Migration Category: National Old Site

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will not take action against a Pennsylvania college that has a vending machine in the student health center that dispense the morning-after pill.

Shippensburg University began dispensing Plan-B, the brand name for an emergency contraceptive pill that can be taken up to 72 hours after unprotected sex, in a health center vending machine three years ago. The vending machine didn’t receive much attention until last year, at which point the FDA contacted university officials to gather more information.

In a statement released to news outlets last week, the FDA announced that it will not be taking any action against Shippensburg University for the vending machine. Erica Jefferson, a spokesperson for the FDA, said in a statement, “FDA looked at publicly available information about Shippensburg’s vending program and spoke with university and campus health officials and decided not to take any regulatory actions.”

Retired Cardinal Roger M. Mahony was relieved from all of his public duties hours after the release of confidential Catholic Church documents on child sexual abuse scandals from the 1980’s.

Thousands of files containing information regarding the cover up of years of sexual abuse scandals by priests within the church, many of which occurred during Cardinal Mahony’s career, were released by court-order on Thursday. The contents of those documents led Archbishop Jose H. Gomez to the decision to relieve Mahony of his duties.

“I cannot undo the failings of the past that we find in these pages. Reading these files, reflecting on the wounds that were caused has been the saddest experience I’ve had since becoming your Archbishop in 2011,” Gomez wrote, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Mahony, formerly the Catholic Church’s highest ranking official in Southern California, has faced allegations from the media and victims that he covered up priests’ misconduct. The archdiocese paid $660 million in 2007 to settle civil lawsuits with 508 people who claimed they had been abused by priests or church employees.

Yesterday, President Obama released a memorandum calling for an increased push from executive departments towards achieving equality for women and girls worldwide.

In his memorandum, President Obama wrote “Promoting gender equality and advancing the status of all women and girls around the world remains one of the greatest unmet challenges of our time, and one that is vital to achieving our overall foreign policy objectives. Ensuring that women and girls, including those most marginalized, are able to participate fully in public life, are free from violence, and have equal access to education, economic opportunity, and health care increases broader economic prosperity, as well as political stability and security.”

The memorandum also calls for the Secretary of State to designate an “Ambassador at Large” that shall “provide guidance and coordination with respect to global policies and programs for women and girls, and shall lead efforts to promote an international focus on gender equality more broadly,” and could also assist with developing new policies that advance women’s rights and girls’ rights domestically and abroad.

A bill that would prohibit elementary and middle school teachers from discussing any form of sexuality that is not considered natural reproduction with students was reintroduced in the Tennessee state Senate.

SB 234, titled the “Classroom Protection Act” [PDF] but nicknamed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, reads “The general assembly recognizes that certain subjects are particularly sensitive and are, therefore, best explained and discussed within the home… any such classroom instruction, course materials or other informational resources that are inconsistent with natural human reproduction shall be classified as inappropriate for the intended student audience and, therefore, shall be prohibited.” SB 234 specifically targets kindergarten through eighth grade classes.

The new 2013 “Don’t Say Gay” bill includes a new clause that could require teachers and school staff to inform parents if their child identifies as or is assumed to be LGBTQ. Listed as an exception from prohibited discussion on sexuality is “counseling a student who is engaging in, or who may be at risk of engaging in, behavior injurious to the physical or mental health and well-being of the student or another person.. Parents or legal guardians of students who receive such counseling shall be notified as soon as practicable that such counseling has occurred.” No further guidelines of what behavior constitutes a reason for is given, which would enable teachers to determine these criteria themselves.

The original “Don’t Say Gay” bill advanced out of the Tennessee state Senate’s Education Committee on a 6 to 3 party line vote in 2011, but died on the Senate floor without being brought to a vote in 2012. In Tennessee, it is already illegal to teach sex education that is outside of the State Board of Education’s “family life curriculum,” which excludes any reference to homosexuality.

The first Senate Judiciary Committee hearing concerning gun control since President Obama announced his commitment to reducing gun violence begins today. Obama’s proposal for gun control includes the reinstatement of a ban on “assault” weapons, a limit on ammunition capacities, and more extensive background checks.

Former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and husband Mark Kelly, who recently launched an anti-gun PAC in response to the 2011 attack that left Giffords critically injured, are scheduled to speak at today’s hearing. Also speaking is National Rifle Association CEO Wayne LaPierre, who sees the proposal as a restriction to Second Amendment rights and recently called for armed police officers in every school in the United States and creation of a national database to track those with mental illness after the Sandy Hook Massacre.

