PR: Governor McKee and Senate President Lawson- reject McCaffery nomination, protect bodily autonomy for all RIers

For Immediate Release: January 26, 2026

The Womxn Project calls on Governor McKee and Senate President Lawson to reject McCaffery nomination, protect bodily autonomy for all Rhode Islanders

Providence, RI – The Womxn Project (TWP) is calling on Governor Dan McKee and Senate President Valerie Lawson to reject the nomination of Michael McCaffery to a lifetime judicial appointment and to stand firmly for bodily autonomy, LGBTQ+ equality, and reproductive freedom in Rhode Island courts.

Michael McCaffery has a long record of opposing bodily freedom and fundamental rights. Seating him on the bench would lock in those values for decades at a time when Rhode Islanders need judges who will protect – not roll back – hard-won protections for LGBTQ+ people, people seeking abortion, and other marginalized communities.

This nomination is moving forward at the same time as Senate Bill S2293, a bill aimed at excluding and discriminating against transgender students in Rhode Island. S2293 does not solve any real or documented problem in Rhode Island school sports; instead, it advances a harmful political agenda that targets trans youth and uses them as a wedge to attack the bodily freedom of trans people more broadly, and then to undermine the rights of other marginalized groups.

“Opponents of bodily autonomy are a loud minority in Rhode Island and across the United States,” said Jocelyn Foye, Executive Director of The Womxn Project. “Because they cannot win on their agenda through fair, democratic means, they increasingly turn to gerrymandering, procedural manipulation, and the courts. Lifetime judicial appointments become the vehicle for imposing minority views on the rest of us.”

TWP emphasizes that this is first and foremost a matter of principle, and then a matter of concrete rights. Rhode Islanders overwhelmingly support equality, privacy, and the freedom to make personal decisions about their bodies and their lives. Judicial nominees must reflect those values.

The Womxn Project is urging Rhode Islanders to:

Contact Governor Dan McKee and demand that he withdraw or decline to advance any judicial nominee who does not clearly and consistently support bodily autonomy, LGBTQ+ rights, and reproductive freedom. The Governor can and must nominate people who reflect the values of the majority of Rhode Islanders.
Contact Senate President Valerie Lawson and insist that she refuse to move forward judicial nominees who will not uphold the basic principle that all Rhode Islanders are equal under the law. As the leader of the Senate, she has a responsibility to shepherd only those nominees who embody honesty, integrity, and a demonstrated commitment to equal justice.

“If we fail to act now, Rhode Island could face decades of misrepresentation from the bench, mirroring the crisis we see at the national level,” Ms. Foye continued. “We deserve a judiciary that listens, that respects our rights, and that understands that the courts must not be used to legislate minority, extremist views from the bench.”

The Womxn Project envisions a future Rhode Island where:

Reasonable people can talk through hard issues and find solutions together.
All of us – including trans Rhode Islanders, people seeking abortion care, and communities of color – are equal under the law.
Special-interest extremists have no more influence than people living on fixed incomes.
Success is measured not by who outcompetes whom, but by how widely shared our collective wellbeing is.

The Womxn Project is organizing for that future today — a Rhode Island where bodily freedom is non-negotiable and the courts serve all of us. We urge every Rhode Islander to join us, speak out against the McCaffery nomination, oppose S2293, and demand a judiciary that reflects our values and protects our rights.

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Jocelyn Foye is available for interview upon request.

About the Womxn Project
The Womxn Project (TWP) is a statewide organization dedicated to building a strong movement that harnesses the power of art, activism and advocacy. We believe that together we can dismantle systems of oppression and uplift the voices of people in our communities throughout Rhode Island in order to shift power and shape the policies that impact our lives and the lives of our neighbors. We commit to embodying the principles of reproductive rights and bodily autonomy, while cultivating innovation and advancing real, lasting change.

For more information or to get involved, please contact The Womxn Project at [email protected] or visit www.thewomxnproject.org