Women’s access to reproductive healthcare and gender equality are inextricably linked. Telling women what they can decide to do or not do with their bodies is wrong. Full stop.

The 72 hours following the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the Supreme Court of the United States have been quite the ride, with our community alternating between fear, anger, disgust, anxiety, embarrassment (on the world stage), helplessness, the urge to act, despair, rage and back again.

Some of you reached out and shared your stories and reactions to the Roe v. Wade news:

The time is now to process, recuperate from the gut-punch of the decision (no matter how expected this may have been, the moment we heard the news truly took our breath away), and build a plan for action beyond voting in November.

At times like these, it can sometimes feel helpless, but we recall the words Willie Sullivan shared, during the protests for racial justice following the murder of George Floyd and discussions on Emory Goizueta’s campus that followed, culminating in the creation of the John R. Lewis Racial Justice Case Competition: ”there are truly people in this country who are powerless. That have no power whatsoever. And nobody going to a top… business school in the United States, is one of those people.”

And this came up in an unrelated discussion focused on influence and power in the workplace and in life, but worth revisiting right now: power is often thought to be something that only others hold, but as Professor Vanessa Bohns shared with us: you already have all the influence you need. It is on us to advocate for and demand the change we want to see.

It’s impossible to advocate for women to pursue their fullest potential and forge a path to the C-suite, without speaking about the fall of Roe v. Wade and what we can do, as the next generation of leaders, to challenge and work to rectify the situation.

Let’s get into it.