The Margaret Sanger Award was an honor awarded annually by the

Planned Parenthood Federation of America The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is a nonprofit organization that provides reproductive health care in the United States and globally. It is a tax-exempt corporation under Internal Reven ...

from 1966 to 2015. Created to honor the legacy of Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood, it is the Federation's highest honor. It is given to individuals to recognize excellence and leadership in the reproductive health and rights movement. Although it is identified as an annual award, it hasn't been given out and since 2015.

National award recipients

1960s

1966

The first Sanger awards were given in 1966 under four categories,

Human Rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

Medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pr ...

Leadership Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets vi ...

and Service, on the 50th anniversary of Planned Parenthood's founding. The award in human rights was presented to

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

who was unable to attend due to critical work on his

Chicago Freedom Movement The Chicago Freedom Movement, also known as the Chicago open housing movement, was led by Martin Luther King Jr., James Bevel and Al Raby. It was supported by the Chicago-based Coordinating Council of Community Organizations (CCCO) and the Sou ...

; his wife,

Coretta Scott King Coretta Scott King ( Scott; April 27, 1927 – January 30, 2006) was an American author, activist, and civil rights leader who was married to Martin Luther King Jr. from 1953 until his death. As an advocate for African-American equality, she ...

, received the award on his behalf. Carl G. Hartman was awarded with the award in medicine for his research that led to the discovery of basic principles of birth control methods. He was also unable to be present to receive it due to illness. Betty Mary Goetting was the third person to receive the National Margaret Sanger Award for her work in promoting birth control in

El Paso, Texas El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the county seat, seat of El Paso County, Texas, El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau w ...

Lyndon Baines Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

, then

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

, received the award in World Leadership for his "vigorous and far-sighted leadership" in implementing a national family planning policy. He sent his labor secretary,

Willard Wirtz William Willard Wirtz Jr. (March 14, 1912 – April 24, 2010) was a U.S. administrator, cabinet officer, attorney, and law professor. He served as the Secretary of Labor between 1962 and 1969 under the administrations of Presidents John F ...

, to receive it on his behalf. The final award was presented to William Draper for service in voluntary family planning, he was the only recipient who was present to receive the award.

1967

Philanthropist John D. Rockefeller III won the Sanger Award in World Leadership. His recognition underscored his being instrumental in organizing the first

World Population Conference The first ever World Population Conference was held at the Salle Centrale, Geneva, Switzerland, from 29 August to 3 September 1927. Organized by the forerunner of the United Nations, the League of Nations, and Margaret Sanger; the conference was an ...

as well as his founding of the

Population Council The Population Council is an international, nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The Council conducts research in biomedicine, social science, and public health and helps build research capacities in developing countries. One-third of its res ...

1968

Ernest Gruening Ernest Henry Gruening ( ; February 6, 1887 – June 26, 1974) was an American journalist and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, Gruening was the governor of the Alaska Territory from 1939 until 1953, and a United States Senator from A ...

received the Margaret Sanger Award in World Leadership. At the time he was a Democratic U.S. Senator from

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

1969

Hugh Mackintosh Foot, also known as Lord Caradon, was given the Margaret Sanger Award in World Leadership for his "farsighted leadership in the area of international family planning and population issues". At the time, he was the British ambassador to the United Nations. Lord Caradon was a well known supporter of Planned Parenthood, free contraceptives and sex education in schools.

1970s

1970

Then a Democratic U.S. Senator from

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, Joseph D. Tydings received the Margaret Sanger award in 1970 for "activities related to population and birth control." Tydings was known as a strong proponent for access to reproductive health care having had introducing fifteen bills towards this goal. He also promoted gearing foreign aid to promote reproductive care access.

1971

The 1971 Margaret Sanger Award was presented to Louis M. Hellman for service in the field of voluntary family planning. A physician, at the time of his receiving the award he was the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population Affairs in the

Department of Health, Education and Welfare The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is a cabinet-level executive branch department of the U.S. federal government created to protect the health of all Americans and providing essential human services. Its motto is ...