Earlier in January, President Barack Obama publicly announced a comprehensive plan for addressing gun violence in the United States. In a press conference, President Obama announced that he would use the full extent of his executive power to curb gun violence in the United States and called on Congress to take legislative action to increase gun control.

Malala Yousafzai, the girls’ rights activist who was shot in the head by the Taliban in October 2012, is preparing for her final surgeries.

The BBC reports that in the next few days, a surgeon will implant a titanium plate in Yousafzai’s skull and a cochlear implant to restore hearing in her left ear, which was severely damaged. Doctors have also been working to revive a nerve on the left side of her face. “There is a very good chance after this procedure that within a year to 18 months, this will completely recover,” Dr. Rosser, the medical director of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, UK told CNN.

Medical experts in charge of Malala’s care report that she is determined and cheerful. She is aware of what the shooting and her survival means for the immediate future. “She’s not naive at all about what happened to her and the situation in terms of her high profile. She’s incredibly determined to continue to speak for her cause” Dr. Rosser told the Guardian.

Yousafzai was targeted by the Taliban early in 2012 after she wrote a diary under a pen name and published by the BBC that criticized the Taliban and the challenges faced by girls trying to get an education in Pakistan. In October, she was shot in the head after two men approached her school van on her way home from school. She was immediately rushed to a Pakistani hospital where doctors removed the bullets lodged in her head. She was then transferred to Queen Elizabeth Hospital for specialized treatment.

Conservative leaders in the New York state Senate are planning on fighting a women’s rights proposal from New York Governor Andrew Cuomo over provisions related to abortion.

Governor Cuomo has been speaking in support of his “Women’s Equality Act,” though a bill has not yet been submitted to the state Senate. The “Women’s Equality Act” would provide equal pay for equal work, workplace protections against discrimination, and measures against violence against women. The bill would also allow for late-term abortion to protect a woman’s health, not just her life, and would protect abortion access in New York should Roe v. Wade be overturned.

New York Senate Conservatives are already pledging to fight the bill once it is proposed. “I don’t understand what the issue is,” New York Senate chairman Dean Skelos (R-Nassau) said. “In New York state, you have Medicaid spending on abortion, there is no parental consent, there is no parental notification, you can pretty much have an abortion any time you want … I think it’s really a non-issue.”

But Governor Cuomo’s office views things differently. “State law needs to be updated so that it is consistent with federal standards and once and for all makes a woman’s right to choose unassailable in New York state,” Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi told the Wall Street Journal. “This is not an expansion of abortion rights. It’s a codification of existing federal law. Any suggestion to the contrary is not only baseless, but a distortion of the facts.”

On Monday, two Boy Scouts of America (BSA) board members, Randall Stephenson and James Turley, announced they will seek to end the organization’s ban on gay members. Stephenson, who will assume the position of national chairman in 2014, and Turley hope to implement a policy that would put the power to admit or not admit gay boys and men to the Boy Scouts in the hands of the individual civic organizations which fund units. Currently, that power lies with the organization on a national level. The BSA’s longstanding policy on homosexuality may be challenged before the board as soon as next week.

“The chartered organizations that oversee and deliver scouting would accept membership and select leaders consistent with their organization’s mission, principles or religious beliefs,” said BSA spokesman Daron Smith,in reference to the proposed change. He went on to say that parents would be permitted to sort through the policies of local chapters and place their child in the one most on par with their views.

The organization has been heavily scrutinized over their policy prohibiting openly gay scouts and leaders. In June of 2012, the BSA executive board issued a memorandum reiterating their policy: boys and men are not to be asked about their sexuality, but those who explicitly state that they are gay will be denied admittance. Entities with antidiscrimination policies, for example public schools and large corporations, have been withdrawing financial and in kind support of the Boy Scouts and have circulated petitions in significant numbers against the exclusionary policy. In 2000, in the Supreme Court case Dale v. Boy Scouts of America, the Supreme Court ruled that the organization was within their rights when they denied a gay teen membership in 2000.

Yesterday a Wyoming state House committee voted 5 to 3 to reject a bill that would have prohibited abortion once a fetal heartbeat can be detected.

House Bill 97 was introduced into the Wyoming House Labor Health and Social Services committee yesterday by Representative Kendell Kroeker (R-Evansville). The committee debated for over two hours before rejecting the bill. Many representatives cited legal and medical vagueness as a reason to reject the bill. Representative Mary Throne (D-Cheyenne) questioned “Is this abortion illegal at 22 days with a highly invasive ultrasound or is it illegal at 9 weeks when we hear a heartbeat with a stethoscope?” Republican Representative Norine Kasperik (Gillette) pointed out that during the discussion she also heard different answers for when a heartbeat is detectable. Kasperik said, “These are questions that I feel like I have not heard answers to and have concerns about the vagueness of some of the language within the bill.”

