Hillary Clinton: Still A Hero for Women's Rights

Ever since she hit us with "it is no longer acceptable to discuss women’s rights as separate from human rights," Hillary Clinton has wowed me with her commitment to lifting up women and girls around the world. I watched yesterday, and was left in awe, as she gave us a verbal smack down on the plight of women's rights during her speech at the 15th anniversary of the International Conference of Population Development (IDCP). She isn't afraid to tell us straight up that we are not living in a world where women and girls are equal.

She reminded us that nearly one half of women in the developing world give birth without access to medical services, and that "one woman dies every minute of every day in pregnancy or child birth."

That for that one woman who dies, "another 20 suffer from injury, infection, or disease every minute."

That "215 million women worldwide lack access to modern forms of contraception", or other family planning services, "which contributes to the 20 million unsafe abortions every year."

She told us that sexually transmitted diseases claim the lives of millions of women and girls annually.

And that "[f]istula destroys the lives of millions, and it is often the result of pregnancies that occur when the girl is too young."

"70 million," she repeated, "70 million women and girls worldwide -- have been subjected to female genital cutting ... the source of infections and increased risk of injury during childbirth."

And she gave it to us flat out: "These numbers are not only grim," but "intolerable."

Here is the part where Hillary wows me every time: She tells everyone in the room that if we truly believe that Women's Rights are Human Rights, and vice-versa, then we can not accept these facts, even though we know that reproductive health is a topic of controversy. To quote Secretary of State Clinton,"We can not accept the ongoing marginalization of half the world's population. We can not accept it morally, politically, socially, or economically."

She points out that the best indicator of political upheaval and broader progress in a nation is its infant and maternal mortality rate. That we find in societies where women are lifted up and given the tools to control their reproductive lives that everyone's lives are better. And that the reverse is also true.

She reminds us that investing in the lives of women and girls is the smartest investment you can make.

She told us we have a lot of work to do, and reassured us of her commitment to seeing it through.

She couldn't be more my hero if she had a golden lasso.

Photo: SEIU International's Photostream