The Florida Senate voted 31-9 to pass a law that requires women under 18 to notify at least one parent before getting an abortion. The Florida House has already passed the bill and pro-choice Florida Governor Lawton Childs has not said whether he plans to veto the new law. Pro-choice lawmakers argued that girls who […]
Clinical trials confirmed the efficacy and safety of mifepristone (formerly known as RU486) in the U.S., according to a report published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The drug allows women to obtain a medical abortion within seven weeks or less of a pregnancy. The study was conducted by the Population Council on 2,121 […]
About 1,000 women marched through the streets of Peshawar, Pakistan to protest the Taliban militia group, which rules of two-thirds of Afghanistan. Protesters, organized by the Revolutionary Afghan Women’s Association, cried out against Taliban decrees that strip women of their basic human rights. Dozens of young men, including members of the Taliban, approached the women […]
Women champions of the prestigious Wimbledon tennis tournament will receive less prize money than the men champions. Wimbledon chairman John Curry announced a 4.7 percent increase in the prize, up to 435,000 pounds ($728,643) for men and 391,500 ($655,779) for women. Curry said that women’s tennis has less depth and that fans prefer men’s tennis. […]
The Florida State House voted 77-41 in support of a law that will allow drivers to obtain a license plate with a picture of a child and the words “Choose Life.” The state Senate approved the bill by 28-12 earlier this week. Anti-choice legislators argued that the license plate was a “generic affirmation of life” […]
Amanda Lemon, an 18-year-old mother, filed a discrimination grievance with her high school principal for banning her admission into the National Honor Society because she is a mother. Lemon, who holds a 3.8 grade point average, claims that the decision violates federal law. The National Honor Society has more than 14,000 high school chapters nationwide […]
Peace talks between Afghanistan’s fundamentalist Taliban militia and northern opposition groups resumed today, with no mention of the Taliban’s violations of women’s human rights. Talks had stalled Monday when the Taliban and opposition groups disagreed on qualifications for Islamic scholars, or ulema, who will work on a peace commission that will govern Afghanistan. Taliban officials […]
U.S. President Clinton has vowed to veto a State Department bill passed by Congress Tuesday that repays $926 million in overdue U.N. funds, but stipulates the money can not be used towards international family-planning organizations that support reproductive rights. Conservative Republicans are threatening to add a similar provision to the Clinton Administration’s solicitation for $18 […]
Doctors offering fertility treatments should not discriminate against lesbians or unmarried couples, said a New York State Task Force on Life and the Law panel. The panel, composed of doctors, lawyers, clergy and ethicists, released a report recommending changes in fertility treatments. Although the panel’s suggestions are not required by law, many of the New […]
More women are moving into the U.S. House and Senate than ever before, according to a Washington Post article. In the past few months, Lois Capps (D), Mary Bono (R) and Barbara Lee (D) were all voted into the House of Representatives in California special elections, increasing the number of women in the House to […]
Peace talks between Afghanistan’s ruling fundamentalist Taliban militia and northern opposition groups were suspended yesterday and may not resume until the two groups can agree on necessary qualifications for Islamic scholars who will create a peace agreement, according to a Washington Post article. Taliban officials are demanding that only scholars who have graduated from recognized […]
Seven women were kidnapped and assaulted by 20 men with rifles, hatchets and knives at an Annaba, Algeria restaurant last week. Two of the women were found dead with their throats cut. Approximately 1,600 women have been raped and assaulted in Algeria since Muslim militants began waging an Islamic attack in 1992. Earlier this month, […]
Many female minority entrepreneurs are rejected when they request a bank loan, according to a new study conducted by The National Foundation for Women Business Owners (NFWBO). Although minority women are starting businesses at three times the rate of other entrepeneurs, 18 percent of Hispanic women, 27 percent of African-American and 20 percent of all […]
The Christian Civil League of Maine and the Christian Coalition of Maine have announced a petition drive that would put late-term abortion to a public vote. Maine legislatures voted against a bill that would have banned D&X abortions except when women’s lives are in danger. The referendum will be similar to the proposed federal bill […]
France Justice Minister Elisabeth Guijou said that although France will allow gays and lesbians to live together lawfully, homosexual marriages and adoption will not be legalized anytime soon. Guijou said that the leftist “government has committed itself to give the possibility to resolve tax, inheritance and social problems,” but same-sex marriage and adoption is “not […]
The Oregon Public Employees’ Benefit Board has decided to offer health benefits to domestic partners of state employees. Linda King, University of Oregon Human Resources Director said “I see it as a good thing. … Anything that makes us a more attractive employer helps in recruitment and retention. It also seems more equitable for our […]
President Clinton met with President Niyazov of Turkmenistan yesterday in an effort to improve relations between the U.S. and Turkmenistan and in part to make way for the creation of a trans-national pipeline that might earn Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban militia group $50 to $100 million a year. A White House joint statement on U.S.-Turkmenistan relations […]
Afghanistan’s Taliban militia group leaders met with their northern opponents this weekend for peace talks brokered by U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Bill Richardson and sponsored by the U.N. and the Organization of the Islamic Conference. Taliban and northern opposition leaders agreed to discuss a cease-fire, possible prisoner exchange and the resolution of the Taliban’s […]
A Japanese court ordered Japan to pay $2,300 each to three South Korean women who were forced to work in brothels catering to Japanese World War II soldiers. Judge Hideaki Chikashita of the Yamaguchi District Court ruled that the Japanese government must compensate the women for their suffering and said that the government’s failure to […]
Investigators found that 48 percent of U.S. female inmates interviewed were allegedly physically or sexually abused, while 27 percent said they were raped, according to a new report issued by the Bureau of Justice Statistics. The report is based on one-hour interviews with 6,133 inmates in 431 prisons in late 1995 and early 1996. The […]