. He was known for his actions in 1958 when he defied a ban on prescribing contraception in the New York municipal hospital system as part of a citywide campaign supported by Planned Parenthood that was successful in getting the ban repealed. As deputy secretary, he continued his advocacy of access to contraceptives as well as abortion access.

1972

In 1972, Planned Parenthood awarded its former president,

Alan Frank Guttmacher Alan Frank Guttmacher (19 May 1898 – 18 March 1974) was an American obstetrician/gynecologist. He served as president of Planned Parenthood and vice-president of the American Eugenics Society. Guttmacher founded the American Association of Planne ...

, with the award.

1973

Sarah Lewit Tietze and Christopher Tietze, MD

1974

Harriet F. Pilpel, JD

1975

In 1975,

Cass Canfield Augustus Cass Canfield (April 26, 1897 – March 27, 1986) was an American publishing executive who was the longtime president and chairman of Harper & Brothers, later Harper & Row. Early life Canfield was the son of Augustus Cass Canfield (185 ...

a publishing executive and rose to become Chair of the Board of

Harper and Row Harper is an American publishing house, the flagship imprint of global publisher HarperCollins based in New York City. History J. & J. Harper (1817–1833) James Harper and his brother John, printers by training, started their book publishin ...

(now

HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News ...

). He was also a former chair of the

International Planned Parenthood Federation The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) is a global non-governmental organisation with the broad aims of promoting sexual and reproductive health, and advocating the right of individuals to make their own choices in family ...

and the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. He was also noted to have taken a "special interest" in advocating for a Margaret Sanger

commemorative stamp A commemorative stamp is a postage stamp, often issued on a significant date such as an anniversary, to honor or commemorate a place, event, person, or object. The ''subject'' of the commemorative stamp is usually spelled out in print, unlike defi ...

from the

U.S. Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U. ...

, realized in 1972 as the Family Planning commemorative stamp.

1976

John Rock, MD

1977

Bernard Berelson Bernard Reuben Berelson (1912–1979) was an American behavioral scientist, known for his work on communication and mass media. He was a leading proponent of the broad idea of the "behavioral sciences", a field he saw as including areas such as ...

, PhD

1978

Julia Henderson Frederick S. Jaffe Edris Rice-Wray, MD, PhD

1979

Alfred F. Moran

Robert Packwood Robert William Packwood (born September 11, 1932) is an American retired lawyer and politician from Oregon and a member of the Republican Party. He resigned from the United States Senate, under threat of expulsion, in 1995 after allegations of ...

1980s

1980

Mary S. Calderone, MD

Sarah Weddington Sarah Catherine Ragle Weddington (February 5, 1945 – December 26, 2021) was an American attorney, law professor, advocate for women's rights and reproductive health, and member of the Texas House of Representatives. She was best known for rep ...

, Esq.

1981

William G. Milliken William Grawn Milliken (March 26, 1922 – October 18, 2019) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 44th governor of Michigan. A member of the Republican Party, he is the longest-serving governor in Michigan history, servin ...

1985

Guadalupe de la Vega

Mechai Viravaidya Mechai Viravaidya (born 17 January 1941, th, มีชัย วีระไวทยะ; ) is a former politician and activist in Thailand who promoted condoms, family planning and AIDS awareness in Thailand. Since the 1970s, Mechai has been ...

1986

Jeannie I. Rosoff

1987

Phil Donahue Phillip John Donahue (born December 21, 1935) is an American media personality, writer, film producer and the creator and host of ''The Phil Donahue Show''. The television program, later known simply as ''Donahue'', was the first talk show forma ...

, media personality, writer, film producer, and the creator and host of ''The Phil Donahue Show''

1988

Ann Landers Ann Landers was a pen name created by ''Chicago Sun-Times'' advice columnist Ruth Crowley in 1943 and taken over by Esther Pauline "Eppie" Lederer (July 4, 1918 – June 22, 2002) in 1955. For 56 years, the Ask Ann Landers syndicated ad ...

