On Saturday Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) married his longtime partner Jim Ready, becoming the first sitting member of congress to marry a same-sex partner. Frank and Ready met in 2005 at a political fundraiser in support of gay rights and nondiscrimination legislation for the LGBTQ community. The couple was married in Newton, Massachusetts, part of […]
Requests for a gay pride parade to be held in St. Petersburg this Saturday were denied as a result of a Gay Propaganda law that came into effect in March. The Russian LGBT group Ravnopravie applied to hold St. Petersburg’s third annual pride parade tomorrow, and its organizers are now facing charges of homosexual propaganda. […]
Feng Jianmei of China’s Shaanxi Province was forced by local officials to abort her second pregnancy this June after violating China’s strict one-child policy. After being unable to pay over $6,000 in fines for her second pregnancy, Jianmei was abducted and held for three days by local officials. She was then given an injection against […]
A transgender woman was recently sentenced to a 41-month prison term in a men’s prison for acting in what many are calling self-defense in response to a hate crime. Cece McDonald, a young, black, transgender woman was arrested in Minnesota last June for stabbing and killing a white man who was part of a group […]
The Republican-controlled General Assembly of North Carolina voted to defund Planned Parenthood late Monday night. An estimated $200,000 will be stripped from the state’s two Planned Parenthood Affiliates after the General Assembly voted to override Governor Beverly Purdue’s veto of the annual budget. The General Assembly unsuccessfully attempted to defund Planned Parenthood in 2011. The […]
A crisis pregnancy center (CPC) is opening up across the street from the Women’s Health Center, the only abortion provider in northern Minnesota. “We already have problems with picketing and harassing patients, so we feel if the crisis pregnancy center goes kitty-corner from us, there just may be more picketing and harassment,” said Laurie Casey, […]
The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services released proposed changes to regulations of abortion services last week. The proposed changes modify the conditions that qualify an abortion procedure for federal reimbursement. The new language reads that a woman can be reimbursed if, “the mother is endangered by the pregnancy.” The changes have raised alarm […]
US District Judge Daniel P. Jordan issued a temporary injunction yesterday preventing implementation of a new Mississippi state law that could force closure of The Jackson Women’s Health Organization, Mississippi’s only abortion clinic. Judge Jordan scheduled a hearing for July 11 when he will determine if the order should be extended. The Targeted Regulation of […]
Once again, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has vetoed a bill that would have restored family planning funds in the state. Last week the State Senate approved a bill, S-788, that would have restored nearly $7.5 million in family planning funding. Christie said he defunded family planning services two years ago for budget reasons, but […]
A woman is suing a priest who allegedly sexually abused her during exorcisms he performed on her over a two year period. The woman, identified as Jane Doe, filed a suit against the Catholic Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, its Bishop Paul S. Loverde, and Human Life International, an anti-abortion ministry that the alleged abuser, Rev. […]
A federal judge ruled on Wednesday that starting July 1, South Dakota can enforce part of a stringent anti-abortion law which will require a doctor, before performing an abortion, to determine if a woman has been coerced into the abortion or if she is at risk of psychological disorders. The ruling was the result of […]
A Federal court ruled on Monday that Baltimore and Montgomery County, Maryland, cannot require crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) to post signs indicating what types of services they provide. In a 2-1 vote, the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s decision that the requirement was unconstitutional. Baltimore and Montgomery County had required […]
The Feminist Majority Foundation and Ms. magazine are elated that the Supreme Court has upheld the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act–the most important advance for women in nearly 40 years. Feminists are determined to protect the gains of the Affordable Care Act, which will protect the lives and health of millions of women and […]
A federal court ruled this week that a Florida woman could sue her local Sheriff’s department because, after being raped, the woman was denied the second dosage of the morning after pill by a prison guard who objected to it. The woman, identified only as R.W., sought help at a clinic after being raped and […]
The New Hampshire State House and Senate voted yesterday to overturn Governor John Lynch’s veto of a bill that would prohibit late abortions. Governor Lynch vetoed the bill earlier this month, saying it went too far. Federal law already bans late abortions, with an exception if the woman’s life is at risk. The New Hampshire […]
The Supreme Court this morning upheld President Obama’s Affordable Care Act (ACA) in a 5-4 decision. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the opinion for the majority. In the opinion (PDF), Roberts wrote, “We do not consider whether the Act embodies sound policies. That judgment is entrusted to the Nation’s elected leaders. We ask only whether […]
Two young women, who have been dating for five months, were found shot in a park in a small town near Corpus Christi, Texas, on Saturday in an attack that does not appear to be random, according to the police chief. One of the young women, Mollie Judith Olgin, 19, died from her injuries, while […]
Nora Ephron, the author, filmmaker, essayist, and feminist, died yesterday at age 71 from complications from a blood disorder. Known for movies such as When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless in Seattle, as well as her books and essays, Ephron was celebrated for bringing a woman’s voice to a male dominated industry. An article in […]
A fetal personhood amendment introduced by Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) has stalled a Flood Insurance Bill intended to increase funding for the National Flood Insurance Program just as the hurricane season begins. The Flood Insurance bill, which had bipartisan support, was considered noncontroversial and would have saved the government $4.7 billion over eight years. Paul’s […]
For the first time in the history of the Olympic Games, women from all competing countries will be offered an opportunity to take part in the international event. That’s because the Saudi Arabia government announced yesterday, through its London embassy, that it will permit female athletes to join its team at the 2012 London Games, which begin July 27.
