Rukmini "Mini" Timmaraju is an American lawyer and

reproductive rights Reproductive rights are legal rights and freedoms relating to human reproduction, reproduction and reproductive health that vary amongst countries around the world. The World Health Organization defines reproductive rights: Reproductive rights ...

advocate. She has been the president of

Reproductive Freedom for All Reproductive Freedom for All, formerly NARAL Pro-Choice America and 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 rest ...

, formerly known as

NARAL Pro-Choice America Reproductive Freedom for All, formerly NARAL Pro-Choice America and commonly known as simply NARAL ( ), is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization in the United States that engages in lobbying, politics, political action, and advocacy efforts to op ...

, since 2021. She previously worked for

Planned Parenthood The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is an American nonprofit organization

Comcast Comcast Corporation, formerly known as Comcast Holdings,Before the AT&T Broadband, AT&T merger in 2001, the parent company was Comcast Holdings Corporation. Comcast Holdings Corporation now refers to a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation, not th ...

, the

Hillary Clinton 2016 presidential campaign In 2016, Hillary Clinton ran unsuccessfully for president of the United States. Clinton ran as the Democratic Party's candidate for president, in which she became the first woman to win a presidential nomination by a major U.S. political pa ...

and the

U.S. Office of Personnel Management The United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is an independent agency of the United States government that manages the United States federal civil service. The agency provides federal human resources policy, oversight, and support, and ...

. She earned a J.D. from the

University of Houston Law Center The University of Houston Law Center is the Law school in the United States, law school of the University of Houston in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1947, the Law Center is one of 12 colleges of the University of Houston, a state university. It is ...

Early life and education

Rukmini Timmaraju was born on February 25, 1973, to a

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of South India ** Telugu literature, is the body of works written in the Telugu language. * Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Tel ...

Indian American family. While her parents were from the

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

area, her mother travelled to

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

to be close to her family before her daughter was born. The nickname, Mini, is from a character from a short story, '' Kabuliwala,'' by

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Thakur (; anglicised as Rabindranath Tagore ; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengalis, Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter of the Bengal Renai ...

. Mini's family moved to Sugar Land, Texas, where Mini attended William P. Clements High School and graduated in 1991. She went on to earn a bachelor's degree in development studies and international area studies in 1995 from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

. She earned a J.D. in 1999 from the

Career

Timmaraju held various positions with

Planned Parenthood The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is an American nonprofit organization

from 2008 to 2013. She was then chief of staff for U.S. Representative

Ami Bera Amerish Babulal "Ami" Bera ( ; born March 2, 1965) is an American physician and politician who has been serving as a member of the United States House of Representatives from California since 2013. He is a member of the Democratic Party and repr ...

(D.-CA). She served as the director of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans in 2014 and 2015. She worked on the

as the National Women's Vote Director. From 2017 until 2021, she worked for

Comcast Corporation Comcast Corporation, formerly known as Comcast Holdings,Before the AT&T merger in 2001, the parent company was Comcast Holdings Corporation. Comcast Holdings Corporation now refers to a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation, not the parent company ...

NBCUniversal NBCUniversal Media, LLC (abbreviated as NBCU and Trade name, doing business as NBCUniversal or Comcast NBCUniversal since 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational mass media and Show business, entertainment conglomerate (comp ...

as director of external affairs and

diversity, equity, and inclusion In the United States, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are organizational frameworks that seek to promote the fair treatment and full participation of all people, particularly groups who have historically been underrepresented or subject ...

. During the Biden administration, she worked for the

in 2021 as the senior adviser to the director. In November 2021, Timmaraju was named president of

. She was the first woman of color to be named president of the organization.

References

External links

Interview with Timmaraju
on ''To The Contrary'' * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Timmaraju, Mini 1973 births Living people American nonprofit executives People from Hyderabad, India American people of Indian descent Activists from Philadelphia University of California, Berkeley alumni University of Houston Law Center alumni American abortion-rights activists American women nonprofit executives 21st-century American women lawyers 21st-century American lawyers Lawyers from Philadelphia American people of Telugu descent 21st-century American businesswomen