A new gang rape case involving a private bus has been reported in India, where the brutal gang rape and death of a 23-year-old female medical student has prompted global outrage and demands for reform. A woman is estimated to be raped every twenty minutes in India. Some aspects of the new case are eerily […]
In an episode aired on Thursday night, NBC’s prime-time television show “Parenthood” highlighted the decision of two characters who decide to terminate an unwanted pregnancy. In the episode, a teenage couple is confronted with an unintended pregnancy and the woman decides to have an abortion. While her male partner is reluctant to terminate the pregnancy, […]
On Wednesday, a federal appeals court upheld a Massachusetts law establishing a protest-free “buffer zone” around abortion clinics. The 1st U.S. district Court of Appeals determined that a 2007 law establishing a 35-foot “buffer zone” around abortion clinic entrances, exits and driveways did not violate the First Amendment rights of anti-abortion protesters. Protesters claimed that […]
A Sri Lankan domestic worker who was convicted of killing an infant in her care was executed by the Saudi Arabian government on Wednesday. Rizana Nafeek was sentenced to death in 2007 for allegedly murdering a 4 month old infant in 2005 that had been in her care for two weeks. Nafeek initially confessed to […]
On Tuesday, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction against the Bronx Trespass Affidavit Program’s (TAP) “stop-and-frisk” practices when performed without reasonable suspicion. Judge Shira Scheindlin of the Federal Court District of Manhattan ruled that aspects of the stop-and-frisks used by the New York Police Department were unconstitutional because officers were stopping individuals outside of […]
Lawmakers in West Virginia are forming a subcommittee to look at possible new sex education policies the state can implement in order to address the high numbers of teenagers who do not use birth control in the state. The panel convened on Monday to review statistics about sexual activity among middle school and high school […]
A teacher who alleges that he* was fired from a school where he had worked for over 30 years has filed charges against the Catholic New York City school for damages. Mark Krolikowski was terminated from St. Francis Preparatory School in August of 2012 after a parent complained about his feminized appearance. Krolikowski confided to […]
In an op-ed in USA Today, former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her husband Mark Kelly announced that they have launched a Political Action Committee to challenge the dominance of gun-rights lobbyists in Washington, DC, on the two year anniversary of the shooting in Tuscon, Arizona, that left six dead and severely wounded the Congresswoman. Giffords […]
The United States Supreme Court announced the scheduled dates for two same sex marriage cases. On March 26th, the court will hear arguments relating to Proposition 8, the California ban on same sex marriage, in Hollingsworth v. Perry. The next day the court will hear arguments in United States v. Windsor, relating to the federal […]
Three of the five accused attackers in a violent gang rape of a medical student in India will enter pleas of not guilty, according to the BBC. Manohar Lal Sharma, who is representing three of the five men accused of
Last week, a record number of new congresswomen were officially sworn into their positions to begin the 113th Congressional session. One hundred women will be filling the seats of Congress in the new session. The total number of women holding seats in the House of Representatives is now 80, up from 77 in the last Congressional […]
The Department of Defense (DoD) has blocked access to LGBT advocacy websites on military computers, according to an expose in AMERICAblog last week. Websites such as GLAAD, AMERICAblog, Bilerico, Towleroad, and HRC Blog are categorized as “LGBT” and are not permitted by the filter service used by the Pentagon. Another website, Outserve.org, which is dedicated to creating a network of LGBT military members and […]
According a recent report issued by the Guttmacher Institute, 2012 saw a record of anti-abortion provisions enacted into law. The report found that of 122 provisions that related to reproductive health and rights enacted last year, 43 of those were specifically targeted at restricting abortion access. Though the 43 anti-choice provisions came from a total […]
On Wednesday, the 2nd District Court of Appeals in Los Angeles, CA overturned the rape conviction of a man who impersonated a woman’s boyfriend in order to have sex with her because the woman was not married. The district appeals court found that a law from 1827 that criminalized impersonation of a woman’s husband in […]
Twenty-two high school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, will be part of a condom distribution pilot program in an attempt to reduce sexually transmitted infections and diseases (STIs) among Philadelphia teenagers. The schools with the highest rates of STIs among students were selected to be a part of the program that features condom dispensers inside school health […]
Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani teenager who was shot in the head by Taliban forces for her outspoken support of girls’ education, was released yesterday from Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, UK. She is currently staying with her family at a temporary home in the United Kingdom before going back to the hospital for reconstructive surgery […]
The House of Representatives let the Senate-approved bipartisan Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) expire at the end of the 112th congressional session without ever seeing a vote. This is the first time VAWA has not been reauthorized since it was first passed in 1994. The Senate approved the reauthorization of VAWA in April 2012 and included new […]
On the last day of her term, outgoing North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue (D) granted a full pardon for ten activists who were convicted of firebombing a grocery store in 1972 as part of a civil rights protest. The group, known as the “Wilmington 10,” were comprised of nine black men and one white woman […]
Tom Monaghan, founder of the Domino’s Pizza franchise, was awarded a temporary restraining order by a federal judge on Sunday against the provision under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that requires employers to provide birth control coverage. Federal Judge Lawrence Zatkoff, who issued the temporary restraining order while Monaghan’s lawsuit against the federal government is […]
Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell certified new abortion regulations known as TRAP (targeted regulations of abortion providers) laws on Friday, December 28th. There will be a 60-day public comment period before a final vote by the Virginia Board of Health, likely in March. These TRAP laws were designed to force existing abortion clinics to meet the […]
