Today the North Dakota state Senate approved two bills that together would form the strictest abortion ban in the nation. Now they go to North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple (R) for his signature. The state Senate voted to approve a measure that would ban abortion when a heartbeat is detected. With a transvaginal ultrasound, a heartbeat can […]
During a hearing Wednesday before the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Personnel, Senators criticized the military’s handling of sexual assault cases, and called for serious reforms of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The Senators heard testimony from sexual assault survivors and advocates, and grilled military leadership on the fairness of the current system, which […]
Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) announced on Thursday that he has changed his position on same-sex marriage and will now support marriage equality. The former staunch supporter of the Defense of Marriage Act credits his change in opinion to his son, Will, who came out to Portman as gay two years ago. Although economic issues will […]
In response to a budget proposed by House Republicans, Senate Democrats announced their own budget proposal for 2014. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Budget Committee, released a proposal that combines spending cuts with increased tax revenue, an aspect missing from Representative Paul Ryan’s proposal. The Murray budget seeks to close tax loopholes […]
Yesterday, both sides made opening statements in the case of two high school football players accused of raping a 16 year old classmate in Steubenville, Ohio. The judge will continue to hear arguments and witness testimonies today in a non-jury trial. Prosecutor Marianne Hemmeter has argued that the victim was too intoxicated to consent, while […]
Yesterday Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, the Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, was elected to replace Pope Benedict XVI. After two days of discussion, the conclave announced that they had selected Cardinal Bergoglio to lead the Catholic Church and assume the name Pope Francis. He is the first Latin American pope, as well as the first Pope […]
Congressman Paul Ryan (R-WI), Chair of the House Budget Committee, released a 2013 budget yesterday that attacks multiple advances made since President Obama first took office in 2009. The Ryan budget would repeal the 2010 Affordable Care Act, which prohibits insurance companies from classifying being a woman as a pre-existing medical condition and eliminated co-pays […]
Today Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Chair of the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Personnel, convened a hearing to investigate sexual assault in the military. The hearing includes testimony from individuals who have been victims of rape and sexual assault while serving, and is the first Senate hearing to examine sexual assault in the military in […]
On Friday a federal judge ruled that a 2010 law banning Mexican American studies in Tuscon, Arizona, is constitutional. Federal Judge Wallace Tashima of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appealsdetermined that the plaintiffs failed to prove that the law was too broad or violated student first amendment rights. Only one part of the law […]
Over 50 individuals gathered yesterday in Alexandria, Virginia to speak on strict TRAP regulation signed by Governor McDonnell. In a meeting room that was filled to standing room only, pro-choice activists argued to reject harsh regulations that could force abortion providers in Virginia to meet the building codes of new hospitals or face closure. Among […]
One of the six suspects in the brutal gang rape and murder of a 23 year-old New Delhi student was found dead early this morning. The suspect, Ram Singh, who was accused of driving the bus in which the attacks occurred, was discovered dead in his cell at Tihar Jail around 5:30AM. The jail claims […]
Last Friday, South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard (R) signed into law a measure that will extend the time women seeking an abortion must wait before having the procedure. The bill passed the state House in early February and passed the state Senate last week. The law excludes Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays from being included in […]
South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard signed a bill into law on Friday that will allow staff to carry guns in schools in an effort to provide extra security against school shootings. South Dakota is the first state to incorporate the National Rifle Association’s proposed solution to school shootings into state law. The rationale behind the […]
On Wednesday, a federal judge ruled that an Idaho law banning abortion after 20 weeks is unconstitutional because it places an undue burden on a woman seeking to terminate a pregnancy before viability. U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill wrote in his opinion, “the Idaho Legislature’s enactment of the [fetal pain law] in light of […]
Today marks over a century of honoring women on International Women’s Day. What grew out of protests over unsafe working conditions for female factory workers nationwide has now become an international day of recognition of women and girls around the world and the struggles they still face. As the United Nations Commission on the Status […]
Yesterday, the Arkansas state legislature voted to override Governor Beebe’s veto of the Human Heartbeat Protection Act, which bans abortion after a heartbeat can be detected with a standard ultrasound (usually 12 weeks). While the bill does include exemptions for rape, incest, severe fetal abnormality, and to save the life of the mother, the bill […]
President Obama will sign the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) into law today. The ceremony will take place at Interior Department. After over 500 days without congressional reauthorization, the House approved an inclusive, bipartisan VAWA as passed by the Senate on February 28. The reauthorization includes expanded protections for students, LGBT individuals, immigrants, and Native […]
On Monday, the 57th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women began in New York. The two-week long convention discusses the current problems facing women and girls around the world and what the international community can do in response. The primary goal of the commission is to eliminate violence against women and girls. Deputy […]
On Monday, Lieutenant General Craig Franklin overturned the rape conviction of an air force service member who was found guilty by a jury. Franklin claims there was not sufficient evidence that the woman had been raped. The Air Force fighter pilot was convicted in November for aggravated sexual assault by a jury of four colonels […]
The Arkansas Senate voted to override Governor Mike Beebe’s (D) veto of the Arkansas Human Heartbeat Protection Act yesterday. The override passed the Senate in a twenty to fourteen vote. All fourteen Arkansas Democratic Senators voted against the override. In a letter issued after Beebe’s veto on Monday, Beebe said the bill twenty to fourteen […]
