National Organization for Women Foundation (NOW)

National Organization for Women Foundation (NOW Foundation) is a left-of-center feminist advocacy group founded associated with the National Organization for Women (NOW) as the group’s public-charity arm. NOW was founded as part of the second-wave feminist movement, which pushed for a greater role for women in market labor and widespread availability of abortion and contraceptives. ¹

The organization is ostensibly centered around advocating for women’s equality, although its scope has grown to include supporting a broad social-liberal agenda including unrestricted access to abortion, expansion of various social welfare programs, LGBT interests, and constraining religious exercise through activism in various court cases. ^{2 3 4 5}

Overview

NOW Foundation was organized 20 years after the formation of the National Organization for Women lobbying organization to conduct public-charity-permitted advocacy for policies addressed by NOW, usually in the form of amicus briefs related to litigation. ⁶

The organization advocates for unrestricted abortion, LGBT causes, social welfare expansion, and other issues that are ostensibly related to women’s rights. The organization also contends that women are paid less than men for the same work, and that such a gap is caused by sex discrimination. ⁷

Letter to Facebook

The foundation signed an October 2019 letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, which criticized the company’s decision to conduct an audit to determine if the platform had bias against conservative content. The letter also demanded that Facebook prevent employing and consulting with individuals considered to have associated with so-called “hate groups”;⁸ similar left-progressive organizations like the Southern Poverty Law Center have included mainstream social-conservative organizations on their lists of such groups. ⁹

Litigation and Amicus Activities

Immigration

On September 18, 2017, the foundation signed an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court against President Donald Trump’s Executive Order 13769, which barred the entry of nationals of certain foreign countries to the United States, ostensibly to prevent acts of terrorism against the U.S. The brief claimed the order makes it more difficult for American law enforcement to prosecute perpetrators of violence against women and children. ¹⁰

LGBT Activism

NOW Foundation signed an amicus brief to allow people who identify as transgender to be deemed fit for service in the military recruitment process. ⁴

The foundation signed on to an amicus brief opposing California Proposition 8, which would have prohibited same-sex marriages in the state had it not been overturned by courts. ¹¹

The foundation signed an amicus brief against supporting the state of Colorado’s efforts to target Jack Philips, a Christian baker targeted by the state for refusing to supply a custom work for a same-sex marriage ceremony. The amicus brief contends that the arguments used by the defendant have historically been used to justify discrimination against women. ¹²

Religious Exercise

On March 2020, NOW Foundation signed an amicus brief condemning two Catholic schools that did not sign contract renewals for two employees. In one case, an employee did not implement new curriculum guidelines, while the other was cited for work performance. Despite acknowledging the schools’ explanations, the brief claims both employees were fired because of sex and disability discrimination. As well, the brief claims previous court cases that would allow for at-will termination of religious ministers exempt from EEOC law and asks the court to “abandon” said precedent. ^{13 14}

Abortion

On April 19, 2020, the foundation signed an amicus brief in support of exempting abortion centers in Alabama from state mandated closures in response to the coronavirus pandemic. ²

On December 2, 2019, the foundation signed an amicus brief to exempt abortionists from legal requirements to obtain admitting privileges to improve patient safety. ¹⁵

In November 2013, the foundation signed an amicus brief supporting a limitation on rights of people who protest near abortion clinics. ¹⁶

In late 2000, the foundation filed a lawsuit against the City of St. Petersburg, Bayfront Medical Center, and BayCare Health System for not performing abortions, sterilization, artificial insemination, and providing emergency contraception. The lawsuit claims the hospital violates separation of church and state. ¹⁷

Tribal Jurisdiction

On September 26, 2018, NOW Foundation signed an amicus brief arguing for shifting jurisdiction of criminal cases involving both Native American and non-Native Americans away from federal courts and into the hands of tribal courts for Native Americans. This change of jurisdiction has been criticized for allowing American citizens to be tried without due process and considerations for other constitutional rights based on past cases in tribal courts. ^{18 19}

Other Issues

The foundation has expressed support for provisions from Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 that shift the burden of handling of sexual assault and harassment allegations among students away from law enforcement in favor of deliberation and sentencing by school bodies. ²⁰

The foundation supports the expansion of social security benefits, especially for provisions targeted for women. ⁵

NOW Foundation signed an amicus brief in support of Obamacare; particularly for providing mandated coverage regardless of risk to insurers. ³

Equal Rights Amendment

The foundation’s parent organization claims to have led the movement for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. In 2004, NOW Foundation organized various voter registration campaigns while its affiliated groups lobbied for the ratification of the ERA. It is the opinion of the foundation that the ERA would create rights for women that do not currently exist in the U.S. constitution, and claims the 38 required U.S. states ratified and approve of the ERA presently, although five of those states arguably rescinded their ratification and multiple states purported to ratify after the statutory deadline set by Congress. ^{21 22}