ICYMI: Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff Talks with GQ Magazine About the Importance of Protecting Reproductive Rights

Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff spoke with GQ Magazine about the importance of protecting access to reproductive health care and abortion. The Second Gentleman encourages men to support and help advance reproductive freedom and to use their voice to speak out on this issue. Mr. Emhoff shares the moment he first heard about the Dobbs decision from Vice President Harris and why he is taking action to defend reproductive rights.

Read more below:

GQ: "We Believe That Access to Abortion Is a Basic Human Right"
[Gabriella Paiella, 9/29/2022]

"My 81-year-old mother is somehow going to enjoy more reproductive freedom for the majority of her life than my daughter."
By Douglas Emhoff

This is one of the only times in our history that a fundamental, well-established right has been taken away by an activist court. It's just completely inappropriate on so many levels. It has angered me from the time the draft opinion came out. I'm trying to channel this anger into action, but the first thing I thought about was my daughter Ella, who's 23, and her grandmother Barbara, who's 81. Think about it: My 81-year-old mother is somehow going to enjoy more reproductive freedom for the majority of her life than my daughter. That's just not okay. And I'm going to do everything I can for as long as I can to make sure that gets rectified.

Now that I'm in this position, I have a microphone and I have access to talk to some folks. I've spoken with doctors and leaders in the medical profession, and you realize it's not just about abortion, it's about health care in general. Because of the absurdity of this Dobbs decision, it has wreaked havoc on the medical profession. You've got doctors with women on operating tables having to call risk management or a lawyer or an insurance company before they can move forward with lifesaving care. It's just completely, completely inappropriate.

My wife, the vice president, was on Air Force Two flying to an event when the news hit. She was able to watch it and she was able to call me. She said something like, "Dougie, they actually did it." And I gotta tell you something, she was incensed. Almost immediately after, I got a text from my daughter, who was also outraged, that said, "Dad, you need to do something about this." I just want to channel the rage that they're feeling and the rage that I'm feeling into action. Not only as a lawyer and as second gentleman, but as a dad and as a husband, as a son, as a brother, for all the very important women in my life.

I think by and large, it's a topic men just don't like to think about or talk about. But even more importantly, many men don't believe it's an issue for men. They think it's just a quote-unquote women's issue. And I couldn't disagree more. It's one of the things I really try to get out there and advocate for. Not only abortion, but a lot of issues that men traditionally wouldn't think impact them: whether it's pay equity, childcare, or family leave. They're human issues. They're American issues. They're issues that men need to care about because everything is related. Everything impacts something else. Lastly, it's the right thing to do. We just need to support each other.

Douglas Emhoff is a lawyer and, as the husband of vice president Kamala Harris, the second gentleman of the United States.