Five Key Moments in the Erosion of the Freedoms of Women and Girls in This Past Year.

Twelve months prior, groups dedicated to gender equality were preparing for a new Trump administration. The ensuing chaos was largely unforeseen. The volume and speed of White House mandates originating in the White House were interpreted as a intentional maneuver to paralyze through overload. To a large extent, it succeeded – there was chaos, resentment, and burnout as networks struggled to compensate for the loss left by a major funding freeze. But that was just the beginning.

The Washington leadership has been the central catalyst, bolstered by fervent lobbying efforts by far-right organisations seizing the opportunity to strengthen global ties with political allies.

Often termed the anti-gender movement describes a worldwide alliance of political leaders, religious institutions, civil society groups as well as billionaire families and individuals that seek to undermine progress across a wide spectrum of issues. This encompasses reproductive choice, queer and transgender freedoms, diverse family models, and honest sex ed.

They do this by lobbying governments, supporting court cases, discrediting international efforts to foster equity, propagating misinformation, and bankrolling sympathetic charities.

We look at five junctures that impacted the safety, dignity and lives of women and girls.

USAID Dismantled

In early spring, shortly after a prominent humanitarian funder is halted, causing global disruption, a senior US official confirms that the lion's share of the body's projects will be terminated. Career diplomats, ex-presidents and humanitarian and health experts decry the decision, stating that fatalities will ensue. Activists say that the closure of the organization is greater than a budgetary issue, it is a vicious offensive against basic liberties and birth control and maternal healthcare. A multitude of agencies say females will bear the brunt by waning support, especially in war zones. As the year ends, data shows how a tremendous loss of life has already occurred from illness, famine, inadequate obstetric services, and violence against women, with millions more to come. Another pair of leading funders proceed with parallel slashes. A director of a global justice organization says a decision to slash billions in overseas assistance is an attempt to placate a powerful partner.

Conservative Religious Groups Lobby at UN Women Meeting

In the same month, several conservative religious groups meet in an upmarket New York hotel for a two-day conference held concurrently with the international conference on women's rights. It is an forum to discuss methods on how to oppose what they term a UN overreach. They are in high spirits as they welcome shifts in US policy on LGBTQ issues, inclusion, and reproductive rights. Meanwhile, the world's top diplomat opens the gender equality forum with a somber alert that “the toxin of gendered hierarchy” is back, after a report shows that anti-rights actors are deliberately weakening longstanding consensus on core aspects of gender equality around the world.

Summits Promoting Conservative Norms

Over the warmer months, a cluster of meetings in Africa themed around the conventional household and state autonomy raises concerns among equality campaigners. In early May, a president and first lady open a significant conference to resist what they label criminal foreign forces eroding traditional family values. A soon after, another Pan-African conference on family values is held. Both events are participated in by leading Western campaigners against gender ideology, including leaders of well-known groups. One speaker calls on African NGOs to resist “international liberal agenda” of multilateral bodies. In June, a global faith group hosts a event focused on reinforcing families in West Africa, an event that pro-choice campaigners say has become a stage for criticizing gender equality. Campaigners note that the level of external participation has expanded considerably.

Contraceptive Destruction Order

As medical centers in numerous African countries report they are running out of contraceptives, including emergency kits for survivors of sexual violence, the US announces in July plans to dispose of a significant cache of reproductive health commodities held in a storage facility in Belgium. A leading family planning organization states that their incineration will prevent millions of women and girls from access to birth control, and lead to a surge in unplanned pregnancies and dangerous terminations. The organization labels the plan an ideological decision “about exporting a regressive policy worldwide” and “a calculated move to control fertility”. A international emergency medical charity calls it “heartless and dangerous”. Charities attempt to acquire the contraceptives so they can reach their intended destinations, but the US declines every proposal. The situation remains in deadlock as local authorities are blocking the destruction of viable medicines.

Widening of the Anti-Abortion Policy

Reinstating the Mexico City Policy, which prohibits Washington's support for groups that provide, advocate for or advise on abortion services overseas, is standard practice for certain US administrations. It was widely expected when the rule was reinstated in January. The administration also signed onto a conservative consensus document. But in October, the US announces it intends to expand the global gag rule to include national governments and international bodies in addition to NGOs, and to include DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) projects. Additional information regarding the policy's widened application are expected in early 2026. A director of a major health partnership says extending the reach will have “unimaginable effects”. Advocates for bodily autonomy fear that upcoming Washington funding agreements being discussed with African nations will become dependent on agreeing to the broadened restrictions.