As the global right-wing shift directly threatens decades of progress on women’s rights, the European Union must step up and lead. If US policies make it impossible to hold the next session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in New York, the EU must be ready to host it in Europe. This is the clear message from the Socialists and Democrats Group in the European Parliament ahead of the 70th session of the CSW, taking place from 9 to 19 March 2026 and dedicated to ensuring access to justice for all women and girls.
S&D MEPs Lina Gálvez, chair of the European Parliament’s committee on women’s rights and gender equality, and Heléne Fritzon, S&D vice-president responsible for Feminist Europe, are travelling to the United States as part of an official European Parliament mission to participate in the CSW and defend gender equality worldwide.
In 2026, President Donald Trump has withdrawn the United States not only from UN Women but also from more than 60 UN organisations, including those central to gender equality and sexual and reproductive health and rights. The United States – once a cornerstone of multilateral cooperation – is now undermining it, defunding key bodies, and weakening the global fight against violence and discrimination targeting women and girls.
For the S&D Group, the message is unequivocal: Europe cannot stand by while women’s rights are traded for nationalist politics. As Washington turns its back on global equality, Europe must fill the leadership vacuum.
Lina Gálvez, chair of the FEMM committee and EP rapporteur on the resolution for the 70th CSW, said:
“Donald Trump’s withdrawal from international organisations defending women’s rights is not just a diplomatic decision – it is a political attack on the global system that protects women and girls. It emboldens those who want to roll back rights, silence survivors and normalise discrimination.
“Europe must not respond with caution or silence. If the United States makes it impossible to hold the CSW in New York, the European Union must immediately offer to host it. We cannot allow the world’s most important forum on women’s rights to become collateral damage of far-right ideology.
“Gender equality is not a side issue – it is the foundation of democracy. There is no freedom, no justice and no prosperity without women’s rights. If others abdicate responsibility, Europe must lead.”
Heléne Fritzon, S&D vice-president responsible for Feminist Europe, added:
“What we are witnessing is a deliberate and organised backlash. Authoritarian leaders and far-right movements are attacking sexual and reproductive rights, dismantling gender equality and starving women’s organisations of funding. This is about power – about pushing women back into silence and dependence.
“The theme of this year’s CSW – access to justice for all women and girls – goes to the core of the problem. Around the world, perpetrators too often escape accountability because they are powerful, wealthy or politically connected. Meanwhile, victims are questioned, discredited or ignored. That is not justice – it is inequality before the law.
“We are going to New York with an uncompromising message: justice systems must protect survivors, not perpetrators. Funding for women’s organisations must be strengthened, not cut. And there must be zero tolerance for all forms of violence against women. Europe will not be neutral in the face of misogyny and authoritarianism. We will stand up and fight for gender equality.”