Stefano Gennarini
(ZENIT News – Center for Family and Human Rights / New York, 03.26.2025).- Feminists likely paid by Western governments booed when U.S. and Argentinian diplomats defended women’s rights and opposed gender ideology at the end of the annual UN conference on women’s issues March 21. They cheered for an EU statement in favor gender ideology instead.
The boos erupted after a U.S. diplomat said it was “impossible” for the U.S. to support a political declaration adopted by the UN Commission on the Status of Women because it contained “gender” terminology. He said the U.S. could only support “clear and accurate language that women are biologically female, and men are biologically male.”
The boos were repeated when an Argentinian representative said her country interpreted “gender in the sense of the Rome Statute,” a reference to the biological binary of man-woman. Both delegations also objected to the inclusion of language on “intersecting forms of discrimination” widely understood to be an endorsement of “woke” or DEI policies.
The act of disrespect by representatives of feminist non-governmental organizations was likely coordinated. And it was the final act of defiance in a long two week conference that saw repeated sleights and veiled attacks against the Trump administration from foreign diplomats and UN officials, including declarations that the Trump administration is “fascist” and a threat to “gender equality.” The Trump administration’s decision to stop funding gender ideology and DEI was a shadow hanging over the commission all week. Government funding for nongovernmental organizations is the lifeblood of the feminist movement. Feminist organizations complained repeatedly that they were having to wind down programs and let go of staff.
The attacks showed just how difficult it will be for Trump and other delegations to disentangle the United Nations from gender ideology and radical abortion positions. It also shows that their biggest obstacle will be the European Union and other Western governments who continue to fund gender ideology promotion internationally to the tune of billions every year.
The worst diplomatic affront to the U.S. at the commission took place when the bureau of the commission, led by of Saudi Arabia, decided to ignore the Trump administration’s objections to gender language in the last days of negotiations earlier this month. The bureau sent a letter to members of the commission telling them they would ignore the objections of the U.S. delegation because it was a “non-member” of the commission this year.
This is very unusual because the negotiations of the commission are open to all states equally and is tasked with reaching unanimously. Moreover, the U.S. is the largest donor to the UN system. The fact that there is no sitting U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations because Elise Stefanik’s (R-NY) appointment at the UN has been delayed, likely contributed to the diplomatic sleight.
The U.S. and Argentine statements against gender ideology were made earlier today when all delegations were invited to express their misgivings about the final agreement.
Nordic countries, Canada, and Latin American nations complained that the draft did not include abortion-related terms “sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights.”
Several delegations, including the Holy See, Argentina, Mali, Nigeria and Cameroon complained that the final agreement of the commission did not do enough to promote the importance of motherhood, especially in the context of the family.
Despite these disagreements, Sima Bahous, who leads the UN agency for Women’s issues, UN Women, was relieved that the commission reached an agreement at all. She said the commission proved that it was “still a place of consensus.” She also recommitted to her agency promoting woke DEI policies under the label of “intersecting” forms of discrimination, directly contradicting the reservations expressed by the United States and Argentina.
A person familiar with conversations between UN officials and a delegation from the EU Parliament at this year’s commission told the Friday Fax that UN agencies did not seem concerned with Trump’s opposition to gender ideology. The UN officials told the parliamentarians that UN agencies could continue to promote their controversial agenda regardless of whether the declaration included terms like “sexual and reproductive health.”
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