In a disturbing program that sought to “cure” homosexuals by applying “aversion therapy” to suspected “deviants,” the South African Defense Force (SADF) tortured, chemically castrated, and performed sex-change operations on national servicepeople during the apartheid era. According to a report by the Medical Research Council, the “aversion therapy” was created and tested by Aubrey Levine, […]
The United States and Britain condemned Liberia and Burkina Faso for their military assistance to a brutal rebel group in Sierra Leone, accusing the West African nations of violating a United Nations embargo. Liberia and Burkina Faso may face unilateral sanctions from the U.S. and Britain for arming the notorious Revolutionary United Front (RUF) group […]
Washington DC Mayor Anthony Williams Tuesday refused to sign a bill that would have required DC employer-provided health care to cover contraceptives. Mayor Williams sided with the Catholic Church, objecting to the bill on the grounds that it had no opt-out clause for churches or other employers who object to contraception on “religious or moral […]
Recent reports in the Journal of Women’s Health and Gender-Based Medicine found that studies in leading medical journals failed to address differences in men’s and women’s response to a particular treatment. The reports, discussed at the recent Department of Health and Human Services’ seminar on “Sex/Gender Analysis,” point to the failure of the scientific community […]
Openly gay Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-AZ) was greeted with anti-gay signs and silent protest during his free-trade speech at the Republican Convention on Tuesday. Some Republicans feared that allowing Kolbe to speak would allow gay rights advocates to “claim victory” within the Republican Party. While supporters of presidential candidate George W. Bush point to Kolbe’s […]
The New York Times today released an expose that revealing that more than two-thirds of the Republican Party’s soft-money has been contributed by an elite group of fewer than 800 wealthy individuals and businesses. Republican insiders told the Times that large donations are frequently split up into smaller contributions from individuals, spouses, corporations, and subsidiaries […]
The women prisons established by the Taliban represent yet another facet of the gender apartheid imposed by the brutal regime. Mary MacMakin, an American aid worker who was imprisoned by the Taliban for four days in July, commented, “The jail had four women to a room. New arrivals would sit down on the steps sobbing […]
Ireland’s Attorney General Michael McDowell claimed on July 30th that women would make false rape accusations if the Irish government allowed survivors of rape to have abortions. Abortions remain illegal in all cases except endangerment of the mother’s life in the Republic of Ireland. But little evidence exists to support McDowell’s claim, according to Olive […]
The United Nations Human Rights Committee sharply criticized the Australian government’s oppression of Aborigines, stating that its discrimination against indigenous people violated an international human rights treaty. The panel of international experts urged Australia to reform mandatory sentencing laws that set jail terms for repeat offenders, which target and disproportionately punish young Aborigines who commit […]
An American soldier who confessed to murdering an 11-year-old girl while on peacekeeping operations in Kosovo will face sentencing on July 31st. U.S. Staff Sergeant Frank Ronghi pled guilty to the sodomy and premeditated murder of an ethnic Albanian girl in Kosovo. He faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment without chance of parole.
Women led three major protest marches over the past two days, voicing their frustration with the Republican Party and its anti-woman platform. Sunday’s Unity 2000 March, which featured abortion rights, brought an estimated 12,000 people to Philadelphia, and 3,000 defied the law with yesterday’s Welfare Rights March, conducted without a permit. Over the course of […]
The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 passed the Senate last week with a unanimous vote, and all signs point to its passage in the House as well. The bill, backed by Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-MN), toughens current federal penalties against trafficking, and protects women’s and girls’ human rights by providing interim immigration relief, ending […]
The ultra-conservative Oregon Citizens Alliance (OCA), despite a losing record, will again present an anti-gay ballot measure to voters this November. The measure would ban public school teachers from “encouraging, promoting or sanctioning” homosexuality in their classes, with a penalty of losing state funding. The OCA’s proposed measure does not prevent teachers from condemning homosexuality, […]
Ever get tired of hearing young people referred to as apathetic? As college activists involved in Feminist Majority Leadership Alliances, we are shattering the misconception of a jaded and complacent generation. Yet, undoubtedly, many of us have encountered apathy among our peers, particularly during high school. Why do so many young people fail to get […]
An estimated 12,000 protestors representing a coalition of various progressive organizations and causes took to the streets in Philadelphia this weekend, protesting the Republican National Convention. Abortion rights was the march’s main focus, sending a message to GOP delegates that their anti-abortion stance is out of tune with the opinion of the public. The march […]
KARE-TV in Golden Valley, Minnesota became the site of a rally on Sunday, July 30, to protest the station’s announcement that it will air Dr. Laura Schlessinger’s upcoming television show. “Dr. Laura” has aired her views about homosexuality on her radio show, calling gays and lesbians “deviant” and a “biological error.” Her web site (www.drlaura.com) […]
Researchers at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York have identified a link between exposure to certain environmental contaminants and breast cancer. The experimental study found that polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), environmental contaminants produced by gasoline and oil combustion and also found in cigarette smoke and broiled meat, damaged DNA and caused cancerous cells to […]
As you enjoy your summer, we encourage you to take some time to begin planning for the upcoming school year! Reserving a table for the student activities fair, outreaching to returning members, and setting a date for your general interest meeting are all excellent ways to start your activism RIGHT NOW. If you haven’t already […]
France is proposing a new law that would extend the legal period for abortion from 10 to 12 weeks of pregnancy. The new proposal would erase the current legal provision that requires parental authorization for girls under the age of 18 to have an abortion or purchase the “morning-after pill. According to the Employment Minister, […]
The United States is pushing for the creation of a war tribunal that would prosecute rebel leaders in Sierra Leone for their war crimes, including rape and mutilation of women and girls. The U.S. is in particular seeking to prosecute rebels of the evolutionary United Front, who held 500 U.N. peacekeepers hostage for several weeks […]
