By a vote of 24 to 14, with all Democrats and four Republicans voting yes, the Virginia Senate voted to send a “personhood” bill back to the state Senate Health and Education committee. The bill passed out of committee this morning by a vote of eight to seven and was expected to pass the full […]
Last week, the University of California at Davis agreed to pay $1.35 million in a settlement with three women wrestlers after a US Federal Court ruled in August 2011 that the university violated Title IX by not sufficiently expanding intercollegiate athletic opportunities for female students between 1998 and 2005. The court also found that the […]
Yesterday, the US Supreme Court indicated that it would hear a case, Fisher v. University of Texas, involving affirmative action at the University of Texas at Austin. The case, brought by Abagail Fisher, a Caucasian student claiming to have been denied admissions on account of her race, could “eliminate diversity as a rationale sufficient to […]
Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell (R) has indicated that he would need to review the bill, which requires that women seeking an abortion undergo a transvaginal ultrasound, before signing it. The Governor claimed to have recently learned about the invasiveness of a transvaginal ultrasound, which requires a probe being inserted into the vagina. Previously, the Governor […]
Late last week, attorneys filed a complaint in US District Court, Northern District of Dallas, on behalf of approximately 50,000 current and former women employees of Wal-Mart, alleging that the corporation discriminated on the basis of sex. The plaintiffs in the case, Odle et al v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., seeks punitive damages, claiming that Wal-Mart […]
Between 1,000 and 1,500 women stood arm-in-arm yesterday at the Virginia state Capitol in Richmond to silently protest two anti-abortion bills scheduled for votes by the state’s General Assembly. One is a “personhood bill,” sponsored by Delegate Bob Marshall (R-Prince William), which states that life begins at conception and would give rights to a fertilized […]
Yesterday the New Jersey Assembly voted 41 to 33 to pass a bill to legalize same-sex marriage. The New Jersey Senate voted earlier this week in favor of the legislation. Republican Governor Chris Christie has vowed to veto the measure. In order to override Christie’s veto, 27 votes would be necessary in the state Senate […]
On Wednesday, the Oklahoma state Senate voted 34 to 8 in favor of a bill, which states that life begins at conception and would give rights to a fertilized egg. The bill is expected to be passed by the Oklahoma House of Representatives. The Oklahoma State Medical Association has come out against the bill since […]
Yesterday, Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA), Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, refused to allow the Democrats to have a single witness at the hearing on the Obama Administration’s decision on the religious exemption on contraception coverage. Furthermore, the Republicans selected only male speakers to discuss the issue of women’s contraception. The […]
The new definition of rape, just approved by the FBI for the Uniform Crime Report is: “Penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of the victim.” A bill passed by the Republican controlled Virginia […]
The 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals denied the Center for Reproductive Right’s request for a rehearing concerning a TX ultrasound law, which will now go into effect immediately. In January, a three judge panel of the Fifth US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled to uphold a Texas law requiring that doctors describe ultrasounds in […]
Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Representative Elijah Cummings (D-MD), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, each issued letters to Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA), Chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, following his refusal to allow a minority witness to testify at a Congressional hearing: “Lines Crossed: Separation of […]
The Virginia state House of Delegates voted 63 to 36 to pass a bill requiring that women seeking abortions undergo a transvaginal ultrasound, which requires a probe being inserted into the vagina. Delegate Charniele Herring (D-Alexandria) criticized the bill, saying “We’re talking about inside a woman’s body. This is the first time, if we pass […]
The Virginia House of Delegates voted 66 to 32 in favor of a “personhood bill,” sponsored by Delegate Bob Marshall (R-Prince William), which states that life begins at conception and would give rights to a fertilized egg. The bill proposes to give “unborn children at every stage of development all the rights, privileges, and immunities […]
The Virginia state House of Delegates voted 63 to 36 to pass a bill requiring that women seeking abortions undergo a transvaginal ultrasound, which requires a probe being inserted into the vagina. Delegate Charniele Herring (D-Alexandria) criticized the bill, saying “We’re talking about inside a woman’s body. This is the first time, if we pass […]
A group of high school female athletes won their Title IX class action lawsuit against Sweetwater Union High School District in California. In Ollier v. Sweetwater Union High School, et al., US Judge James Lorenz ruled that Castle Park High School’s athletic facilities and resources for male students were superior to those provided for female […]
Yesterday Washington Governor Chris Gregoire signed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage in the state making Washington the seventh state to legalize same-sex marriage. The bill passed the Washington House of Representatives by a vote of 55 to 43 and the state Senate by a vote of 28 to 21. Although the law is scheduled to […]
The teenage birthrate reached a 40 year low in 2008, according to a study, entitled “U.S. Teenage Pregnancies, Births and Abortions, 2008: National Trends by Age, Race and Ethnicity.” Teen pregnancy has declined by a rate of 42 percent since it peaked in 1990, according to a Guttmacher Institute study conducted by Kathryn Kost and […]
The US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals is scheduled to hear a lawsuit today concerning a legal challenge to Proposition 209, which bans state government institutions, including public colleges and universities, from considering race, sex or ethnicity in employment decisions of education admissions in the state of California. The lawsuit comes over 15 years after […]
Governor Christine Gregoire indicated that she plans to sign a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in the state of Washington on Monday, making Washington the seventh state to legalize same-sex marriage. On Wednesday, the bill passed the Washington House of Representatives by a vote of 55 to 43. Last week, the Washington state Senate voted […]
