NARAL Pro-Choice America, commonly known as simply NARAL ( ), is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization in the United States that engages in lobbying, political action, and advocacy efforts to oppose restrictions on abortion, to expand access to abortion and birth control, and to support paid parental leave and protection against pregnancy discrimination. NARAL is associated with the NARAL Pro-Choice America Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, and the NARAL Pro-Choice America PAC, a political action committee. Founded in 1969, NARAL is the oldest extant abortion rights advocacy group in the United States, though it was predated by a few now-defunct groups including the Society for Humane Abortion and the Association for the Study of Abortion. History The precursor to NARAL was the Association to Repeal Abortion Laws (ARAL). ARAL was an expansion of the "Army of Three" which was made up of abortion rights activists Pat Maginnis, Rowena Gurner, and financial investor Lana Phelan. The Army of Three organized and distributed referral lists of people performing illegal abortions and held classes on do-it-yourself abortions in California. Originally called the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws, NARAL was established at the "First National Conference on Abortion Laws: Modification or Repeal?" held February 14–16, 1969, in Chicago. Its formation was announced on the front page of The New York Times. The conference, sponsored by 21 organizations and attended by 350 people, included a planning session for NARAL and the report of NARAL's pre-formation planning committee: Lawrence Lader of New York City, Garrett Hardin of California, and Dr. Lonny Myers of Chicago. Key conference speakers included obstetrician/gynecologist Bernard Nathanson (who later became an anti-abortion activist), journalist Lawrence Lader, and women's rights advocate Betty Friedan. The conference was split between those favoring abortion law "reform" and those favoring "repeal". The more conservative reform position would involve adopting something like the American Law Institute guidelines, which would liberalize existing abortion law by allowing abortion to preserve the physical or mental health of the mother, or in the case of pregnancies resulting from rape or incest. The repeal position, led by Betty Friedan and Conni Bille, favored "ad libitum" abortion rights at the discretion of the mother. The conference voted to adopt the more radical repeal position. Those agents attending the session elected a 12-person Planning Committee for NARAL's formation: Lawrence Lader (Chairman), Ruth Proskauer Smith (Vice-Chair), Ruth Cusack (Secretary), Beatrice McClintock (Treasurer), Constance Bille Finnerty