Scarlett Johansson on equality for women: 'We’re moving backward'

Scarlett Johansson may have previously skirted around the feminist label but, in her latest spread for Cosmopolitan, the May 2016 cover star unabashedly takes on feminist issues, including reproductive health and pay equality.

Referencing the ongoing debate on funding for Planned Parenthood, Johansson said, "There are countries at war, there’s terrorism, global warming, and we’re like, 'We should definitely cut the budget for Planned Parenthood. Let’s take away the availability of women’s health initiatives!' It’s nuts."

The Captain America: Civil War actress then cited the myriad of reproductive health services provided by the nonprofit and said that moves to defund the facilities adversely impact women’s access to care.

"We’re talking about preventing cervical and breast cancers," she said. "Growing up, I used (Planned Parenthood’s) services. All my girlfriends did — not just for birth control but for Pap smears and breast exams. You read about the rise of back-alley abortions, women having to mutilate themselves and teenagers having to seek help in unsafe conditions, and for what?! We’re moving backward when we’re supposed to be moving forward."

To that end, Johansson also chimed in on the gender pay gap, a dialogue that has been reverberating in Hollywood. However, she maintained that the conversation should go beyond the personal to address women at large.

"There’s something icky about me having that conversation unless it applies to a greater whole," Johansson said. "I am very fortunate, I make a really good living, and I’m proud to be an actress who’s making as much as many of my male peers at this stage… I think every woman has (been underpaid), but unless I’m addressing it as a larger problem, for me to talk about my own personal experience with it feels a little obnoxious. It’s part of a larger conversation about feminism in general."

Preach, Jo. Catch the full gospel on newsstands and online April 12. ​