Representative Sue Wallis (R-Recluse) shared her own abortion story, which happened when she was facing both a difficult pregnancy and a custody battle for her three children against an abusive ex-husband. “The notion that protected human life begins at the moment of conception is some religious sects’ interpretation, certainly not mine” she declared.

Wyoming is not the only state that has considered a ban on abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected. The Ohio state legislature faced the same decision last year when a heartbeat bill passed the Ohio House of Representatives, but expired in the state Senate without being brought to the floor.

On Monday, a bipartisan group of US Senators unveiled a comprehensive plan to reform the current United States immigration system.

The immigration blueprint calls for a path to citizenship for those who are currently residing illegally in the U.S., but with the caveat that the U.S. borders be strengthened. The plan would also make it easier for low-skill and agricultural workers to obtain legal work visas and would offer green cards to those who graduate from an American university with an advanced degree in math, science, or technology. The plan also includes improvements in tracking expired visas.

The bipartisan group of Senators who created the plan, called the “Gang of Eight,” includes Republicans John McCain (AZ), Marco Rubio (FL), Lindsey Graham (SC), and Jeff Flake (AZ). Democrats who worked on the plan are Charles Schumer (NY), Dick Durbin (IL), Robert Menendez (NJ), and Michael Bennet (CO).

Senator McCain told media host George Stephanopoulos, “We can’t go on forever with 11 million people living in this country in the shadows in an illegal status.” Senator Charles Schumer told reporters that while Democrats may compromise on border security, “there’s a bottom line, and that’s a path to citizenship for the 11 or so million people who qualify. We’ve made great, great progress with our Republican colleagues.”

President Obama is scheduled to announce his goals for immigration reform at an event in Nevada on Tuesday. A spokesperson for the White House said in a statement, “As the president has made clear for some time, immigration reform is an important priority and he is pleased that progress is being made with bipartisan support… At the same time, he will not be satisfied until there is meaningful reform and he will continue to urge Congress to act until that is achieved.”

Under a proposed law in the New Mexico state House of Representative, a woman who has an abortion after being raped could face felony criminal charges.

New Mexico House Bill 206, proposed by state Representative Cathrynn Brown (R-Carlsbad), would classify terminating a pregnancy resulting from rape or incest as tampering with evidence. The text of the proposed bill [PDF] reads “Tampering with evidence shall include procuring or facilitating an abortion, or compelling or coercing another to obtain an abortion, of a fetus that is the result of criminal sexual penetration or incest with the intent to destroy evidence of the crime.” This could mean that rape or incest victims who seek to terminate a pregnancy resulting from rape could face felony charges and up to three years in prison.

Representative Brown insists that the bill was designed to protect women from being forced to have an abortion by their attacker. She told the Albuquerque Journal “I thought I had a pretty good little bill that was going to accomplish a lot of good, and it’s being misconstrued.” She claims in the Carlsbad Current-Argus, the local newspaper for her district, that the bill was poorly drafted by a member of her staff and when reviewing it she didn’t catch the possible interpretation that she is facing criticism for now. “I missed this one,” she said.

Javier Gonzalez, the Chairman of the Democratic Party of New Mexico, told the Albuquerque Journal “This bill is wrong and should never see the light of day in any legislature in this country, let alone New Mexico… The war on women in America has to stop. No woman should ever be forced to carry a child for ‘evidence,’ plain and simple.”

Representative Brown plans on introducing new legislation that will clarify that the attacker would be punished under the law, not the victim, however she has yet to respond further to the media.

A Colorado Catholic hospital defended itself against a wrongful death suit by claiming that the hospital failed to perform an emergency c-section to save the lives of twin fetuses in court by arguing that fetuses are not people.

In 2006, Lori Stodghill was seven months pregnant with twins when she arrived at St. Thomas More Hospital in Canon City, Colorado, with what was later determined to be a heart attack. Emergency Room staff were unable to resuscitate Lori, and the obstetrician on call, who was also her primary obstetrician, did not answer their pages. The twin fetuses died in the womb. Jeremy Stoghill, Lori’s husband, filed a wrongful death suit arguing the while a c-section might not have saved Lori, it could have saved the twin fetuses.

