As a Bangladeshi woman, I could not have felt more fortunate when I decided to give birth in America. It was a natural choice for my American husband and I. After almost a decade working to ensure US foreign policy protects women’s reproductive health and rights, I was well-aware that every year, approximately 529,000 women and girls...
by Terry O’Neill, National Organization for Women In time for Mothers Day, the 12th HERvotes blog carnival is dedicated to getting the word out about economic security for women, especially in their retirement years. Women need better benefits — not cuts — under social safety net programs. The economic slump in both the U.S. and...
by Audrey Bilger It’s official. After a week of speculation about whether the White House was going to take a strong stand on marriage equality, President Obama has gone on record in support of same-sex marriage rights. After explaining how his views have changed over the years, the President said the words that many of...
by Kristen Schuetz “What do we do when women’s rights are under attack? Stand up, fight back!” That was the call that rang through downtown Los Angeles last Saturday, April 28, in protest against the ever-present War On Women, which has dragged on since Congress’ introduction of the “let women die” bill in early 2011....
co-written by Melody Moezzi & Tracy Hollister North Carolina has the dishonorable distinction of becoming the first state to put an anti-gay marriage amendment on a 2012 ballot. On May 8, voters in the state will weigh in on the North Carolina’s Amendment 1, which states that “marriage between one man and one woman is the only...
by Eleanor Smeal, Feminist Majority Foundation For the eleventh #HERvotes blog carnival, we’re joining together to urge the Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Domestic violence results in over two million injuries every year. Three women die every day in the United States as the result of domestic violence. Since the passage of...
By Cindy Pearson, co-founder of Raising Women’s Voices for the Health Care We Need For the tenth #HERvotes blog carnival, we’re celebrating the second anniversary of the new health-reform law, the Affordable Care Act, or ACA. Why are women so excited about the ACA? Well, for a start, the law has already started removing barriers...
by Tara Mancini, co-chair of WIN’s Women’s Health Policy Network I think it is no coincidence that the 2nd anniversary of the ACA coincides with the celebration of Women’s History Month. Women have made numerous contributions to society that throughout the ages have received little attention, much like the important protections afforded to women through...
by Ali Tweedt, FMF Intern Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney’s (D-NY) now-infamous words have gone viral paired with a picture of last Thursday’s all-male panel at the hearing on contraception coverage by religious institutions. The hearing, “Lines Crossed: Separation of Church and State. Has the Obama Administration Trampled on Freedom of Religion and Freedom of Conscience?” was...
The new definition of rape, just approved by the FBI for the Uniform Crime Report is: “Penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.” A bill passed by the Republican controlled Virginia...
Last Thursday, I attended the Senate Judiciary Committee meeting when they voted to send the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2011 to the Senate floor for a vote. Every Committee Democrat voted yes and every Republican voted no. Most of the Republicans didn’t even show up to cast their no votes, but did so...
By Mara Einstein Breast-cancer charity Susan G. Komen’s decision to pull funding from Planned Parenthood–an organization that provides subsidized breast cancer exams for lower-income women–leaves me scratching my head. Komen claims to be withholding funds because of new criteria barring it from providing grants to organizations that are under investigation by local, state or federal...
