Cecile Richards, the former president of Planned Parenthood and fierce women’s rights activist passed away Monday at the age 67, her family confirmed in a statement.
“This morning our beloved Cecile passed away at home, surrounded by her family and her ever-loyal dog, Ollie. Our hearts are broken today but no words can do justice to the joy she brought to our lives,” her family said in a statement shared Monday with NBC News.
She was diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer in 2023, she revealed to The Cut last year.
“She had an aggressive form of brain cancer but she fought for women, especially in this last campaign, especially on the issue of abortion rights, until the very end,” “Morning Joe” co-host Mika Brzezinski said on Monday. “She did so much for women in this country, throughout her life.”
Richards served as president of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund from 2006 to 2018, and leaves behind a legacy of aggressively championing abortion rights.
Her passing has sparked an outpouring of support and remembrance in the fight for women’s reproductive freedom.
“Cecile fearlessly led us forward to be the America we say we are,” wrote outgoing President Biden in one of the last statements of his administration on Monday. “She fought for the dignity of workers, defended and advanced women’s reproductive rights and equality, and mobilized our fellow Americans to exercise their power to vote. She was a leader of utmost character and I know that her legacy will continue to inspire generations to come.”
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“We are devastated to have lost Cecile Richards,” current Planned Parenthood president, Alexis McGill Johnson posted on Monday. “Without question, she made Planned Parenthood the force that it is today. She was a POWERHOUSE and pushed this org to be the smartest, nimblest, most innovative 100+-year-old org we could be.”
Former Vice President Kamala Harris also praised Richards as “a force to be reckoned with.”
“Cecile led with heart, fearlessness, and courage on the frontlines of the fight for women’s rights and the dignity of every woman to make decisions about their own body. She fought tirelessly on behalf of all women, and today millions across the nation benefit from her work,” she said. “She would want us to honor her by rededicating ourselves to the fight for fundamental freedoms. Let us roll up our sleeves and make her proud.”
Former Secretary of State and former Democratic presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton described Richards as one of the greatest advocates for women and reproductive health. “Her legacy will be the countless lives she touched and the generations of women she inspired to follow in her footsteps,” she wrote on X on Monday.
In the lead up to the November 2024 election, Richards joined other reproductive rights advocates on “Morning Joe” to stress how strict abortion bans can endanger women’s lives.
“You’re dealing with brain cancer and yet you’re still on the frontlines — why?” Brzezinski asked Richards in the October interview. “[I am] proud to be because I know that we’re in the middle of an election, but these problems are not going away when there’s a draw,” she told Brzezinski.
“The [denial of abortion care] stories that these women have told — we have dozens, hundreds more — these are not political stories. These are stories of women and families and daughters and granddaughters. The risk and the struggle to get healthcare in almost half the states in America, that’s a long-term fight.”
On the day she received her cancer diagnosis, Richards also became a grandmother, which further inspired her to continue working for the next generation.
“It’s going to be a long-term fight and I knew this a couple of years ago, even before the Dobbs decision, when I talked to doctors and oncologists who told me, ‘I can’t treat my patients in Texas because of these laws that have nothing to do with healthcare, have nothing to do with science’,” she told Brzezinski. “Get the politicians out of the doctor’s office.”
Even as her health continued to decline, Richards — a daughter of former Texas governor Ann Richards (D) — took that message to the Democratic National Convention in August, delivering one of the event’s keynote speeches on reproductive rights.
“When women are free to make their own decisions about their lives and to follow our dreams, we are unstoppable,” she said at the convention. “But when Roe v. Wade was overturned, a generation of young people lost that freedom.”
Ironically, Richards passed away on the same day that President-elect Donald Trump was set to be sworn in to a second term in the White House.
“I can’t help but wonder about the divine moment of her transition today — of all days,” McGill Johnson wrote on Monday. “A transition into a new and concerning era for our nation, and the commemoration of MLK. It’s a last reminder from Cecile to stay grounded in our fight and passionate about freedom and justice.”
Since the age of 16, Richards dedicated her life to that cause, first joining a campaign as a teenager to elect Sarah Weddington — the lawyer who argued against Roe v. Wade — to the Texas legislature. She would later become a labor organizer before moving to Washington, D.C. to serve as deputy chief of staff for former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
“It was my privilege to work directly with Cecile for many years and to have a front-row seat to her sharp intellect, strategic thinking and relentless effectiveness,” Pelosi said in a statement. “Politics and public service were in Cecile’s DNA as the daughter of the indomitable Ann Richards — and she will be remembered as a commanding leader in her own right, whose good works have improved countless lives all across the country.”
Richards also founded the voter participation group, America Votes, before taking the helm of Planned Parenthood. Her tenure there raised the organization’s profile, making it the nation’s leading provider of high-quality, affordable reproductive health care.
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In recent years, Richards co-founded the feminist organization Supermajority, which focuses on advocacy training for women’s equality.
Her decades-long commitment to the women’s health movement cemented her legacy as one of the nation’s most prominent advocates for abortion rights.
Her family ended their statement with a quotation of Richards’ to remember: “It’s not hard to imagine future generations one day asking: ‘When there was so much at stake for our country, what did you do?’ The only acceptable answer is: ‘Everything we could.’”
Know Your Value staff