New earnings figures show that the wage gap still exists for women and people of color in spite of a thriving economy and low unemployment rates. According to 1998 earnings data released on September 30 by the Census Bureau, women still earn 73 cents on the dollar compared to men—this is down from the 74 […]
The U.N. Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance to Afghanistan (UNOCHA) on Monday warned that the Taliban offensive in the Shomali region north of Kabul will likely result in a humanitarian crisis. Thousands of Afghans were forced out of their homes and into the Panjsher valley by the Taliban and supply routes for aid have […]
A Clinton Administration proposal to impose sanctions against Afghanistan’s state-run airline will likely be supported by the U.N. Security council, White House staff suggested today. The sanctions, meant to pressure the Taliban into handing over Osama bin Laden, would involve a total freeze on the airline’s assets and a ban on flying outside Afghan territory. […]
The Supreme Court starts a new term today, set to hear several cases that will affect millions of women throughout the United States. The Court has agreed to hear cases involving the Violence Against Women Act, which gave rape and domestic violence victims the right to sue their attackers for violating their civil rights. Analysts […]
Despite a prosperous economy and government efforts to expand coverage, the number of Americans without health insurance has grown by about 1 million since last year, according to figures released today by the US Census Bureau. More than 44 million Americans are living without coverage, including large groups of Latinos, women, young, and the underprivileged. […]
The “Halloween Hell House,” sponsored by Colorado’s Abundant Life Christian Center is back this year with scare tactics aimed at terrorizing teens with scenes of death and destruction centered around controversial social issues, such as abortion, teen sex, and AIDS. In one scene, visitors see a gay couple’s bed replaced after a few years with […]
Thursday conservative lawmakers in the House passed HR2436, a bill that would erode abortion rights by elevating a fetus to the status of “personhood” for the first time. The bill would make it a federal offense to harm a fetus during the commission of a federal crime. While supporters of the bill, such as Rep. […]
In a report released this week by the Worldwatch Institute, one-third of the drop in world population growth projections were contributed to AIDS related deaths. “If a low cost cure is not found soon, countries with adult HIV infection rates over 20% such as Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe, will lose one fifth of more […]
Thursday evening the Senate passed the Dodd-Jeffords Child Care Amendment, increasing the funding for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) to $2 billion for fiscal year 2000. The CCDBG is a flexible fund that allows parents to choose the kind of care that their children will receive. Despite strong bipartisan support at both […]
Today at noon, the Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign, led by the Kensington Welfare Rights Union, will file the first-ever legal brief against the United States for Economic and Human Rights Violations against the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. A march beginning at 10am in Lafayette Park will stop at the Inter-Americas Commission to […]
Claiming that Kansas is becoming known as the “abortion capital of the world”, state lawmakers have proposed a bill that would ban the so-called “partial birth” abortion procedure. This follows two well-publicized cases of minors who traveled to Kansas to undergo late term abortions, the most recent being a 14 year-old ward of the state […]
Pennsylvania’s Abortion Control Act is facing a possible revision, as Attorney General Mike Fisher (R) is peddling legislation he drafted that would prevent public school officials from “arranging, facilitating, or counseling an abortion”. The drafted legislation would, however, “allow school officials to advise against an abortion. The proposal comes on the heels of a lawsuit […]
Women seeking the ThinPrep Pap test won a major battle Thursday as Aetna Inc., the nation’s largest health insurer, agreed to cover Cytic Corp.’s ThinPrep. Although the federal government deemed the test 65% more effective than the traditional pap test, Cytic had struggled to gain acceptance from insurers, mainly because of cost. Although top Aetna […]
Three Arkansas men who allegedly kicked a pregnant woman in the stomach, killing her nine month fetus, are the first to be charged with first degree battery and capital murder under the state’s new Fetal protection Law. The murder charges mark the first test of the new law which was enacted last spring. Under the […]
After recently receiving a Health Ministry license, a hospital in Tel Aviv, Israel has completed at least 10 legal outpatient abortions using mifepristone, the non-surgical early abortion method, also known as RU-486. The pill’s licensing process was described as “trouble free,” despite some feminists’ concerns that the Shas-controlled Health Ministry might have opposed the pill’s […]
The NCAA reported yesterday that graduation rates for all Division I women’s basketball players declined for the second straight year, according to the recently released 1999 NCAA Graduation Rates Report. NCAA President Cedric Dempsey called the drop “distressing,” and added, “We don’t know what the causes for the decline are, but its certainly an area […]
On Monday, a federal judge in Rhode Island struck down the state’s two-year-old ban on late-term abortions, saying the law is unconstitutional. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Ronald R. Lagueux said the law is unconstitutional because it is vague and could be interpreted to cover other abortions, because it does not make an exception for […]
A 14-year-old British student has threatened to sue her school if they refuse to allow her to wear pants. The Wickam Comprehensive School in Gateshead currently requires female students to wear skirts, and Britain’s governtment-funded Equal Opportunities Commission recently said it will represent in court if necessary — student Jo Hale in her battle to […]
A report issued by the Progressive Women’s Association (PWA) reveals that about 300 Pakistani women are burned to death each year by their husbands or their husbands’ families, and the violence is increasing. According to PWA co-coordinator Shahnaz Bukhari, domestic violence is rampant in Pakistan. “Every second, a Pakistani woman is the victim or a […]
Organizers of the Next Millenium Conference opened the four-day domestic violence awareness event yesterday with a videotaped address by First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, who declared, “Citizens and governments around the world will recognize that domestic violence is not a custom; it is a crime.” More than 2,000 domestic violence experts, survivors, and advocates assembled […]
