A federal appeals court in Virginia has ruled that Virginia’s so-called “partial-birth” abortion ban is constitutional, overturning the decision of the lower courts to enjoin the ban and allowing them to begin enforcing the ban. Judge J. Michael Luttig, who handed down the ruling, is historically conservative and upheld Virginia’s law requiring parental consent to […]
The National Center for Health Statistics issued a report on June 30 that indicated a drop in the “out-of-wedlock” birth rate for black women of every age group. Black women under thirty have shown especially large declines. Officials who have interpreted the study attribute the decline to increased use of contraceptives by black women. Sex-education, […]
The military’s longstanding “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy was declared discriminatory on Monday when a California state judge ruled in favor of a decorated officer who claimed he was discharged from the National Guard because he is gay. The policy, instituted by the Clinton Administration over five years ago, discriminates on the basis of “sexual […]
French fashion magazine Elle will be priced at 14 francs ($2.34 in U.S. currency) instead of the usual 13 ($2.17) in order to help raise money for the women of Afghanistan. In addition, Elle will donate one franc per issue, so a total of two francs will be donated for each magazine sold. French relief […]
U.S. District Judge Joseph L. Tauro ruled that the Boston School Committee has a “compelling interest” to assemble a diverse student body and thus may consider race when making admissions decisions at public schools there. Ninth-grade student Sarah Wessman sued the prestigious Boston Latin School, claiming that she was denied admission because she is white. […]
A planned merger between Baptist Health Systems (BHS) and Mercy Hospital may force the loss of essential reproductive healthcare services for women seeking healthcare at 4 Florida hospitals. Mercy Hospital is a Catholic facility that could follow the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services compiled in 1971 by the National Conference of […]
The Missouri Supreme Court has overturned a law that contained a ban on marriage between persons of the same sex. Since Missouri’s marriage laws still define marriage as a contract between a man and a woman, marriage is still unavailable to lesbian and gay citizens there. A buyer for a local bookstore said that gay […]
President Clinton signed and announced an executive order that adds sexual orientation to a list of categories for which discrimination is illegal in federal civilian governmental agencies. The current list of categories includes race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, age, and sexual orientation. Protection for gay and lesbian workers had already been issued at […]
Results from a U.S. Department of Labor study on compliance with labor laws at L.A. garment factories’ show that the overall rate of compliance with Fair Labor Standards Acts requirements is 39%, the same rate recorded in1996. The findings were announced Wednesday at an L.A. Stakeholders Forum that included contractors, manufacturers, retailers, worker’s rights groups, […]
Married women in Bangladesh are accorded extremely low status, yet most women opt for marriage given that the status of single women is even lower. Nurjahan, a teenage mother of two, recently married a man that has married 17 times before in an attempt to shelter herself from the violence from other men. She chose […]
An Evanston, Illinois school district will begin distributing free contraceptives in a new program designed to cut pregnancy and STD rates. The program is available only to those students whose parents have agreed to let them participate in the new program. Evanston District 202 schools will provide prescriptions for birth control pills, and both male […]
More than 100 countries and 1,000 organizations joined together this past January to raise awareness of child labor abuse in a “Global March Against Child Labor.” The march began in the Philippines and has since traveled across Asia, Africa, Europe, and the United States. The march will end in Washington, D.C. today. Representatives from the […]
More than 1,000 events will be held across the United States this weekend to bring attention to the need for quality childcare. First Lady Hillary Clinton, Children’s Defense Fund President Marian Wright Edelman and others will participate in one such event this Friday morning in D.C. Edelman, Clinton and others will build a new playground […]
In what may become a ground-breaking case, five women jail guards filed a sexual harassment suit against King County, WA, charging that prison officials there ignored inmates’ abusive behavior toward female corrections officials and contributed to a hostile work environment for women. The plaintiffs allege that prison inmates displayed pornographic pictures, made sexually-driven insults, and […]
Despite evidence that computer-assisted Pap smears are more accurate than traditional tests, many insurers do not cover them. In about 20% of traditional Pap smear tests, medical technicians fail to identify abnormal cervical cells due to poor cell samples and/or difficulties encountered in screening the cells. In tests where a computer screens the cell samples, […]
The U.S. Supreme Court has refused, without comment, a court challenge to the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE) brought by anti-abortion protestors in North Carolina. Under FACE, those who blockade or commit violence against women’s health care clinics and workers can be charged with a felony offense. The law was enacted in […]
In the third set of attacks on Florida abortion clinics within a week, two more abortion clinics were sprayed with a noxious acid. Officials have been unable to determine whether the attacks took place on Friday evening or Saturday morning. The Woman’s Health Center in St. Petersburg and National Women’s Health Services in Clearwater were […]
Army civilian lawyer Kelly Theriot claimed that Col. Darrel Porr sexually harassed her and then conspired with other top officers to retaliate against her when she complained. Her case was declared a mistrial Saturday. The judge in the case declared the mistrail after jurors said that they could not reach agreement after four days of […]
An unnamed thirty-five year old woman was refused an emergency abortion at Elliot Hospital in Manchester, N.H., after her water broke only 14 weeks into her pregnancy. Dr. Wayne Goldner of Elliot Hospital told the Boston Globe that he was forbidden from performing the abortion and had to arrange for the woman to be driven […]
A new device that measures the level of oxygen in malignant tumors could improve the effectiveness of cancer treatments by making it easier for doctors to determine which treatments are working. The “Oxylite” optic probe was developed by Britain’s Cancer Research Campaign (CRC). Based on the oxygen level in a given tumor, doctors can learn […]
