The Annual Report on Sexual Harassment and Violence at the United States Military Service Academies, issued by the Department of Defense late last week, revealed a 64 percent increase in sexual harassment and assaults at West Point, the Naval Academy, and the Air Force Academy in the past year. Department of Defense officials stated in […]
On Saturday, the Senate voted 63 to 33 to end the debate on the stand-alone Don’t Ask Don’t Tell legislation and 65 to 31 to repeal the bill. For the past 17 years, the policy has prohibited the military from inquiring about a service member’s sexual orientation and calls for the discharge of anyone who […]
Last week, Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Chair of the Congressional Joint Economic Committee (JEC) released Invest in Women, Invest in America: A Comprehensive Review of Women in the US Economy, a new wage gap report and study on women’s key role in the US economy. The study revealed the economic importance of women-owned businesses, which […]
Yesterday, the Senate confirmed four of President Obama’s district court nominations, two of whom were women, in a unanimous vote. Catherine Eagles will serve in North Carolina, Kimberly Mueller in California, John Gibney in Virginia, and James Bredar in Maryland. Thirty-four of the President’s nominees still await confirmation. The four judges are the first of […]
The Congressional Joint Economic Committee (JEC) released today a new wage gap report and study on women’s key role in the US economy. In a press conference today, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Co-Chair of the JEC released the report that contains a “gold mine” of information concerning women’s economic status. Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Congresswoman […]
The European Court of Human Rights ruled yesterday that Ireland’s constitutional ban on abortions violates a woman’s right to adequate medical care in life-threatening situations. Nevertheless, the court maintained Ireland’s right to prohibit abortions in other circumstances. In 1992, the Irish Supreme Court ruled that abortion was legal in cases when the woman’s life was […]
Yesterday, the stand-alone measure to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (DADT), introduced by Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) and Representative Patrick Murphy (D-PA), passed in the House by a vote of 250 to 175. The bill now awaits a vote in Senate, although Republicans continue their stalling tactics Joe Solmonese, the President of the Human […]
Yesterday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee passed the International Violence Against Women Act (IVAWA). Even though the content of IVAWA does not deal with abortion, this widely supported bill had been held up by anti-abortion politics. Finally, the bill emerged from committee with no anti-abortion amendment. However, to pass the bill out of committee, the […]
In Alaska, a new law requiring that doctors notify a parent of women age 17 and under who are seeking abortions went into effect yesterday after Superior Court Judge John Suddock refused Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest’s (PPGNW) request to block it. The new law permits a judicial bypass, which has been shown difficult […]
Yesterday Virginia federal judge Henry Hudson ruled in a case filed in March by Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli that the Minimum Essential Coverage Provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) is unconstitutional. The provision requires that all US citizens obtain health insurance coverage beginning in 2014. The provision has previously been […]
Yesterday, senators voted 83 to 15 to end debate and proceed to a final vote on President Obama’s tax proposal. The Senate is expected to conduct a final vote on the tax-cut package as early as this evening. Democrats have voiced frustration at the extension of Bush-era tax for an additional two years, which would […]
Last week, Representative Joe Pitts (R-PA) was selected to chair the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health, which oversees private health insurance, Medicare and Medicaid, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the National Institutes of Health. Pitts, who was endorsed by the National Right to Life Committee, is outspokenly against abortion and has expressed […]
Transvaginal ultrasounds, a new screening test, may be able to detect early signs of uterine cancer in asymptomatic, postmenopausal women with over 80 percent accuracy. The study, published in The Lancet, notes the increasing rates of uterine cancer worldwide resulting from increased obesity and decreased fertility. The screening tests for abnormal levels of thickness in […]
The National Defense Authorization bill failed to receive the necessary 60 votes to overcome the Republican filibuster yesterday. Aubrey Sarvis, Executive Director of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, powerfully stated, “Today a band of Senators voted to continue the discrimination against gay and lesbian service members who are fighting and dying for our country…History will hold […]
A television program on Press TV, backed by the Iranian government, will air an interview today of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, an Iranian woman sentenced to death for adultery. The segment of “Iran Today” brought Ashtiani back to her home to recreate a visual representation of her husband’s death at the crime site and reportedly contains […]
The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act (DREAM) passed in the House by a vote of 216-198 late yesterday. The Senate is expected to vote on the act today. The DREAM Act, introduced by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) in 2001, would give eligible immigrants conditional permanent resident status and […]
The Senate cancelled the vote scheduled on the Development Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act (DREAM) Act today, raising possibility that it will not be voted on this year.
Earlier this week, European Union ministers rejected the European Parliament’s proposal to extend maternity leave from 14 weeks of full pay to 20 weeks. Nevertheless, even current maternity leave in Europe far surpasses the Family and Medical Leave Act in the US, which only provides for 12 weeks of unpaid leave. The ministers expressed concern […]
A study conducted by Yale University and released by the American Academy of Pediatrics on Monday found that lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) students are 40 percent more likely to be punished by schools, police, and the justice system than heterosexual students. Notably, its findings indicate that lesbian and bisexual girls are two to three […]
In a meeting last night, House Democrats criticized President Obama’s tax proposal. Both House and Senate Democrats have voiced frustration at the extension of Bush-era tax for an additional two years, which would add $900 billion to the deficit. Many Democrats also expressed concern about the estate tax exemption for inheritances of up to $5 […]
