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In 2022, Michigan’s citizens went to the polls to make their voices heard on an issue of systemic constitutional importance: the right of a woman to terminate her pregnancy. By a wide margin, Michigan’s citizens voted to enact the Reproductive Freedom for All Amendment (“RFFA”), an amendment to Michigan’s Constitution that eliminates outdated restrictions on reproductive healthcare and protects the fundamental right to reproductive freedom in Michigan, including the freedom for Michiganders to decide to end their pregnancies. The RFFA ensures that Michiganders have “the right to make and effectuate decisions about all matters relating to pregnancy,” including “abortion care,” without the State of Michigan “discriminat[ing] in the protection or enforcement of this fundamental right.”

As the United States ("US") approaches its rescheduled 4th Universal Periodic Review ("UPR"), individuals’ sexual and reproductive health and rights (“SRHR”) continue to deteriorate across the country. Since our previous submission, both restrictions on reproductive healthcare access, in particular abortion care, and targeted, state-sanctioned violence, intimidation, discrimination, and harassment of communities by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) and Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) have increased. This submission updates this coalition’s April 2025 submission. It includes quantitative research and qualitative data gathered from abortion funds, healthcare providers, doulas, and persons detained or deported by ICE agents. Testimony is from individuals who have been directly harmed by restrictive abortion laws and/or by the recent unlawful changes in and enforcement of immigration policies or from individuals whose clients or patients have suffered such harm.

North Dakota Century Code Chapter 12.1-36.1 (the “Health Care Ban” or “Ban”) categorically prohibits adolescents from receiving medically necessary treatment when their gender identity does not align with their sex assigned at birth, while permitting the same interventions for other minors and for other medical purposes. The Health Care Ban impermissibly intrudes on multiple rights protected by the North Dakota Constitution: its guarantees of individuals’ bodily autonomy and access to life‑preserving medical care; its protections for family integrity safeguarding parents’ right to make individualized medical decisions in their children’s best interests; and its equal‑protection provisions prohibiting laws that discriminate on the basis of sex or otherwise restrict important substantive rights for a subset of people without compelling reason. Each of these constitutional guarantees is supported by international and regional human rights law and by the laws and practices of many other nations. Together, these domestic, regional, and international authorities demonstrate that North Dakota’s ban is both unconstitutional and inconsistent with established human rights norms. This Court should therefore reverse the lower court’s decision.

The United States tracks adolescent sexual and reproductive health (SRH) indicators through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) via the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) and the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). Furthermore, the Office of Population Affairs, within the Department of Health and Human Services, maintains ongoing data reporting, collection, and monitoring of changes and trends relating to statistics on adolescent SRH. Large-scale health surveys, public health institutions, and academic research studies are utilized to gather data. Since 2009, teen birth rates in the United States have been declining and is 13.6 births per 1,000 females as of 2022. This rate remains higher than in other similar industrialized countries.

While U.S. constitutional law provides a clear basis to reject Tennessee’s attempt to silence individuals providing information about safe and lawful healthcare access, affirming the district court’s holding would also align with international human rights law. Several international treaties, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (“ICCPR”) and the International Convention on the Rights of the Child (“CRC”), support the position that the Recruitment Provision violates longstanding international legal principles protecting free speech.

