A recent study released by researchers from the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis revealed that low-income women have lower rates of unintended pregnancy and abortion when given easy no-cost access to birth control. Researchers who launched the Contraceptive CHOICE project tracked 9,256 low-income girls and women over four years and found that […]
Federal Court Judge Saundra Brown Armstrong upheld most of a 2011 San Francisco law that prohibits the false advertising of anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers. First Resort, a CPC based in San Francisco, sued the state of California in response to the truth in advertising law, alleged that the law is vague, is preempted by state […]
When I was growing up in Bangladesh, Burma’s Aung San Suu Kyi never ceased to amaze me. Burma is right next door to us geographically, but as a little girl all I understood about the military junta in Burma was primarily through pictures. I just could not wrap my head around what kind of threat […]
Bayer Pharmaceuticals recently announced their partnership with the Clinton Foundation to provide half priced implantable contraceptives for 27 million women living in developing countries worldwide. The contraceptive, known as Jadelle (or Norplant), is a progestogen-only plastic rod which is implanted under the skin and last up to five years, or until a woman decides to […]
Ohio’s early voting option for all Ohio residents was reinstated by a federal appeals court Friday. The court upheld a lower court’s ruling striking down the law limiting early voting to military personnel. The law in question had allowed military personnel to participate in a three day early voting period, while barring civilians from the […]
At a book signing in Washington, DC, last week Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia called overruling Roe v. Wade, criminalizing homosexual sex, and ruling the death penalty constitutional all “absolutely easy” cases. While speaking at the signing at the American Enterprise Institute, Scalia said: “The death penalty? Give me a break. It’s easy. Abortion? Absolutely […]
The Oklahoma State Department of Health has cut off its three affiliated Planned Parenthood clinics from receiving funding from the state’s Women Infant and Children (WIC) Program, effective December 31st. WIC has provided funding to these clinics for the past 18 years — allowing them to provide food vouchers, baby formula, nutrition counseling, and health […]
Moroccan authorities escorted a sailboat from Women on Waves out of the port of Smir on Thursday. The boat is part of the Dutch women’s rights group’s campaign to spread information about abortion to countries where the medical procedure is banned. Moroccan authorities shut down the port of Smir when they received word that a […]
Yesterday, the National Center for Transgender Equality launched a series of public service announcements targeting what transgender individuals need to know in order to vote in the upcoming election. As part of the NCTE’s awareness campaign “Voting While Trans,” the PSAs discuss how many transgender individuals could have their right to vote challenged under new […]
For the first time, two female soldiers have been admitted into the Marine Corps’ Infantry Officer Course. Their admittance is experimental and the results will be considered by the Pentagon when deliberating the inclusion of women in combat units from which they are currently excluded. The Infantry Officer Course is an intensive 86 day challenge […]
Today Walmart employees at a number of Southern California stores walked out, striking in opposition to the retailer’s attempts to suppress unionization. This is the first time in Walmart’s history that employees at multiple stores are striking at the same time. Protesters are citing Walmart, the world’s largest private employer, for mistreatment, including OUR Walmart, […]
In the weeks leading up to Election Day, Ms. will be outlining state ballot initiatives and referenda of major significance to women. I know what you’re (wishfully) thinking: By 2012, American women should already have easy access to, and public funding for, abortions—with the most minimal-to-nonexistent restrictions. Unfortunately, the opposite is true: In state legislatures […]
For Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Ms. blog will be running a series of pieces devoted to the disease and activism around it. It’s fun. It’s flirty. And it grabs a person’s eye. Shirts, baseball caps and rubber bracelets emblazoned with the slogans “Save the tatas,” “Save second base,” “I heart boobies.” With each Breast […]
On Tuesday, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Ohio upheld a 2004 Ohio law that restricts the use of the drug RU-486, also known as mifepristone or the “abortion pill”. The ruling bans the use of RU-486 beyond seven weeks, making a surgical procedure the only option for women seeking to terminate a pregnancy. […]
On Tuesday current employees of Walmart’s Tennessee stores announced a class-action lawsuit against the corporation on grounds of sex discrimination. The case, Phipps, et al. v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., is a class-action suit that alleges that female employees in Tennessee did not receive the same pay or promotion opportunities as their male counterparts at Walmart. […]
On Tuesday, just five weeks before Election Day, a Commonwealth Court judge halted enforcement of Pennsylvania’s strict new voting ID law from going into effect in the pivotal swing state until after this year’s presidential election. The law, enacted in March, requires that every person have a Department of Transportation (PennDOT) photo ID in order […]
The Republican National Committee ended its ties with Strategic Allied Consulting, a firm hired to register voters for the 2012 election, as Florida prosecutors investigate suspected voter fraud. The RNC’s decision to cancel its contract with Strategic Allied, founded by Nathan Sproul, comes just days before voter registration deadlines in many battleground states. This judgment […]
In Uruguay, the Chamber of Deputies voted 50 to 49 last week to legalize abortion. The AP reports that President Jose Mujica will allow the law to pass. Women will be allowed to access legal abortions in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy and up to the 14th week in cases of rape or incest. […]
Yesterday, Governor Jerry Brown vetoed the California Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, which would have provided about 200,000 domestic workers with overtime pay, meal breaks, and a suitable sleeping environment for live-in workers, due to what he claims to be a “number of unanswered questions” that the bill raises. According to Assembly Member Tom Ammiano, […]
Recently, an Illinois Appeals Court ruled in favor of two pharmacists who refused to fill emergency contraception prescriptions on the basis of their religious beliefs. On Friday, September 21, the court determined the plaintiffs’, Luke Vander Bleek and Glenn Kosirog, right to conscience permitted them from dispensing the morning-after pill as required by a 2005 […]