Catholic Health Initiatives, which manages the St. Thomas More Hospital, filed a brief that “Under Colorado law, a fetus is not a ‘person’ and plaintiff’s claims for wrongful death must therefore be dismissed.” The defense attorney for Catholic Health Initiatives Jason Langely, wrote in the brief that the court “should not overturn the long-standing rule in Colorado that the term ‘person,’ as is used in the Wrongful Death Act, encompasses only individuals born alive. Colorado state courts define ‘person’ under the Act to include only those born alive. Therefore Plaintiffs cannot maintain wrongful death claims based on two unborn fetuses.”

The Catholic Church is currently investigating whether the brief filed on behalf of Catholic Health Initiatives violates Catholic Doctrine. The Catholic Bishops of Colorado released a statement saying “Catholics and Catholic institutions have the duty to protect and foster human life, and to witness to the dignity of the human person – particularly to the dignity of the unborn. No Catholic institution may legitimately work to undermine fundamental human dignity… The Catholic bishops of Colorado are not able to comment on ongoing legal disputes. However, we will undertake a full review of this litigation, and of the policies and practices of Catholic Health Initiatives to ensure fidelity and faithful witness to the teachings of the Catholic Church.”

The Feminist Majority Foundation applauds the long awaited decision to remove the combat restriction on women in the military. This is a historic milestone in the fight for women’s equality. The combat restriction has been a sham. Women have been and are currently serving in combat positions, but have received neither the recognition nor the chance for promotion that men have enjoyed. We urge in its implementation that all barriers based simply on the gender of members of the armed services be removed, and that they be judged simply upon their capabilities.

For years women in the military have been discriminated against because of a cultural war that has finally ended on the position of women in the military. The reality on the ground has finally become the reality of public policy.

In 1980, when I was the President of the National Organization for Women, I released the following statement: “Discrimination against women…produces in the armed services exactly what it produces in the society as a whole-wasted skills, talents and potential…” At that time, we also addressed the false position that women do not serve in combat roles, saying, “The first myth to be dispelled is that women have not been in combat…Women have served and will continue to serve in combat environments under the same conditions, suffering the same risks and injuries as men.” Finally, our nation is recognizing this basic fact and correcting this outrageous injustice that has denied women just benefits and recognition for far too long.

In the fight for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment it was frequently argued by opponents that women cannot have equal rights without sharing equal responsibility. We have had more than our share of responsibility. Now, because of the courageous service of women in the armed services, women in the military are finally getting the recognition they deserve.

Senators Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) re-introduced the Paycheck Fairness Act, which addresses the wage gap between men and women, in the Senate on Wednesday.

The bill, S. 84 seeks to amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and require employers to prove that differences in wage are the result of differences in merit, not gender. It also prohibits retaliation against employees who file claims of wage discrimination, and allows victims of wage discrimination to seek punitive damages for lost wages.

In a press release, Senator Mikulski said “The Paycheck Fairness Act ensures that women will no longer be fighting on their own for equal pay for equal work.” Senator DeLauro echoed Mikulski’s sentiment by saying “The Paycheck Fairness Act will help the Equal Pay Act fulfill its intended objective, offer real protections to ensure equal pay for equal work, and see that women are paid the same as the other half of our nation’s workforce for the same job.”

The Paycheck Fairness Act was first introduced in 2009 but failed to get the necessary 60 votes to pass in the Senate. Last year, the act was filibustered by Senate Republicans in June.

Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli likened his fight against birth control coverage without copays to the civil rights struggles led by Martin Luther King, Jr. on Monday.

On a conservative radio show, Cuccinelli claimed that his campaign against birth control was actually a fight to defend religious liberty comparable to the fight by Martin Luther King, Jr. He told listeners “All they talk about -they don’t talk about denying religious liberty. They talk about contraception. And I’m not talking about contraception. Government doesn’t have a role in contraception. … Government does have a role in protecting your civil rights especially today on MLK Day. The man who really came up with the American non-violent protest theory of civil disobedience. It’s pretty egregious that they can’t get any higher than contraception when we’re talking about protecting people’s religious liberty.”

In a statement released by the Virginia Democratic Party, former Delegate Ferguson Reid condemned Cuccinelli’s remarks “It is disappointing that Attorney General Cuccinelli would equate his opposition to birth control coverage with the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the men and women who marched and fought so that all Americans could have equal rights.”

Cuccinelli has been in the spotlight on reproductive health issues before. Last year, Cuccinelli came under fire for his efforts to establish one of the strictest TRAP (Targeted Regulations of Abortion Providers) laws in the country, which requires that abortion clinics in Virginia meet the same building regulations as new hospitals.