Originally posted by The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights The Honorable Chip Roy, ChairmanThe Honorable Mary Gay Scanlon, Ranking MemberSubcommittee on the Constitution and Limited GovernmentCommittee on the JudiciaryU.S. House of RepresentativesWashington, DC 20515 Dear Chairman Roy and Ranking Member Scanlon: On behalf of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and the undersigned 257 civil rights, faith, and nonprofit organizations, we write to express our profound concern about tomorrow’s hearing and the dangerous pattern it represents. We stand united in condemning this effort to discredit an institution that has worked tirelessly to serve our communities, protect our rights, and advance opportunity for all. We believe that everyone in this country deserves to be treated with dignity—free from discrimination, with real freedom and opportunity—no matter their race, gender, zip code, or background. This promise, however, is not self-executing. It relies on everyday people and community organizations to stand ready to uphold it when it comes under strain. This hearing is not about any single organization—it is about a broader effort to use government power to silence people. The government is targeting groups that check abuses of power and that ensure that democracy belongs to all of us. This includes civil rights, community-based, humanitarian, and faith-based organizations that speak from deeply held convictions and provide essential services across the country. This precedent should concern every Member of Congress regardless of party. The same tools used to target one set of organizations today can tomorrow be turned against anyone that a future Congress or administration views as hostile to its political agenda. Across nearly every sector of public life, the government is rolling back civil rights protections while unlawfully targeting the organizations that defend and strengthen those rights. Civil rights safeguards are being dismantled in voting, education, housing, employment, healthcare, and more. At the same time, nonprofit organizations, advocates, and watchdogs that challenge discrimination and government overreach are being targeted in an effort to push them out of the public square—eroding both legal protections and democratic oversight. We have witnessed: Threats to designate civil rights and community groups as “domestic terrorists” and revoke their nonprofit status; Grants terminated without justification or due process; Targeted government investigations aimed at discouraging lawful speech and chilling public participation; Public intimidation campaigns designed to isolate and discredit community organizations; Pressure on law firms, media, corporations, faith leaders, and nonprofits to sever long-standing relationships with vulnerable communities for fear of government retaliation; and Civil rights laws weaponized against the very communities they were designed to protect. The tactic is familiar: intimidate independent voices, deflect from the real issues facing the country, and mete out retribution on anyone who dares to challenge those in power. Our nation has seen, across different eras and under administrations of both parties, how governmental power can be misused to suppress dissent—from McCarthy-era investigations to federal surveillance and harassment of civil rights, religious, labor, and anti-war leaders through efforts like the FBI’s COINTELPRO program. At stake is whether people—regardless of their viewpoint—can express themselves without fear of government retaliation. If organizations and people can be targeted for their analysis, advocacy, or disagreement with those in power, then none are safe. If we don’t speak out against these attacks, it will clear the path for the dismantling of freedom of speech and civil rights and the repression of dissent. We urge members of this Committee to reject the abuse of congressional oversight to target organizations for their lawful work. Congress should instead focus on the serious challenges facing the American people. Respectfully submitted, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights 100% Democracy: An Initiative for Universal Voting18 Million Rising50501 The People’s MovementACLU of New JerseyAdvancement ProjectAFL-CIOAfrican American Policy ForumAFT | Education, Health Care, Public ServicesAll Voting is LocalAlliance for JusticeAmerican Association of People with DisabilitiesAmerican Association of University Women (AAUW)American AtheistsAmerican Civil Liberties UnionAmerican Constitution SocietyAmerican Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)American Friends Service CommitteeAmerican Humanist AssociationAmerican OversightAmericans for Democratic Action (ADA)Americans for Financial ReformAmericans United for Separation of Church and StateAmnesty International USAAndrew Goodman FoundationArab American Institute (AAI)Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJCAsian and Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote)Asian Law AllianceAssociation for Special Children and FamiliesAutistic Self Advocacy NetworkAvodahBazelon Center for Mental Health LawBedrockBend the ArcBend the Arc: Jewish ActionBlack Voters Matter FundBrennan Center for JusticeCAIR-GeorgiaCampaign Legal CenterCenter for American ProgressCenter for Constitutional RightsCenter for Justice and AccountabilityCenter for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)Center for Media and DemocracyCenter for Reproductive RightsCenter for Responsible LendingCenter on Faith and JusticeCenterLinkCharity & Security NetworkCitizens for Responsibility and Ethics in