Former President Joe Biden received an award from Planned Parenthood of Delaware and used his acceptance speech to defend his record on abortion, urging supporters not to “give up” the fight for legal abortion. Biden delivered remarks at Planned Parenthood of Delaware’s 22nd Annual Chocolate & Champagne Gala in Claymont, Delaware, on Thursday. Before the former president spoke, former first lady Jill Biden presented her husband with the Sonia Schorr Sloan Service Award.
The award is named for Sonia Schorr Sloan, who, according to the Delaware Business Times, served as president of Delaware Planned Parenthood from 1980-1984 and was still chair of the organization’s board of directors at the time of her death in 2019.
According to a Facebook post by Delaware Planned Parenthood earlier this month, the Sonia Schorr Sloan Service Award “honors a legacy of service” and is “given annually to someone whose work reflects the same dedication” as the “longtime supporter and community leader.” During his speech, Biden reflected on his friendship with Sloan, whom he referred to by her nickname “Sonny,” and recalled his response to the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in Dobbs v.
Jackson, which overturned Roe v. Wade. “She would have been devastated, of course, outraged and appalled, as we all were,” he said. “One thing we know is that Sonny would not have been afraid,” he continued.
The former president insisted that Sloan wouldn't have reacted to the decision by “wringing her hands” or “lamenting the state of things,” but instead would have “gotten to work.” Biden also reflected on his response to the Dobbs decision: “In the wake of the Dobbs decision as president, I think I tried to do what I know Sonny would have been on the phone telling me to do.
We took action; I signed an executive order