Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm is expected to veto a ban on certain late-term abortion procedures known as “partial-birth abortion,” which the Michigan state Senate passed this week. The bill, Senate bill 0776, does not include an exception for the health of the mother, reports the Associated Press. The bill only allow exceptions in cases of […]
Chellie Pingree won the Democratic nomination to fill the Congressional seat of Maine’s 1st District on Tuesday. After running an exhaustive race against five competitors, Pingree captured the position with 44 percent of the vote, according to New England Cable News. Pingree’s run was supported by the Feminist Majority PAC, Emily’s List, National Women’s Political […]
This week marks the 45th Anniversary of the Equal Pay Act. The act, signed into effect by President John F. Kennedy in 1963, attempted to ensure equal pay for equal work to women across the nation. Although the act helped to close the 59-100 wage disparity of the 1960s, women still only make 77 cents […]
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak launched an $80 million family planning campaign this week, aimed at urging Egyptians to have smaller families. The program aims to reduce the number of children per family to 2.4 by 2012 and 2.1 by 2017, reports AFP. Mubarak has urged Egyptians to have smaller families since coming to power in […]
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the ACLU of Kentucky filed an amended complaint on behalf of five families last month against the Breckinridge County Middle Schools, asserting that instituting sex-segregated classes is both illegal and discriminatory. The ACLU lawsuit expands on a previous KY lawsuit to include the U.S. Department of Education, arguing […]
The Women’s Media Center recently launched a video on sexism in the media. The video is part of a joint campaign with Media Matters called Sexism Sells, But We’re Not Buying It, which also includes an online petition calling on all major national news networks “to stop treating women as a joke; to stop using […]
In preparation for Southern Baptist Church Convention in Indianapolis this week, many churches are responding to their declining baptism rates by considering dropping the name “Southern Baptist” and distancing themselves from the Church’s fundamentalist image. The Washington Post reports that numbers have fallen for the third straight year in a row and for the last […]
New legislation may help pregnant police officers in Michigan maintain paid work, rather than being forced to take unpaid leave. Democratic representative, Coleman A. Young II is currently pursuing an amendment to the state’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act in an attempt to block the practice of forcing women to leave the department without pay until […]
The Australian government is considering lifting its restriction on foreign aid that prohibits groups receiving funds from Australia from providing abortion counseling, services or training. The Australian gag rule, which has been in place for 12 years, makes Australia the only other country besides the US to maintain such a policy, reports the Associated Press. […]
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick called domestic violence a public health emergency last week, citing the recent spike in domestic violence homicides. The number of domestic violence homicides more than doubled from 15 in 2005 to 42 in 2007, and there have been 19 killings so far this year, according to the Associated Press. “Everybody can […]
Over 40,000 people participated in the 19th annual Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure on the National Mall on Saturday. The event raised nearly $5 million for breast cancer research, education and treatment, according to the Washington Post, 75% of which will go to organizations in the Washington, DC area. Celebrity participants included actress […]
The Veteran Feminists of America (VFA) will be honoring feminist lawyers today at the Harvard Club of New York City. The VFA Salute to Feminist Lawyers will include an interview with honored guest, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. According to the VFA press release, the luncheon will begin at 12:30 with an interview of Justice Ginsberg, […]
The anti-contraception group American Life League (ALL) plans to protest clinics across the country on Saturday, June 7th. The protests are a part of ALL’s so-called “The Pill Kills” campaign, which falsely claims that birth control pills are abortifacients and detrimental to women’s health. June 7th marks the 43rd anniversary of Griswold v. Connecticut, the […]
A massive study conducted by Centers for Disease Control was released Wednesday, offering new insight into the national youth’s sexual behavior. After surveying 14,103 students, the study’s conclusions hint that teen sex may have risen slightly since the 2005 survey, while the reported use of condoms has dropped, although there is not enough statistical evidence […]
A French judge agreed to a man’s request to have his marriage annulled because his wife was not a virgin. According to BBC News, the court ruled that her previous claim of virginity was essential to his decision to marry her, and once he discovered that she was not a virgin, he was justified in […]
The California Supreme Court denied a request on Wednesday to stay their decision allowing same-sex marriage until the November election, according to the Associated Press. California county clerks will begin issuing marriage licenses starting June 17, after the standard 30 day period following a decision. Two conservative groups, the Liberty Counsel and the Campaign for […]
Dr Waldo E Fielding, a retired gynecologist, shared his experiences caring for women with botched, illegal abortions this week. In an essay in the New York Times, Dr. Fielding gives a detailed account of the dangerous complications that come with back-ally, illegal abortions. “What Roe said was that ending a pregnancy could be carried out […]
Amnesty International has voiced concerns that a group of Zimbabwean activists, mostly women, who were recently arrested during a peaceful protest march could be facing torture and harsh treatment in prison. A statement released by Amnesty International reports that the group Women Of Zimbabwe Arise (WOZA), was arrested on May 28th following a march to […]
As the Democratic Presidential primaries end, Senator Hillary Clinton’s (D-NY) historic presidential run has established a strong legacy for women in politics. Senator Obama (D-IL) obtained enough delegates following Tuesday’s primaries in South Dakota and Montana to clinch the Democratic nomination, but Senator Clinton may still go into the convention with hundreds of delegates and […]
Women who have had a Caesarean birth face higher insurance premiums, and have even been denied insurance all together. The New York Times reports that health insurance companies’ policies regarding Caesarean births vary by company and state, but many insurance companies are exempting or imposing higher premiums on women who have had one. Although the […]
