Fighting the Global Gag Rule

May 27, 2026

This year, the Trump administration drastically expanded what is known as the “global gag rule.” Across the world, people’s access to fundamental human rights will be imperiled by this decision.

The global gag rule, initiated by Ronald Reagan in the 1980s, has historically prevented US funding of any non-U.S. nongovernmental organization (NGO) that advocates for or informs people about abortion access. Even NGOs that use their own (non-U.S.) money for abortion-related advocacy, information, or service, could not receive any U.S. funding. In the words of PAI, a sexual and reproductive health rights organization, that prior iteration of the rule already did “irreparable damage to sexual and reproductive health care worldwide.”

But now, the Trump administration’s new version of the global gag rule threatens so much more than non-U.S. NGOs or abortion. The ironically named “Promoting Human Flourishing in Foreign Assistance” policy applies the rule to new funding, new entities, and new human rights issues. Now, all non-military U.S. foreign assistance is subject to the rule. This broader array of funding means that U.S. NGOs, international organizations, and foreign governments are now also subject to the rule. And the issues aren’t limited to abortion; prohibited activities include advocacy around not just abortion, but also DEI and LGBTQ+ rights.

Thankfully, supporters of human rights are fighting back. We at the Woodhull Freedom Foundation are proud to announce that we have endorsed the Protecting Human Rights and Public Health in Foreign Assistance Act, a bill to block the expanded global gag rule. We firmly believe that U.S. money should be spent supporting human rights, rather than attacking them.