WashingtonCivil Rights Movement Archive (CRMA)Clean Elections TexasClearinghouse on Women’s IssuesClimate Defense ProjectCoalition of Black Trade UnionistsCoalition on Human NeedsCommon CauseCommunities United Against Police BrutalityCompassion & ChoicesCongregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, U.S. ProvincesConstitutional Accountability CenterCouncil of Parent Attorneys and Advocates (COPAA)Dayenu: A Jewish Call to Climate ActionDeclaration for American DemocracyDefending Rights & DissentDemocracy AllianceDemocracy Defenders ActionDemocracy ForwardDemosDesiree AllianceEdTrustEducation Law CenterEduColorEndangered Species CoalitionEqual Ground Action FundEqual Justice SocietyEqual Rights AdvocatesEquality CaliforniaEverybody Votes CampaignFair CountFair Elections CenterFair Fight ActionFairVoteFamily EqualityFamily Voices NJFeminist MajorityFeminist Majority FoundationFFRF Action FundFree Press ActionFreedom From Religion FoundationFreethought SocietyFriends Committee on National LegislationFunders for JusticeGeorgia Coalition for the Peoples AgendaGeorgia Conservation VotersGet FreeGLAADGLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD Law)Global Justice CenterGrassroots InternationalGreenpeace USAHaitian Bridge AllianceHispanic FederationHispanics in PhilanthropyHouston Immigration Legal Services CollaborativeHuman Rights CampaignHyams FoundationImpact FundIndivisibleIndivisible Santa FeInstitute for Research & Education on Human RightsInterfaith AllianceInterfaith Center on Corporate ResponsibilityJapanese American Citizens LeagueJewish Community ActionJewish Council for Public AffairsJewish Labor CommitteeJust Future ProjectJustice ConnectionJustice2Jobs SacramentoJuvenile Law CenterKataly FoundationKids Passport to AdventureLabor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA)LatinoJustice PRLDEFLawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under LawLawyers for Good GovernmentLeadership Conference of Women ReligiousLeague of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC)League of Women Voters of the United StatesLegal Aid at WorkLegal Defense Fund (LDF)Legal Rights CenterLGBTQ Center OCMALDEF (Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund)Matthew Shepard FoundationMi Familia VotaMovement Advancement ProjectMovement for Black LivesMovement Strategy CenterMoveOnMuslim AdvocatesMuslim Public Affairs CouncilNational Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good ShepherdNational Association of Social WorkersNational Black Child Development InstituteNational Black Sisters ConferenceNational CAPACDNational Center for Law and Economic JusticeNational Coalition for the HomelessNational Coalition on Black Civic ParticipationNational Committee for Responsive PhilanthropyNational Consumer Law Center (on behalf of its low-income clients)National Council of Jewish WomenNational Disability Rights Network (NDRN)National Education AssociationNational Employment Law ProjectNational Employment Lawyers AssociationNational Health Law ProgramNational Hispanic Media CoalitionNational Homelessness Law CenterNational Housing Law ProjectNational Institute for Workers’ RightsNational Institute of Reproductive HealthNational Latina Institute for Reproductive JusticeNational LGBTQ Task Force Action FundNational Network of Abortion FundsNational Organization For WomenNational Partnership for Women and FamiliesNational Tongan American SocietyNational Urban LeagueNational Voter CorpsNational Women’s Law CenterNative American Rights FundNBJCNETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social JusticeNew Jersey Institute for Social JusticeNew Jewish NarrativeNew Mexico Environmental Law CenterNew York Jewish AgendaNew York Lawyers for the Public InterestNorth Carolina Asian Americans TogetherNurses for Sexual and Reproductive HealthOCA – Asian Pacific American AdvocatesOCA – Asian Pacific American Advocates Greater Clevelandone-n-tenOnyx ImpactOur Family CoalitionOxfam AmericaPax Christi USAPeople For the American WayPeople Power UnitedPeople’s Parity ProjectPERILPFLAG NationalPittsburgh Human Rights City AlliancePlanned Parenthood Action FundPoverty & Race Research Action CouncilPowerSwitch ActionPregnancy JusticeProject On Government OversightProtect DemocracyPublic CitizenPublic JusticePublic Rights ProjectRace ForwardReproactionReproductive Freedom for AllReproductive Justice Action CollectiveRobert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights CenterSAGESalvation and Social JusticeSanta Clara Law – International Human Rights ClinicSecular Student AllianceSecure Elections NetworkSEIUShriver Center on Poverty LawSilver State EqualitySojournersSouthern Birth Justice NetworkSPAN Parent Advocacy NetworkStand Up AmericaSTAND UP MOBILETeaching for ChangeThe Advocates for Human RightsThe Alliance for Diplomacy and JusticeThe Arc of the United StatesThe Carter CenterThe Center for HIV Law and Policy (CHLP)The Center for Learner EquityThe Chamberlain NetworkThe Nexus ProjectThe Ocean ProjectThe Redwood Justice FundThe Restaurant Opportunities Center of Pennsylvania (ROC PA)The Secular Coalition for AmericaThe Sikh CoalitionThe Voter Participation CenterThe Workers CircleThurgood Marshall Civil Rights CenterTidesTransAthleteTransgender Law CenterTransparency International U.S.T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human RightsU.S.-Canada Human Rights Cities AllianceUnidosUSUnitarian Universalist Service CommitteeUnited Church of Christ Media Justice MinistryVera Institute of JusticeVoices for ProgressVoto LatinoWar Prevention InitiativeWE ACT for Environmental JusticeWelcoming AmericaWestern States CenterWin Without War

