. The spread of false and misleading information to disrupt voting isn’t new, but these tactics proliferated in the era of cell phones and social media.” We must enforce protections against voter manipulation.
Pass sweeping reform encapsulating the above
The Freedom to Vote Act will expand voter registration and voting access, limit voter roll purges, establish Election Day as a federal holiday, and protect the voting rights of marginalized communities. Meanwhile, the Voting Rights Advancement Act: establishes standards of pre-clearance (approval from the DOJ or District Court) needed before states make changes to voting practices.
🌎 Honor the rights of immigrants
Provide the basic services needed to live here
Immigrants are less likely to access medical care, government benefits, decent housing, or modern essentials like formal identification. We must expand eligibility for health coverage for immigrants, and enable them to access critical services without fear of deportation.
Reform our green card and visa system
Per the bipartisan FWD.us: “millions of people are stuck waiting for years to receive a green card, despite having their initial applications already approved. This backlog separates families and constricts our workforce. Read more on how we reform the system here.
Establish a humane pathway to legal immigration
America is a country of immigrants. How we choose to treat the most vulnerable people in our society reflects who we are. Resources like the Migration Policy Institute's Roadmap for Legal Immigration outline an agenda focused on refining annual admissions numbers, retaining family-sponsored immigration, asylum reform, and more.
🔐 Protect our right to privacy
Establish and enforce our data privacy rights
America lags behind the rest of the West in internet privacy laws. The American Data Privacy and Protection Act will establish "foundational data privacy rights," create corporate compliance standards, and develop an oversight body to enforce these policies.
Enforce regulations on how AI uses our data
Per Brookings, “as artificial intelligence evolves, it magnifies the ability to use personal info in ways that can intrude on [our] privacy." With great power comes great responsibility, and it’s critical we regulate AI just as we do other forms of data collection, storage, and processing.
Establish a formal data protection agency
The US is the only OECD country without a formal data protection agency. The Data Protection Act of 2021 would establish a specialized, independent agency to regulate high-risk data practices and the collection, processing, and sharing of personal data.
Enforce special privacy protections for children
Children are uniquely vulnerable to predatory privacy practices, and today kids are spending more time online than ever, compounding the problem. We need to adopt legislation that builds on prior protections for collecting and using minors' data.
🌿 Honor freedom of choice: the right to smoke marijuana
Short term: provide banking access
Today it’s illegal (at the federal level) for cannabis-related businesses to access banking services, seriously hindering their ability to grow legally. Legislation like the SAFE Banking Act would provide this access.
Endgame: Legalize marijuana nationwide
Marijuana is no more dangerous than alcohol; if we trust Americans with the latter, we should trust them with the former. Beyond that simple reality, marijuana convictions disproportionately fall on low-income and minority citizens; marijuana legalization is a social justice issue.