Abigail Van Buren Dear Abby is an American advice column founded in 1956 by Pauline Phillips under the pen name "Abigail Van Buren" and carried on today by her daughter, Jeanne Phillips, who now owns the legal rights to the pen name. History According to Paulin ...

1989

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

pro-choice advocate

Henry Morgentaler Henekh "Henry" Morgentaler, (March 19, 1923 – May 29, 2013), was a Polish-born Canadian physician and abortion rights advocate who fought numerous legal battles aimed at expanding abortion rights in Canada. As a Jewish youth during World War ...

received the 1989 Margaret Sanger Award."Dr. Henry Morgentaler, noted Canadian abortion rights crusader, to receive Planned Parenthood's 1989 Margaret Sanger Award." ''PR Newswire'' 18 Oct. 1989: 1018DC003X. ''General OneFile.'' Web. 11 Feb. 2011. He was known for his successful efforts spearheading efforts to repeal Canadian laws restricting access to abortions. Planned Parenthood also noted his "outstanding contributions to expanding the public's understanding of reproductive health and individual rights issues" in presenting him with the award.

1990s

1990

Mufaweza Khan

1991

Bella Abzug Bella Savitzky Abzug (July 24, 1920 – March 31, 1998), nicknamed "Battling Bella", was an American lawyer, politician, social activist, and a leader in the women's movement. In 1971, Abzug joined other leading feminists such as Gloria Steine ...

, lawyer, U.S. Representative, social activist, and leader in the women's movement

1992

Faye Wattleton, president of Planned Parenthood

1993

Richard Steele, Audrey Steele Burnand, Barbara Steele Williams

1994

Fred Sai

1995

Jane Elizabeth Hodgson, MD, obstetrician and gynecologist

1996

Supreme Court Justice

Harry A. Blackmun Harry Andrew Blackmun (November 12, 1908 – March 4, 1999) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1970 to 1994. Appointed by Republican President Richard Nixon, Black ...

1997

Louise Tyrer, MD

Robin Chandler Duke Robin Chandler Duke (born Grace Esther Tippett; October 13, 1923 – February 6, 2016) was an American women's reproductive rights advocate and diplomat. She was the United States Ambassador to Norway from 2000 to 2001. Early life Born Grace Es ...

1998

The Reverend Howard Moody

2000s

2000

The 2000 Margaret Sanger Award went to

Nafis Sadik Nafis Sadik (18 August 1929 – 14 August 2022) was a Pakistani physician, Special Adviser to the UN Secretary General with additional responsibilities as Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Asia, and former executive director of the United Nations Pop ...

, a physician and executive director of the

United Nations Population Fund The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), formerly the United Nations Fund for Population Activities, is a UN agency aimed at improving reproductive and maternal health worldwide. Its work includes developing national healthcare strategies a ...

. She was presented with the honor at Planned Parenthood's annual Honors Gala concluding its Annual Conference in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

The Federation cited her efforts to increase access to family planning, first as a physician with her own practice in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

, then as director of Pakistan's national family planning service and finally at the United Nations Population Fund.

2001

In 2001, Planned Parenthood presented the annual Margaret Sanger Award to actress Kathleen Turner in

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

."Planned Parenthood to Honor Kathleen Turner with Margaret Sanger Award in Dallas on March 31." ''Business Wire'' 30 Mar. 2001: 304. ''General OneFile.'' Web. 11 Feb. 2011. A statement from the organization stated that "millions of women, men and families have been affected by Kathleen Turner's advocacy for increased access to family planning." It went on to cite her "extraordinary efforts" for reproductive health issues. Widely recognized as one of the premier American actors in film and on the stage, Turner had chaired the Federation's Board of Advocates since 1995. She had been active in promoting Planned Parenthood's ''Responsible Choices Action Agenda'' through her active appearances at numerous events nationwide, lobbying and multimedia efforts.

