For over a decade, Jessica González-Rojas has been fighting for the rights of Latinx people at the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health (NLIRH), where she most recently served as executive director. This fall, she announced her plan to run for the New York State Assembly, transitioning from leader of a national reproductive justice (RJ) organization to candidate for public office in one of the most diverse districts in the state, District 34.

Rewire.News sat down with González-Rojas in early November to discuss the crucial role she has played in bridging the gap between the reproductive rights movement and the immigrant justice movement. “I always joke that I felt like I was a person in the ‘women’s’ and reproductive rights spaces saying, What about Latinas? What about immigrants? And then I would sit in the siloed spaces of immigrant justice or Latino civil rights and say, What about women? What about gender justice? What about LGBTQ people?” González-Rojas said.

In this wide-ranging interview, González-Rojas reflects on the gains of the reproductive justice movement and NLIRH she’s witnessed, the challenges of today, and what gives her hope about the next chapter of her life.

Read an edited transcript of our conversation at Rewire News Group….