Since Donald Trump took office in January there have been several disturbing moments captured in photos of aging white men flanking him as he rolls back protections and rights for women with the stroke of a pen, and the GOP has included rape, cesarian sections, postpartum depression, and surviving domestic abuse as "preexisting conditions" under the health care plan that just narrowly passed in the House of Representatives, so it's no surprise that Hillary Clinton invoked the dystopian story The Handmaid's Tale in a speech for the Planned Parenthood Centennial Anniversary on Tuesday.
The gala, held in New York City, honored Clinton and superstar television creator Shonda Rhimes (Grey's Anatomy, Scandal, How to Get Away With Murder) for their life's work advancing women's reproductive freedom, Jezebel reportS. Held at the city's Pier 36, bartenders served up cocktails named "toxic masculinity." Following an introduction from Planned Parenthood's president, Cecile Richards, Clinton used her time at the podium to deliver powerful remarks about women and about the men in power in the White House.
"As we speak, politicians in Washington are still doing everything they can to roll back the rights and progress we've fought so hard for over the last century," Clinton said.
"I mean, could you believe those the photos of groups of men around that conference table deciding to strip away coverage for pregnancy and maternity care?" Clinton said, referring to a photo of Mike Pence surrounded by dozens of men that went viral at the end of March. "This was a disturbing blast from the past," she added, according to CNN.
Clinton also declared that Trump's attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which cleared its first hurdle Thursday, would prove detrimental to all, and pointed out its effect on women. "Right now, they're trying to jam through a health care plan that would cost 24 million people their health insurance and gut funding for Planned Parenthood," she said.
Ever the diplomat, Clinton urged the audience to try to understand those whose opinions differ from their own.
"After decades of arguing back and forth, I think it's safe to say that people of goodwill and good faith will continue to view this issue differently," she said. "So, yes, I believe we can and should respect the deeply held beliefs of our friends, our neighbors, our fellow citizens, even when they differ from our own. That's part of what should make America America."
But Clinton, who's a firm supporter of women's reproductive freedom, urged supporters of reproductive choice to "never back down from our commitment to defend the ability of every woman to make these deeply personal decisions for herself," according to CNN.
The woman who famously declared "Human rights are women's rights, and women's rights are human rights," at the United Nations Fourth World Congress on Women 22 years ago capped off her speech by invoking The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood's prescient novel in which women with viable reproductive organs are consigned to procreative slavery. It has been adapted into a miniseries currently running on Hulu.
"In The Handmaid's Tale, women's rights are gradually, slowly stripped away. As one character says, 'We didn't look up from our phones until it was too late,'" Clinton said, according to Jezebel. "It's not too late for us, but we have to encourage the millions of women and men who support Planned Parenthood's mission to keep fighting."
Before exiting the stage, Clinton let out the rallying cry "Resist, insist, persist, enlist!"
Watch a segment of the speech below.
