On Tuesday, a New York City mandate was announced requiring that public school students take one semester of sex education classes during 6th or 7th grade and then an additional semester during either 9th or tenth grade. The sex-education curriculum would emphasize abstinence as the most effective way of preventing sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and […]
A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that a new blood test used to predict a baby’s sex is between 95 and 99 percent effective when used by women who are over seven weeks pregnant. Researchers at the National Institutes of Health found that this test is effective over […]
Democratic Senators Jennifer Shilling and Jessica King won two of the contested seats in strongly Republican districts. However the Democrats needed to win three seats in order to gain control of the state Senate. The Republicans spent $8 million in Wisconsin’s 8th district to retain State Senator Alberta Darling’s seat, who was challenged by State […]
Yesterday Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) announced his decision to select Senator Patty Murray to co-chair the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, a debt panel formed last week to designate approximately $1.5 trillion in cuts from the federal budget. Senator Murray, a strong supporter of Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and veteran’s benefits and […]
President Obama, who has nominated more ethnic minorities and women for federal judge positions than any other president, has dramatically increased judicial diversity during his term, despite low rates of confirmation of his nominees. Only 97 of President Obama’s judicial nominees have been confirmed, compared to President George W. Bush, who has had 322 of […]
Alcoa Mill Products Inc., the world’s leading aluminum manufacturer, has agreed to pay over $540,000 in back wages to 37 Hispanic and African-American and two women job applicants following a compliance review conducted by the US Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) that found that the company had discriminated in its […]
Today six recall elections are being held for seats in the Wisconsin Senate, with five Democratic challengers running. The recall bids grew out of this spring’s bitter fight over an anti-union law backed by Republican Governor Scott Walker. Opponents of the law are targeting six Republican state senators who voted for the law. On July […]
It’s 10:36pm, and abortion clinic defenders are just getting home from this week’s ground zero – the Germantown, Md. clinic of Dr. Lee Carhart. Operation Rescue had declared the past nine days “Summer of Mercy 2.0,” harkening back to the original Summer of Mercy actions that had targeted Dr. George Tiller’s clinic in Wichita, KS. […]
In an effort to better address the medical needs of the thousands of women veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, the Veterans Affairs Department (VA) started a “mini residency program” to refresh doctors and nurse practitioners, many of whom are more accustomed to treating male veterans, on women’s healthcare. Approximately 1,100 health care providers have […]
According to the Outline for the Development of Chinese Children (2011-2020), released today, China will strengthen its efforts to end sex-selective abortions as a means to close the country’s gender gap. The Outline states that “using ultrasonic techniques to conduct non-medical sex determination” is strictly banned in order to “eliminate discrimination against girls.” Due in […]
On Wednesday, US District Court Judge Frank Damrell of Sacramento ruled that the University of California at Davis failed to allow women students equal opportunities to play college sports and violated Title IX, a law passed in 1972 that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in all levels of education. Judge Damrell wrote in […]
On Wednesday, Sheila Coley was appointed by the Newark City Council of New Jersey as the first woman police chief in the department’s 175-year history. Coley will fill the newly re-established position after approval from the council. The position of police chief was removed in 2008 but was re-established Wednesday night. In response to her […]
On Monday, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists filed an appeal on US District Court Judge Carlos Murguia’s decision to block the enforcement of a new Kansas anti-abortion law until the pending lawsuit is decided. The new restrictive legislation governing abortion clinics was signed into law by anti-abortion zealot Governor Sam Brownback (R). […]
On Wednesday, the US Commerce Department’s Economics and Statistics Administration (ESA) released the second report on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) jobs and higher education, which found fewer women than men in STEM jobs and pursuing degrees in STEM fields. The report entitled “Women in STEM: A Gender Gap to Innovation” also noted that […]
Over 170 countries are celebrating World Breastfeeding Week (WBW) this week to improve breastfeeding rates globally by raising awareness. Partners of the week in the 170 countries, including UNICEF, hope to broadcast the benefits of breastfeeding in order to educate the public. UNICEF’s Executive Director Anthony Lake said he hopes the week will send the […]
Yesterday the Italian Parliamentary Constitutional Affairs Commission approved a draft of a law that would ban women from covering their faces with veils, including a burqa or a naqib, in public. If the law is passed, women in violation could face fines of up to 300 euro. Souad Sbai, a Member of the conservative Freedom […]
Yesterday the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced new guidelines, developed by the Institute of Medicine, that will require private insurance plans beginning on or after August 1, 2012 to cover an annual well-woman visit and a variety of specific health screenings and counseling, such as for domestic and interpersonal violence, gestational […]
In an effort to save the lives of pregnant women and women with newborns in the drought-stricken areas of Somalia and some parts of Ethiopia and Kenya, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is distributing reproductive healthcare kits. The health kits include sanitary pads, soap, underwear and other hygiene items. Headscarves are also included so […]
On Sunday, nearly 200 abortion rights activists gathered at the Reproductive Health Services in Germantown, MD to kick off the Summer Celebration of Choice week in support of abortion provider Dr. LeRoy Carhart, who has been practicing at the clinic since December. About 100 anti-abortion protestors launched their week of morning protests today, which was […]
In Kenya, the Finance Minister has apportioned around 4 million dollars to the Women Enterprise Fund (WEF) to distribute free sanitary pads to Kenyan school girls. This cost represents about 3.6 percent of Kenya’s primary education budget. The distribution of free sanitary pads to schoolgirls aims to reduce girls’ absenteeism from school since some girls […]
