The activist modernized Planned Parenthood and transformed the organization into a formidable political player.

Ten days before the 2016 election, I was standing in a cinderblock room in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, with Cecile Richards and other leaders of prominent women’s groups, all of us out to make the case for Hillary Clinton’s historic run for President.

Richards was a major force in Texas and national politics. Like her mother, former governor Ann Richards, Cecile spent most of her life rallying for progressive causes. Richards was a labor organizer, a staffer to Representative Nancy Pelosi, and then president of Planned Parenthood from 2006 to 2018.

Two months before her death, Richards was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by then-President Joe Biden.

Cecile Richards, a women’s rights crusader who served as president of Planned Parenthood as the nation approached a critical inflection point over reproductive freedom, has died, her family said Monday in a statement.

She oversaw the United States’ largest provider of reproductive health care and sex education from 2006 to 2018.

From former President Barack Obama to pro-life leaders like Lila Rose, activists on both sides of the abortion debate have reacted to the death of Cecile Richards, with many offering prayers for the

Joe's Mika Brzezinski reflects on the death of Cecile Richards, former Planned Parenthood president, and what lessons we can take from her legacy

A former Planned Parenthood president and staunch women's rights advocate Cecile Richards has died at the age of 67.

Cecile Richards, a national leader for women’s rights who led Planned Parenthood for 12 tumultuous years, has died. She was 67.

Cecile Richards, a longtime reproductive rights and feminist activist and former president of Planned Parenthood, has died, her family announced Monday. She was 67. Richards was diagnosed in 2023 with a glioblastoma, a type of brain tumor.

Cecile Richards died Monday after battling an aggressive form of brain cancer, her family said in a statement.