Cecile Richards, a women’s rights activist and former president of Planned Parenthood, has died at 67, her family said.
“This morning our beloved Cecile passed away at home, surrounded by her family and her ever-loyal dog, Ollie. Our hearts are broken today but no words can do justice to the joy she brought to our lives,” her family said in a statement shared Monday with NBC News.
“We are grateful to the doctors and health care workers who provided her excellent care and the friends, family, and well-wishers who have been by her side during this challenging time,” the family said.
She was diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer, in 2023, she revealed to The Cut last year.
The family said to those who would like to celebrate Richards’ memory, “we invite you to put on some New Orleans jazz, gather with friends and family over a good meal.”
The family ended with a quotation of Richards’ to remember: “It’s not hard to imagine future generations one day asking: ‘When there was so much at stake for our country, what did you do?’ The only acceptable answer is: ‘Everything we could.’”
She served as president of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund from 2006 to 2018, and leaves behind a legacy of aggressively championing abortion rights.
