Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats won a victory in delaying the committee vote on Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito to January 24. Women’s rights and civil rights leaders are extremely concerned about press reports and statements made by Senate Democrats over the weekend indicating that the filibuster option is highly unlikely. “Women must refuse to take […]
A Planned Parenthood nurse practitioner filed a complaint last Tuesday with the state of Illinois saying that a Walgreen pharmacist refused to dispense emergency contraception, in violation of state law. The nurse, Stephanie Cox, said she was told the store did not carry the drug (Plan B) and was not directed to another pharmacy, reports […]
Between 60,000 and 150,000 Italian women marched in Milan on Saturday, demanding that the Italian government maintain its liberal abortion laws. The women accused the government of working with the Vatican in an attempt to reverse a 1978 law that makes abortion legal in Italy during the first trimester, according to the International Herald Tribune. […]
After a week of tough questioning from many Senators on reproductive rights, Congressional and executive power, Vanguard, and Concerned Alumni of Princeton, the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings have ended. Chair Arlen Specter (R-PA) attempted to schedule the committee vote on Tuesday, January 17, but Senator Patrick Leahy (VT), the ranking Democrat, said that some of […]
A New York court of appeals yesterday upheld a state law that required insurance companies to cover contraceptives as part of their drug benefits. The case, Catholic Charities v. Serio, involved the three-year-old Women’s Health and Wellness Act, which required contraceptive coverage along with other women’s preventive health care needs. Ten religiously affiliated organizations challenged […]
In questioning yesterday by Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL), Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito not only refused to say whether he believed the Constitution protected a woman’s right to choose abortion, he also would not say whether he considered Roe to be ‘settled law.’ “If settled means that it can’t be reexamined, then that’s one thing. […]
Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) has announced that Cecile Richards will be its next president. Richards, a native of Texas, is currently President of America Votes and previously served on the boards of Planned Parenthood Action Fund and NARAL Pro-Choice America. She has also worked as deputy chief of staff for Minority Leader Nancy […]
In a landslide vote on January 4, New York’s City Council elected Christine Quinn as its first woman and first openly gay Speaker. The position is arguably the second most powerful in the city, after the mayor. At her acceptance speech, Quinn said, “I am incredibly proud that in the most diverse city in the […]
Senator Kennedy (D-MA) is calling for the Senate Judiciary Committee to issue a subpoena into the Concerned Alumni of Princeton (CAP) Library of Congress records because Senator Kennedy said Alito’s response to questions on CAP do not add up. Alito has said that he does not remember joining the group or renewing his membership, but […]
In tough questioning yesterday by Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY), Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito did not disavow a statement he made in 1985 that the Constitution does not protect the right to a legal abortion. Alito did acknowledge this was his view at the time, but he would not distance himself from this statement, although […]
A New York federal judge recently ruled that a lawsuit brought by the Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR) against the federal government can continue. The case began last January, with CRR filing on behalf of the Association of Reproductive Health Professionals, the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, and others. The suit alleges that the […]
As the Senate Judiciary Committee begins its second day of the confirmation hearings for Samuel Alito, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has announced its opposition to Alito for the Supreme Court. This is only the third time in ACLU’s 86-year history that it has opposed a nominee to the Supreme Court. “At a time […]
The Society for Adolescent Medicine (SAM) published a position paper calling for the abandonment of abstinence-only education. Published in the January 2006 edition of the Journal of Adolescent Health, the report cites heterosexism, gender stereotypes presented as fact, and scientifically false claims as critical flaws in abstinence-only curricula. The American College Health Association has also […]
A 25-year-old woman and her three younger stepsisters have been murdered in a brutal “honor killing” in Pakistan. The Associated Press reports that Nazir Ahmed slit the throats of his stepdaughter, Muqadas, and his three young daughters, ages 8, 7, and 4, after Muqadas was accused of adultery by her husband. Ahmed killed the younger […]
The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which expired in September, and was reauthorized by Congress in December, was signed into law by President Bush on Thursday. This will authorize almost $4 billion over the next five years, a 21 percent increase in funding from the 2000 version. This reauthorization broadens efforts to combat violence against […]
As the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito begin, the National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL) gave Alito a “not qualified” rating. According to NAWL’s release announcing its “not qualified” rating, “[o]n those women’s rights issues that he has addressed, Judge Alito has shown a disinclination to protect or advance women’s […]
With Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on the nomination of Samuel Alito set to begin on Monday January 9, leading Senators on the committee held press events yesterday. Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) focused on Alito’s views on the unfettered power of the Executive Branch. Kennedy, especially given the times, was concerned with warrant-less wiretapping and the […]
At an Arab women’s conference, Sumayah Ali Raja, chair of the Yemen-French Forum, announced she will run in Yemen’s 2006 presidential election. Raja will be the first woman to run for the Yemeni presidency. According to Inter Press Service News Agency, Raja said in her announcement that her candidacy “will increase the participation of women […]
Terrorists stabbed several times and decapitated an Afghan headmaster of a school in Qalat, a town in Zabol Province. The high school was attended by some 1,300 girls and boys. Zabol, which borders on Pakistan and is next to Kandahar, has experienced increased violence by Taliban forces. The headmaster was horrifically killed in his front […]
For several years, feminists have urged that the number of international peacekeeping (ISAF) troops in Afghanistan be increased and that they be deployed throughout the nation. The US has now announced that in the summer of 2006 it will reduce its troop presence from 19,000 to 16,500 and transfer power in southern Afghanistan to ISAF, […]