2003

Jane Fonda received the 2003 Margaret Sanger Award at Planned Parenthood's annual ''Planned Parenthood Honors: A Salute to Courage, Integrity, and Leadership'' gala which culminated its annual conference in

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

."REMINDER/Planned Parenthood Salutes Visionary Leaders in the Fight for Reproductive Freedom." ''Business Wire'' 29 Mar. 2003: 5006. ''General OneFile.'' Web. 11 Feb. 2011. Fonda received the award for her "passionate advocacy for reproductive rights and a leader in the field of teen pregnancy prevention." Upon receiving her award, Fonda said she was "going to help you lanned Parenthoodraise lots of money for your 'Power the Promise' Campaign," continuing her advocacy for reproductive rights. She later went on to establish the Jane Fonda Center for Adolescent Reproductive Health at

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

the goal of which was to prevent adolescent pregnancy through training and program development.

2004

Ted Turner Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III (born November 19, 1938) is an American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor, and philanthropist. He founded the Cable News Network (CNN), the first 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he fo ...

, Forum for Women, Law, and Development of Nepal, Kisumu Medical and Educational Trust of Kenya, and television writer and producer

René Balcer René Balcer (born February 9, 1954) is a Canadian-American television writer, director, producer, and showrunner. Early life He was born in Montreal, Quebec, and attended Lower Canada College in Montreal. He studied creative writing at ...

for the episode ''The Third Horseman'' of the series Law and Order Criminal Intent championing reproductive rights.

2005

Gloria Feldt Gloria Feldt (born April 13, 1942) is a ''New York Times'' best-selling author, speaker, commentator, and feminist activist who gained national recognition as a social and political advocate of women's rights. In 2013, she and Amy Litzenberger ...

, author, speaker, commentator, and feminist leader

2006

Karen Pearl and

Allan Rosenfield Allan Rosenfield (April 28, 1933 – October 12, 2008) was an advocate for women's health during the worldwide AIDS pandemic as dean of the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health. Early life Rosenfield was born in Brookline, Massachusetts o ...

, MD

2007

Dolores Huerta Dolores Clara Fernández Huerta (born April 10, 1930) is an American labor leader and civil rights activist who, with Cesar Chavez, is a co-founder of the National Farmworkers Association, which later merged with the Agricultural Workers Organiz ...

, labor leader and activist

2008

Kenneth C. Edelin, MD

2009

U.S. Secretary of State

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...

2010s

2010

Ellen R. Malcolm, activist

2011

Anthony D. Romero Anthony D. Romero (Born July 9, 1965) is the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union. He assumed the position in 2001 as the first Latino and openly gay man to do so. Early life and education Romero was born in Bronx, New York ...

, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union

2012

Philip Darney, MD, MSc and Uta Landy, PhD

2013

Dr. Ruth K. Westheimer (Dr. Ruth), German-American

sex therapist Sex therapy is a strategy for the improvement of sexual function and treatment of sexual dysfunction. This includes sexual dysfunctions such as premature ejaculation or delayed ejaculation, erectile dysfunction, lack of sexual interest or arousa ...

, talk show host, author, professor,

Holocaust survivor Holocaust survivors are people who survived the Holocaust, defined as the persecution and attempted annihilation of the Jews by Nazi Germany and its allies before and during World War II in Europe and North Africa. There is no universally accep ...

, and former Haganah sniper.

2014

Rep. Nancy Pelosi first made history in 2002 when the Democrats elected her the first woman to lead a major political party. Then, in 2007, Pelosi was elected the first woman to serve as Speaker of the House.

2015

Dr.

Willie Parker William Everett Parker Jr. (born November 11, 1980) is an American former football running back who played for six seasons for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for North Carolina, he ...

, physicianPlanned Parenthood Federation of America.
PPFA Margaret Sanger Award Winners

References

{{Reflist, 30em Planned Parenthood Awards established in 1966 1966 establishments in the United States