The Trump administration has announced a historical expansion of the scope of the “Global Gag Rule” which will halt non-military U.S. foreign assistance to organisations working on issues related to DEI and “gender ideology.”
A year after President Trump reinstated the Mexico City Policy, renamed “Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance” under his administration and nicknamed the “Global Gag Rule” by those who oppose it, the administration has announced that they are expanding the scope of the policy to halt non-military U.S. foreign assistance to any organisation engaged in issues related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) or so-called “gender ideology.”
The Mexico City Policy was conceived at the Second International Conference on Population in Mexico City, Mexico, in 1984 and was originally implemented by the Reagan administration. It required all foreign NGOs receiving U.S. family planning assistance funds to guarantee that they would not use funds from any source (including non-U.S. funds) to “perform or actively promote abortion as a method of family planning” as a condition of receiving U.S. funding. Since its initial implementation, the policy has been rescinded and reinstated along party lines, with Republicans in favor and Democrats against.
During the first Trump administration, the policy was expanded to apply not only to family planning assistance funds, but also as a condition for the receipt of nearly all global health assistance from the U.S. This meant that any organisation receiving health assistance funds from the U.S., such as for issues related to AIDS relief, nutrition, disease, or maternal health, could not use funds they received from any sources in relation to the performance or promotion of abortion. After a four-year suspension of the policy during former President Biden’s term, it was reinstated by President Trump early last year.
Last week at the March for Life in Washington, D.C., an annual anti-abortion march, Vice President J.D. Vance announced that the administration would be expanding the scope of the policy “about three times as big as it was before” by halting funding to any organisations that work on issues related to “gender ideology” and DEI. The scope of the policy was also broadened to include not only foreign nongovernmental organisations, but also U.S. nongovernmental organisations and foreign governments.
In the past, enforcement of the Mexico City Policy has led to a stark decline in access to sexual and reproductive health services and education, decreased access to contraceptives, disruptions in wide-ranging health services, loss of networks and partnerships among organisations that promote health and women’s issues, and has actually resulted in an increase in abortions in some countries. Although it is unclear what the full impact of the latest expansion of the policy will be due to a lack of clarity regarding what the administration considers DEI and “gender ideology,” it will undoubtedly lead to increased vulnerability among already marginalised groups and the discontinuation of health services for transgender people.
Not only will the expansion of this policy have life-or-death consequences, but it also sets a precedent of conformity to U.S. ideology that organisations must adhere to in order to receive funding that could mean the difference between continuing their services or closing their doors.
Resources:
https://www.kff.org/global-health-policy/the-mexico-city-policy-an-explainer/
https://www.thinkglobalhealth.org/article/expanding-the-mexico-city-policy-undermines-global-health