Kelley Robinson

Last updated

Kelley Robinson (born 1985or1986 [1] ) is an American community organizer who is the current president of the Human Rights Campaign. [2] [3] She was formerly the executive director of Planned Parenthood Action Fund.

Contents

Education

Robinson received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 2008. [4] [5] During university, she double-majored in sociology and women's and gender studies. She left college for a while and worked as a mixed martial arts fighter and bartender. [6]

Career

Robinson started working as a political organizer for Barack Obama's presidential campaign in 2008. [6]

In 2009, she worked at Planned Parenthood of the Heartland as a regional organizer. From 2011 to 2015, she served as the associate director for youth engagement for Planned Parenthood Federation of America, until she was promoted to national organizing director in 2015. In 2019, she became the executive director of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund and vice president of organizing and advocacy. In this role, Robinson helped direct efforts to flip the U.S. Senate in the 2020 elections. [7] [8] While at Planned Parenthood, the number of supporters increased from 6.5 million to 18 million. [6]

As the executive director of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, Robinson was interviewed about reproductive rights, the Hyde Amendment, and Supreme Court nominees by several media outlets such as the Associated Press, CNN, The Guardian, and The New York Times. [9] [10] [11] [12]

Robinson became the president of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) in late 2022. She is the first queer Black woman to lead the organization. [2] Robinson has stated that she will focus on issues such as voting rights, reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ rights, living wages and health care; she will focus on the voices and concerns of impoverished people. [2] [13] In one interview, Robinson stated that HRC was planning to work towards the passage of the Respect for Marriage Act. [14] In one of the first interviews that she gave as HRC president, to El Pais, Robinson addressed the rise of hate acts against LGBTQ communities. [15] In the month of December of the year 2022, Robinson testified before Congress on the rise of anti-LGBTQ+ extremism and violence. [16]

Awards and recognition

In April 2024, Robinson was included in the Time 100 list of the most influential people of the year. [17]

Personal life

Robinson married her wife, Becky George, in 2020; they have one child together. [1] Robinson is Catholic. [18]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Margaret Sanger</span> American birth control activist, educator, and nurse (1879–1966)

Margaret Higgins Sanger, also known as Margaret Sanger Slee, was an American birth control activist, sex educator, writer, and nurse. Sanger popularized the term "birth control", opened the first birth control clinic in the United States, and established organizations that evolved into the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States abortion-rights movement</span> Support for womens right to elective abortion

The United States abortion-rights movement is a sociopolitical movement in the United States supporting the view that a woman should have the legal right to an elective abortion, meaning the right to terminate her pregnancy, and is part of a broader global abortion-rights movement. The movement consists of a variety of organizations, with no single centralized decision-making body.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human Rights Campaign</span> LGBTQ civil rights advocacy group

The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is an American LGBTQ advocacy group. It is the largest LGBTQ political lobbying organization within the United States. Based in Washington, D.C., the organization focuses on protecting and expanding rights for LGBTQ individuals, including advocating for same-sex marriage, anti-discrimination and hate crimes legislation, and HIV/AIDS advocacy. The organization has a number of legislative initiatives as well as supporting resources for LGBTQ individuals.

The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides reproductive and sexual healthcare, and sexual education in the United States and globally. It is a member of the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF).

Reproductive Freedom for All, formerly NARAL Pro-Choice America and commonly known as simply NARAL, is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization in the United States that engages in lobbying, political action, and advocacy efforts to oppose restrictions on abortion, to expand access to abortion and birth control, and to support paid parental leave and protection against pregnancy discrimination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBTQ Victory Fund</span> United States political action committee

LGBTQ+ Victory Fund, commonly shortened to Victory Fund, is an American political action committee dedicated to increasing the number of out LGBTQ+ public officials in the United States. Victory Fund is the largest LGBTQ+ political action committee in the United States and one of the nation's largest non-connected PACs.

The World Congress of Families (WCF) is a United States coalition that promotes Christian right values internationally. It opposes divorce, birth control, same-sex marriage, pornography, and abortion, while supporting a society built on "the voluntary union of a man and a woman in a lifelong covenant of marriage". WCF comprises organizations in several countries, and most of its member partners are strongly active campaigners against abortion rights and same-sex marriage. WCF was formed in 1997 and is active worldwide, regularly organizing conventions. Its opposition to gay marriage and abortion has attracted criticism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Faye Wattleton</span> American activist

Faye Wattleton is an American reproductive rights activist who was the first African American and the youngest president ever elected of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, and the first woman since Margaret Sanger to hold the position. She is currently Co-founder & Director at EeroQ, a quantum computing company. She is best known for her contributions to family planning and reproductive health, and the reproductive rights movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reproductive justice</span> Social justice movement

Reproductive justice is a critical feminist framework that was invented as a response to United States reproductive politics. The three core values of reproductive justice are the right to have a child, the right to not have a child, and the right to parent a child or children in safe and healthy environments. The framework moves women's reproductive rights past a legal and political debate to incorporate the economic, social, and health factors that impact women's reproductive choices and decision-making ability.

