Navigating the Rollbacks in Protection of Reproductive and LGBTQI+ Rights in the US

June 20, 2024

Paloma Muñoz Quick

Director, Human Rights Standards, BSR

Paloma Muñoz Quick

Director, Human Rights Standards, BSR

New York

Paloma leads BSR’s work on Human Rights Standards, including knowledge management and advising companies across industries on human rights and responding to emerging standards and regulation. She is also Senior Advisor to BSR’s Finance & Human Rights Practice.

Prior to joining BSR, Paloma was Advisor to the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights and Senior Consultant of the UN B-Tech Project, where she developed an ambitious vision for promoting the uptake of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights among investors and developed guidance on responsible investment in digital technologies. Prior to the UN, Paloma launched and served as Director of the Investor Alliance for Human Rights, where she developed thought leadership on the investor responsibility to respect human rights and supported stewardship engagements across industries. She also worked as Senior Advisor at the Danish Institute for Human Rights, where she advised companies, governments, and civil society around the world on business and human rights.

Paloma is on the Editorial Board of Developments in the Field of the Business and Human Rights Journal of Cambridge University. She was also Design Team Member of the Human Rights Measurement Initiative and served as Advisory Board Member for First Peoples Worldwide.

She holds a Master of International Affairs (M.I.A.) in Human Rights from the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University and a B.A. in Political Science, also from Columbia University.

Paloma is Chilean-American and is fluent in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.
Ife Ogunleye

Manager, Technology Sectors, BSR

Ife Ogunleye

Manager, Technology Sectors, BSR

San Francisco

Ife works with BSR member companies on human rights and technology issues.

She brings several years of experience on a variety of anti-corruption, privacy, tech, and artificial intelligence (AI) policy issues. Prior to joining BSR, Ife worked with companies and government agencies to identify possible impacts or harms that may arise from the development or deployment of AI products as well as appropriate mitigation strategies, and she supported the development of AI regulatory and strategic frameworks in various jurisdictions. She has also worked as an attorney, providing legal advice to multinational companies in the extractive, energy, telecommunications, and financial technology industries on mergers, acquisitions, and financings as well as conducting anti-corruption, money laundering, and fraud investigations. Ife began her career as a policy analyst working on privacy and consumer protection issues in the UK and Europe.

Ife holds a Master of Development Practice from the University of California, Berkeley and a law degree from the University of Manchester, England.
Samone Nigam

Manager, Technology and Human Rights, BSR

Samone Nigam

Manager, Technology and Human Rights, BSR

San Francisco

Samone works with BSR member companies in human rights and technology, with a focus on the impact of technologies on marginalized communities.

Prior to joining BSR, Samone conducted research for a variety of agencies including the World Wide Web Foundation, UN Women, and the Office of the NYC Public Advocate. Her research takes a social justice focus informed by her experience in the nonprofit sector working directly with underrepresented populations like the LGBTQI+ community, immigrants and asylum seekers, sex workers, survivors of domestic abuse and sexual assault, and people seeking safe abortion.

Samone holds a master’s degree in human rights from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and a bachelor’s degree in community studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

The US has been undergoing a systematic rollback of reproductive and LGBTQI+ rights. Two years after the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, abortion is illegal in 14 states and healthcare providers and others who help patients face criminal penalties. At least 23 states limit or ban access to gender-affirming care, while hundreds of other anti-LGBTQI+ equality bills were introduced in state legislatures in 2023.

Financial services companies and other businesses that process healthcare-related payments must grapple with the repercussions of this fragmented legal landscape. Healthcare bans and restrictions complicate the operating environments for business and raise material risks. They also have a chilling effect on companies concerned with operating responsibly. Financial institutions are now exposed to complex ethical dilemmas, such as how to comply with the law while respecting the reproductive and LGBTQI+ rights of their customers, users, and workforce.

BSR’s new report, Navigating Rollbacks in Reproductive and LGBTQI+ Rights in the US: A Guide for Financial Institutions, is a practical resource for financial institutions and anyone seeking to engage them on reproductive and LGBTQI+ rights in the US context. The guide includes insights on:

The rollbacks of legal protections for abortion and LGBTQI+ rights across the US;
How financial institutions may impact abortion and LGBTQI+ rights, specifically discussing data practices, handling of law enforcement requests, financial de-risking activities, lobbying efforts, and discriminatory or inequitable provision of financial services;
Material risks that result from failing to respect reproductive and LGBTQI+ rights; and
Practical recommendations and case studies for navigating compliance with the law while respecting human rights.

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