McCaskey East High School in Lancaster, Pennsylvania has abandoned its pilot “mentoring” program that that separated students by race and gender in their homeroom classrooms following much controversy and negative media attention. Pedro Rivera, the superintendent, continues to defend the segregation, saying, “The intent…by educators was to serve students. They identified a need and were […]
Live Action, an anti-abortion rights group, is distributing an edited undercover video that appears to show an employee at a Planned Parenthood clinic in New Jersey advising paid actors posing as a pimp and a prostitute on where they can obtain abortion services for girls under the age of 14 and illegal immigrants. Stuart Schear, […]
The Senate Ethics Committee announced yesterday that it will appoint a special counsel to investigate Senator John Ensign (R-NV), who allegedly used his political power to hide his affair with the wife of a top former political aide. Carol Elder Bruce, a criminal defense lawyer at K&L Gates who specializes in white collar crime, will […]
In Florida yesterday, Federal District Court Judge Roger Vinson ruled the entire Affordable Care Act (ACA) is unconstitutional because it penalizes Americans for not having health insurance beginning in 2014. Judge Vinson stated in his opinion that the Minimum Essential Coverage Provision, which requires that a person have minimum health coverage or face a modest […]
United States District Court Judge Marvin Garbis ruled yesterday that a Baltimore ordinance requiring that “limited-service pregnancy centers” display signs in both English and Spanish indicating that they do not provide or make referrals for abortions or comprehensive birth control services was unconstitutional. Judge Garbis stated that the ordinance violated the Freedom of Speech Clause […]
The fight against abortion has been heating up in the states since the 2010 elections. Prior to the midterm elections, 21 governors were considered anti-choice. Now 29 governors are against a woman’s right to an abortion and 15 states have both anti-abortion governors and legislatures, up from 10 last year. Several measures have been introduced […]
A high school in Lancaster, Pennsylvania has adopted a pilot program that separates students by race and gender in their homeroom classrooms. The McCaskey East High School’s pilot program has sparked much controversy regarding segregation in schools. Angela Tilghman, an instructional coach at the school, developed the program with the hope of closing the racial […]
Although the number of women participants at the World Economic Forum, beginning on January 26 in Davos, Switzerland, has nearly doubled since 2001, women are still scarce at the event. This year, women made up only 16 percent of attendees, up from 9 percent in 2001. To increase women’s presence at the forum, organizers required […]
The Pentagon is scheduled to release a plan today that will outline the changes that must be made in the military in order to implement the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (DADT). The plan outlines changes to regulations on recruitment, training, housing, and the discharge of troops. The Department of Defense (DOD) announced plans […]
David Kato, a gay rights activist in Uganda, was beaten and killed in his home yesterday. Kato worked for Sexual Minorities Uganda and was a vocal critic of the Anti-Homosexuality bill, which would impose life sentences or the death penalty for gay people. In October, Kato was included in a list of Uganda’s “top homosexuals” […]
Researchers from the National Center for Register-Based Research, in Denmark, released a study that found no evidence to support the claim that abortion predisposes women to psychological or mental health problems. The study, published by the New England Journal of Medicine, examined the health records of 85,000 women with no previous record of mental health […]
Senators Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced the Life at Conception Act in the Senate yesterday that would establish that human life begins at the moment of conception. If passed, the bill would extend equal protection under 14th article of amendment of the Constitution to unborn fetuses and would reverse Roe v. Wade, […]
Today the Virginia General Assembly is considering a bill introduced by Senator George Barker (D-Prince William County that would alter Virginia’s existing laws to make it easier for individuals in dating relationships to obtain protective orders. Under current Virginia law, an individual who does not reside with her/his abuser can only obtain a restraining order […]
Tens of thousands anti-abortion rights supporters gathered yesterday on the National Mall and marched to the Supreme Court for the annual March for Life to commemorate the 38th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in the US. Pro-abortion rights supporters, including activists from the Feminist Majority Foundation, the National […]
Last Friday, the Virginia House of Delegates voted 61-33 to overturn the 2007 Virginia law mandating that girls be vaccinated against the human papillomavirus (HPV) prior to entering the sixth grade. Currently in the US, only Virginia and Washington D.C. require that girls be vaccinated against HPV. It is unlikely that the bill will pass […]
Yesterday the US Supreme Court ruled unanimously in Thompson v. North American Stainless that the anti-retaliation provision of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 applies to any individual who has experienced retaliation, regardless of whether he/she personally filed the discrimination complaint. The Supreme Court’s decision overturns the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals’ […]
Roman Catholic priests and anti-abortion rights advocates gathered this morning for a Mass at the Verizon Center in Washington DC before participating in the annual March for Life. Operation Rescue, based in Wichita, Kansas, is also holding a series of anti-abortion protests in Germantown, Maryland today against Dr. Lee Carhart, who works at the clinic […]
Late last week the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced its proposed housing regulations that would protect gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people from discrimination. At this time, federal protections against housing discrimination do not cover gender identity and sexual orientation. A 60 day public comment period is required before the changes […]
Kansas Representative Lance Kinzer (R-KS) introduced the Abortion Reporting Accuracy and Parental Rights bill in the state’s House of Representatives last week requiring the consent of two parents for girls under 18 to obtain an abortion. Proponents say the two parent notification requirement would only apply in cases in which the nuclear family was intact […]
Reproductive Rights groups, including the Feminist Majority Foundation, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, NARAL Pro-Choice America, and the National Abortion Rights League, will oppose the No Tax-Payer Funding for Abortion bill (HR 3), introduced yesterday by Representative Chris Smith (R-NJ), Congressional Pro-Life Caucus Co-Chair with the support of House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) and Majority […]