<i>Maafa 21</i> 2009 film by Mark Crutcher

Maafa 21: Black Genocide in 21st Century America is an anti-abortion documentary film produced by anti-abortion activist Mark Crutcher in 2009. The film, which has been enthusiastically received by anti-abortion activists, argues that the modern-day prevalence of abortion among African Americans is rooted in an attempted genocide or the maafa of black people. The film is part of an anti-abortion, anti-birth control campaign aimed at African Americans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Tie Dinner</span>

Black Tie Dinner is a formal charity dinner held each year in Dallas, Texas to raise money for the North Texas lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community. The first dinner was held in 1982. Since its inception, Black Tie Dinner has remained one of the largest LGBTQ fund-raising dinners in the nation, both in attendance and distribution. Today, the dinner is attended by over 2,500 guests per year, and has an annual distribution of over $1 million. Each year, Black Tie Dinner selects up to 20 LGBT focused organizations in the North Texas area to receive proceeds from the dinner, in addition to one standing National beneficiary, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. To date, Black Tie Dinner has raised over $30 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Margaret Sanger Awards</span>

The Margaret Sanger Award was an honor awarded annually by the Planned Parenthood Federation of America from 1966 to 2015. Created to honor the legacy of Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood, it is the Federation's highest honor. It is given to individuals to recognize excellence and leadership in the reproductive health and rights movement. Although it is identified as an annual award, it hasn't been given out and since 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leana Wen</span> Physician, author and public health advocate

Leana Sheryle Wen is an American physician, author, professor, speaker, consultant, newspaper columnist and television commentator. She is former health commissioner for the city of Baltimore and former president of Planned Parenthood. She has written two books based on her experiences as a medical professional.

Monica Simpson is a queer Black activist, artist, and executive director of SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective, the United States' largest organization dedicated to reproductive justice for women of color.

The SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective, also known as SisterSong, is a national activist organization dedicated to reproductive justice for women of color.

Abortion in Michigan is legal at all stages of pregnancy. A state constitutional amendment to explicitly guarantee abortion rights was placed on the ballot in 2022 as Michigan Proposal 22–3; it passed with 57 percent of the vote, adding the right to abortion and contraceptive use to the Michigan Constitution. The amendment largely prevents the regulation of abortion before fetal viability, unless said regulations are to protect the individual seeking an abortion, and it also makes it unconstitutional to make laws restricting abortions which would protect the life and health, physical and/or mental, of the pregnant individual seeking abortion.

Abortion in Florida is currently legal up until a gestational age of 15 weeks, whilst an embryonic heartbeat ban set to take effect on May 1, 2024 restricts abortion after a gestational age of 6 weeks after the woman's last menstrual period. Both pieces of legislation were passed by the Florida House of Representatives and the Florida Senate, then signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexis McGill Johnson</span> President of Planned Parenthood

Lori Alexis McGill Johnson is an American businesswoman and abortion rights advocate. She is the President and CEO of Planned Parenthood.

Lindsay Sabadosa is an American activist and politician. She is the first woman to hold the 1st Hampshire district seat in the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Social policy of the Joe Biden administration</span> Overview of the social policy of the Biden administration (2021-present)

The social policy of the Joe Biden administration is intended to improve racial equity, increase access to safe and legal abortions, tighten restrictions on gun sales, among other aims. A number of policies aim to reverse the former policies of President Donald Trump, including the "Muslim" travel ban and loosened anti-discriminatory policies relating to LGBT people.

References

  1. 1 2 Assunção, Muri (September 22, 2022). "Who is Kelley Robinson, incoming president of the Human Rights Campaign?". New York Daily News . Retrieved November 30, 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 "Nation's largest LGBTQ group picks first Black woman as president". Washington Post. ISSN   0190-8286 . Retrieved 2022-11-06.
  3. ↑ "Human Rights Campaign, largest U.S. LGBTQ advocacy group, names new president". NBC News. 21 September 2022. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  4. ↑ "Kelley Robinson | HuffPost". www.huffpost.com. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  5. ↑ "Organizing as Advocates | ovsjg". ovsjg.dc.gov. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  6. 1 2 3 "Kelley Robinson, Black Queer Woman, Is New Human Rights Campaign Head". www.advocate.com. 2022-09-20. Retrieved 2022-11-03.
  7. ↑ Hughes, Clyde (October 9, 2019). "Planned Parenthood launches $45M bid to defeat Trump, flip Senate". UPI.
  8. ↑ Kelly, Caroline (2019-10-09). "Planned Parenthood's political arm to spend $45 million on electing candidates backing reproductive rights | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  9. ↑ "Joe Biden stirs anger by backing 40-year-old 'discriminatory' abortion law". the Guardian. 2019-06-05. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  10. ↑ "Why Trump doesn't want to talk about abortion rights". AP NEWS. 2021-04-20. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  11. ↑ Kelly, Caroline (2020-10-09). "Amy Coney Barrett's potential role in abortion battle surfaces in debates | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  12. ↑ Astor, Maggie (2020-08-18). "Abortion Fight Evolves, Overshadowed in 2020 but With Huge Stakes". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  13. ↑ Haines, Errin (2022-09-20). "Kelley Robinson to be first Black, queer woman to lead Human Rights Campaign". The 19th. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  14. ↑ Stebbins, Laina G. (2022-11-04). "New Human Rights Campaign leader: 'We're not going back' on LGBTQ+ rights ⋆ Michigan Advance". Michigan Advance. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  15. ↑ Seisdedos, Iker (2022-11-28). "Kelley Robinson: "Han declarado una guerra cultural contra nuestros hijos"". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-11-30.
  16. ↑ HRC President Kelley Robinson Testifies on Rise of Anti-LGBTQ+ Extremism and Violence , retrieved 2023-01-25
  17. ↑ Sarah Kate Ellis (April 17, 2024). "Kelley Robinson". Time . Retrieved April 17, 2024.
  18. ↑ Johns, Merryn (2023-03-06). "Kelley Robinson is on a mission to bring equal rights to all LGBTQ+ people". Queer Forty. Retrieved 2023-04-17.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.