We the undersigned 115 reproductive health, rights, and justice organizations are dedicated to the protection and realization of human rights for all people, and we are deeply concerned about the United States Government’s decision to withdraw from the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process, an unprecedented step that signals a worrying retreat from our human rights obligations and the global mechanisms of accountability.

Originally published by Democracy Defenders Fund We are a coalition of nonprofit and nonpartisan organizations formed to champion causes dear to all Americans. We work in communities across the country to protect our air and water, our right to vote, to worship, and to organize; we fight for consumers, workers, and our children; we advocate for civil and human rights at home and abroad; we have made it safer to drive on our roads, easier to start a business, and healthier to live in our cities. We span the full ideological spectrum. And today, we stand together for our democracy and in solidarity with the nonprofit groups unjustly and illegally targeted by the Trump administration, including in a new September 25 presidential memorandum. We of course unequivocally reject political violence. But we won’t mince words. No president–Democrat or Republican–should have the power to punish nonprofit organizations simply because he disagrees with them. That is not about protecting Americans or defending the public interest. It is about using unchecked power to silence opposition and voices he disagrees with. That is un-American and flies in the face of the Constitution, including the First Amendment bar on targeting organizations for their advocacy. Charities perform crucial functions in every community across our country, including providing healthcare, housing, education, religious services, food and water, and so much more. Like other nonprofits, the organizations threatened by President Trump have a mission to serve the public good and are composed of everyday people fighting for dignity, safety, and opportunity. This attack on nonprofits is not happening in a vacuum, but as a part of a wholesale offensive against organizations and individuals that advocate for ideas or serve communities that the president finds objectionable, and that seek to enforce the rule of law against the federal government. Whether the target is a church, an environmental or good government group, a refugee assistance organization, university, a law firm, or a former or current government official, weaponizing the executive branch to punish their speech or their views is illegal and wrong. It is also an attack on the very notion that government power must serve the people, not those in office. Charitable organizations serve our communities in various ways, playing a central role in public protection, health, accountability, anti-discrimination, and in creating the moral fabric of our nation. That is, of course, precisely why this administration is targeting them. They know that the organizations they are attacking exist to lift up the voices of everyday Americans and shine the spotlight of accountability on those who seek to abuse power. Political violence is unacceptable. But efforts by the president of the United States to defund, discredit, and dismantle nonprofit groups he simply disagrees with are reprehensible and dangerous—a violation of a fundamental freedom in America. This Administration is trying to bully people into silence but speaking out is, and has always been, our collective mission. We stand with those wrongly targeted and with each other. No exceptions.

Our coalition recently developed a joint submission to the UN Human Rights Council before the USA’s upcoming 4th Universal Periodic Review. This submission focused on the significant deterioration of sexual and reproductive rights and justice across the country since the elimination of a federal right to abortion and amid a broader undermining of rights in the USA.