Press Release: U.S. State Legislators Travel to Brazil To Build Global Power For Reproductive Rights

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 

Contact: Mary Alice Carter – six@conwaystrategic.com

U.S. State Legislators Travel to Brazil To Build Global Power For Reproductive Rights

The U.S. delegation joined Brazilian leaders to confront abortion criminalization, democratic backsliding, and racial injustice

Washington, D.C. — From May 11–15, a delegation of U.S. state legislators traveled to Brazil to meet with local policymakers, activists, and advocates to share information and build transnational strategies to protect and expand reproductive rights. Organized by the State Innovation Exchange (SiX) and the Women’s Equality Center (WEC), the trip comes amidst the global rise in regressive abortion laws, state violence, and democratic erosion in both the U.S. and Brazil. The trip was focused on cross-border learning to address the shared harm that far-right ideologies inflict on Black, Latinx, and other marginalized communities worldwide.

“Walking alongside Brazilian women this past week has laid bare the unmistakable truth: our struggles are mirror images of each other,” said Paula Ávila-Guillén, Executive Director of the Women’s Equality Center. “It’s not democratic for girls to be forced to give birth. And it’s not human rights to silence those fighting to protect them, whether through legislation, court delays, or cross-border political threats. What we’re witnessing is not dissent. It’s a strategy to undermine accountability and erase the people most affected.”

“The fight for justice knows no borders. From racial discrimination to sexual violence, and the criminalization of our bodies, these are not isolated injustices — they are global crises. This delegation unites U.S. state lawmakers and their Brazilian counterparts in a powerful act of solidarity to stand together and build sharper, bolder strategies for collective liberation,” said Jennifer Driver, Senior Director of Reproductive Rights at SiX. “In both our countries, the road to justice at the federal level is often blocked — but it is in our states where people power takes root. States are where movements are born, narratives are reshaped, and real victories are won. State lawmakers have a unique and urgent responsibility to lead change, not just at home, but in solidarity with struggles for justice worldwide.”

The U.S. state lawmakers who participated in the trip included Arizona Sen. Analise Ortiz, Tennessee Sen. London Lamar, Georgia Rep. Jasmine Clark, Maryland Delegates Nicole Williams and Jheanelle Wilkins, and Massachusetts Rep. Priscila Sousa.

During the delegation, the group engaged with local leaders and activists across Rio de Janeiro and Brasília, examining the human and democratic costs of abortion criminalization in the U.S and Brazil. In both countries, even when abortion is technically legal, access is often out of reach. In the U.S., following the Supreme Court’s Dobbs ruling in 2022, abortion was banned in 41 states, with very limited exceptions. Brazil’s laws pose similar barriers, permitting access only in cases of rape, risk to life, or fetal anencephaly, and care is often denied even in these very limited cases. More than 17,000 pregnancies are reported annually in Brazil among girls under 14, with an estimated 39 giving birth each day.

“The phrase ‘a child is not a mother, and a rapist is not a father’ is more than a slogan —it’s a reflection of the horror so many Brazilian girls endure,” said Keka Bagno (PSOL), the first Black woman to run for Governor of the Federal District. “We are fighting for a future where survivors are protected, not punished.”

As a delegation of women of color, their presence opened space for powerful dialogue with Black Brazilian women leaders navigating parallel struggles at the intersection of race, gender, and political violence. Through each meeting, the delegation deepened their understanding of how local movements are confronting these crises- not just surviving them but organizing toward systemic change. The conversations offered a rare opportunity for reflection on how U.S. lawmakers might respond to similar patterns of backlash playing out in their own states.

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