In a surprising move, on Friday the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit recalled for reconsideration the cases challenging Illinois’ and Wisconsin’s “partial birth abortion” statutes. The recall order means the statutes that ban a rare procedure that abortion opponents call “partial birth” will not go into effect yet. The full 7th Circuit […]
The Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA), based in Pakistan, called on the United Nations to stop the flow of arms into Afghanistan in order to bring peace to the country. In order to end the fighting in Afghanistan, according to RAWA, “The UN must first and foremost impose strict and serious sanctions […]
Researchers in Glasgow, Scotland reported that doctors and healthcare professionals have a “general lack of awareness” about the specific needs of lesbians and bisexual women in the British Journal of Family Planning for the month of October. Dr. Susan V. Carr and associates from other clinics created the Glasgow Lesbian Health Service in 1995 after […]
The Canadian government settled a pay equity suit in late October awarding $2.3 billion to 230,000 past and present federal workers, predominantly women. The decision conforms to Canada’s 1972 Human Rights Act that guarantees “equal pay for work of equal value.” Using the criteria of education, responsibility, mental demands and working conditions, government workers and […]
A UN official announced Thursday that in order to check population growth Arab countries must address women’s rights because patriarchal traditions block women’s access to education and health care. “An educated woman who has equal rights and plays her rightful role in society will automatically chose a smaller family and a better quality of life,” […]
The company operating train service in the Channel tunnel between England and France revoked its “skirts only” policy for women employees. “The women don’t have to wear skirts anymore because a survey showed most wanted the choice,” said a company spokesman. The union advocating the change hailed the decision as “a victory for women and […]
A circuit judge in Cole County, Missouri upheld a law that restricts state funding of family planning agencies affiliated with abortion providers. County Circuit Judge Byron Kinder ruled that Missouri lawmakers were within legal bounds when they imposed such budget restrictions. As a result, Kinder ordered that Planned Parenthood must return the state funds it […]
U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno delivered the keynote address Tuesday to the inaugural meeting of international female justice ministers. Attending conference were female justices from Gambia, Hungary, Sweden, Azerbaijan, Eritrea, Canada, Costa Rica and Iceland, the deputy justice minister from Ukraine and the former justice ministers from Bolivia, Latvia and Ivory Coast. Reno implored the […]
Jeanie Mentavlos settled her sexual harassment lawsuit yesterday filed against the Citadel, a staff member, and two former cadets for up to $135,000 according to her lawyer, Dick Harpootlian. The military academy paid $100,000 to settle her lawsuit against it and a staff member. Mentavlos also settled with former cadet Eric Amhaus for $35,000 but […]
The number of men in college is on a decline that is expected to continue for the next ten years. In 1970, women constituted less than 45 percent of college students, but by 1983 women had gained parity with men. U.S. Department of Education researchers predict that by 2008 men will comprise only 42 percent […]
The Taliban militia in Afghanistan shot and killed a woman as she was “cowering beneath a pale blue all-enveloping burqa,” yesterday in what they described as the first “public” (the woman was shot in the center of a sports stadium) execution of a woman in Kabul since the Taliban took control of the city three […]
In a report issued October 29, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission found evidence of sexual discrimination against female technicians by CBS Inc. in its television stations. Female technicians are “subjected to disparate treatment in salary, amount of overtime, promotion opportunities and training,” according to Spencer H. Lewis, director of the EEOC’s New York district office. […]
The U.S. Supreme Court Monday upheld lesbian’s rights to child visitation by refusing to hear the appeal of a Massachusetts decision establishing that a lesbian who helped her partner raise a child became a “de facto” parent entitled to visitation rights when the two women separated. Two women, identified as LM and EO, signed a […]
White House and Republican congressional negotiators reached a tentative agreement last night over abortion services in international family planning and the payment of the nearly $1 billion in UN dues. The White House indicated that the administration would accept GOP language linking the payment of UN dues with restrictions on abortion services yet would retain […]
Faced with desperate poverty in the predominantly Muslim country of Niger, women are now earning money for themselves in jobs outside the home, breaking with tradition. “Women have revolted,” said Guy Roget, a 42-year old mother of nine. Two-thirds of the country is desert and Niger has not economically recovered from the drop in world […]
The debate over women serving on board the U.S. Navy’s submarine’s has been revived by the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services (DACWS), the Pentagon’s advisory committee that recommends policies on issues women face in the armed services. “It’s important we examine what is still closed to women,” stated Mary Wamsley, chairwoman of […]
A census prepared by Catalyst, a women’s research group, found that 3.3 percent of companies’ top earners are women, a slight gain from 2.7 percent last year and 1.2 percent in 1995. Earnings are based on salary, stock options, and bonuses. Catalyst President Sheila Wellington said of the gains “The numbers are small, but along […]
Although teenagers still perceive child-rearing as “woman’s work,” nearly 40 percent of teenage girls in the United States expect to be primary breadwinners for their families while their husbands stay home and raise the children. The 1999 Roper Youth Report conducted annually by Roper Starch Worldwide also found that 38 percent of girls believed their […]
In an attempt to counter criticism over poor working conditions in its third world factories, Nike is offering to send some 10 students to the 41 factories in which they make college-licensed apparel. Students have been among the most active and harshest critics of purported sweatshops conditions in Nike factories abroad. Students from universities that […]
Former Senator Carol Moseley-Braun won overwhelming confirmation as the new U.S. ambassador to New Zealand Wednesday in what President Clinton called “a strong endorsement of her outstanding experience and credentials for this position.” Moseley-Braun will also serve as ambassador to the South Pacific state of Samoa. The bipartisan Senate vote of 96 – 2 marked […]