On Tuesday, Senators Mike Crapo (R-ID) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) reintroduced a bill to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). The version of the bill they introduced is the same version that passed in the Senate during the last legislative session. Additionally, Democrats in the House of Representatives introduced a reauthorization bill that is identical to the Senate version, H.R. 11.

The bipartisan-supported Senate Violence Against Women Act includes expanded protections for Native American women, LGBTQ individuals, students, and immigrant women. In addition, the proposed reauthorization closes a loop-hole in regards to U visas that House conservatives had used as an excuse to dismiss the Act in the last session. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) told reporters “In the interest of making quick and decisive progress, we introduce the bill today without that provision in order to remove any excuse for House inaction.”

VAWA expired at the end of 2012. This was the first time VAWA has not been reauthorized since it was first passed in 1994. House conservatives had proposed their own version of the reauthorization in the last legislative session, the Cantor/Adams VAWA, that did not include protections for Native American women, LGBTQ individuals, and other disenfranchised groups. funny photos

Yesterday, President Barack Obama was sworn in for his second term as President of the United States. Vice President Joe Biden also took the oath of office alongside the president.

In his inauguration speech, President Obama called for a progressive platform that featured climate change, women’s rights, LBGTQ rights, immigration reform, protection of voter rights, and more. President Obama highlighted the greatest civil rights movements in United States history as a call to new action.

“We, the people” he proclaimed, “declare today that the most evident of truths – that all of us are created equal – is the star that guides us still; just as it guided our forebears through Seneca Falls, and Selma, and Stonewall; just as it guided all those men and women, sung and unsung, who left footprints along this great Mall, to hear a preacher say that we cannot walk alone; to hear a King proclaim that our individual freedom is inextricably bound to the freedom of every soul on Earth.

It is now our generation’s task to carry on what those pioneers began. For our journey is not complete until our wives, our mothers, and daughters can earn a living equal to their efforts. Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law – for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as well. Our journey is not complete until no citizen is forced to wait for hours to exercise the right to vote. Our journey is not complete until we find a better way to welcome the striving, hopeful immigrants who still see America as a land of opportunity; until bright young students and engineers are enlisted in our workforce rather than expelled from our country. Our journey is not complete until all our children, from the streets of Detroit to the hills of Appalachia to the quiet lanes of Newtown, know that they are cared for, and cherished, and always safe from harm.”

While public attention was focused on the inauguration of President Obama, the Virginia state Senate quickly passed a redistricting measure that could give Republicans a majority in the state senate in 2015. The measure was passed on a 20 to 19 party-line vote while one Democratic state senator was in Washington, D.C., for the Inauguration ceremonies.

“We talk about the dangers of legislating on the fly. Well, this is the ultimate in danger,” Senator Don McEachin of Henrico (D) said about the measure. “The public has no idea what we’re about to do adopting this substitute, nor would they know in the next three days that it would take for this bill to ultimately pass.”

Governor Bob McDonnell (R) had yet to read the legislation when it was passed. A spokesperson for the governor’s office told reporters “The Governor was very surprised to learn that a redistricting bill would be voted on by the Senate today… He has not seen this legislation. If the bill gets to his desk he will review it in great detail at that time as he did with prior redistricting legislation.”

The redistricting would potentially eliminate one democratic seat in the Virginia senate by creating one district that is predominantly minorities, and in doing so allowing Republicans to gain control of nearby districts. Democratic Leader Richard Saslow (D-Fairfax) says that Democrats will challenge the measure in court if it passes the House. “If this plan stands, there will be litigation, you can be sure of that,” he told reporters. “The Virginia Constitution says that the Virginia General Assembly shall redistrict in 2011 and every 10 years thereafter. This will be struck down. The collateral damage from this thing will be immeasurable. This isn’t the last we’ve heard of this.”

Rush Limbaugh responded to a caller who brought up abortion during a conversation about gun control by saying, “You know how to stop abortion? Require that each one occur with a gun.” during his show on Wednesday.

Rush Limbaugh is known for his inflammatory and ultra-conservative comments. Last year, Limbaugh entered the birth control debate with his vitriolic remarks against then-Georgetown law student Sandra Fluke. Limbaugh remarked on his radio show, “What does it say about the college [sic] co-ed Sandra Fluke, who goes before a congressional committee and essentially says that she must be paid to have sex? It makes her a slut, right? It makes her a prostitute. She wants to be paid to have sex.” The national criticism of Limbaugh’s remarks forced over 150 businesses to pull advertisements from The Rush Limbaugh show.