Toni Carabillo, long-time feminist leader and a co-founder and Vice President of the Feminist Majority, died early this morning at the age of 71. A pioneer of the modern day women’s movement, Ms. Carabillo was a founding member of the National Organization for Women, founded and was the first-ever president of the Los Angeles Chapter […]
The Feminist Majority joined the National Organization for Women and other women’s organizations in deploring Nike’s use of overseas sweatshops which exploit women workers, paying them as little as 20 cents per hour or $1.60 a day in Vietnam – hardly enough to eat on, let alone pay rent, clothing, health care and more. Nike […]
In 1967, Britain passed the Abortion Act, making it the first country in the world to legalize abortion. Other countries quickly followed Britain’s lead, but conservative religious forces still threaten abortion rights. British anti-abortion protesters marked the 30th anniversary of the Abortion Act by forming human chains in cities and towns and carried signs that […]
The Commission on Judicial Conduct in New York ordered on Friday that Judge Lorin M. Duckman be removed, citing years of misconduct. The panel found evidence that Duckman had abused his powers, purposely misapplied the law, and made insensitive remarks for the past several years. Commission Counsel Gerald Stern stated that Duckman had told a […]
Police in rural Chautauqua County, NY, have charged Nushawn Williams, 20, with having sex with young women and girls, knowing he had AIDS. The case came to light when the partner of a female who had sex with Williams became infected with HIV. Nine cases of direct infection through Williams have already been documented, six […]
Anorexia and bulimia are becoming more common among affluent young women, say health authorities in Korea and Japan. Retired epidemiologist Hiroyuki Suematsu says that one in 100 Japanese women have an eating disorder. While Korea and Japan have been hit the hardest by self-starvation, affluent women in the Philippines, India and Pakistan are also becoming […]
New York police officer Michael Ortiz is suing the city’s police department for harassment. Ortiz alleges that he was threatened with revenge, called names and given less desirable assignments after reporting that a superior, Sgt. Daniel Engel, had harassed two lesbian women last March. According to Ortiz, the two women were stopped at a DWI […]
Coming a month after the death of British journalist Ruth Picardie, who died of breast cancer two years after giving birth to twins conceived by in vitro fertilization, a study has been released that shows a link between fertility treatments and breast cancer. The report studied 38 women who had received in vitro fertilization (IVF) […]
The first court in Connecticut designed to deal specifically with domestic violence cases has resulted in the doubling of domestic violence convictions. In the past, because domestic violence cases were part of the criminal docket, they were often dropped and pushed aside by robberies and other assaults. The court’s goals are to stop violence, protect […]
Countless women went home from the Million Woman March in Philadelphia on Saturday with a renewed feeling of sisterhood and a newfound purpose. “It was a great moment for all women across America. It was a chance to express themselves, and to feel their power,” said Sister Gloriastine Muhammed of Macon, Ga. Adriene Breckenridge of […]
U.S. oil company Unocal reportedly has the largest stake — 36.5% — in a consortium of multinational companies just formed to build a gas pipeline from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan to Pakistan. The consortium also includes Saudi Arabia’s Delta, Russia’s Gazprom, Japan’s Itochu Corp and Inpex, Pakistan’s Crescent Group, and South Korea’s Hyundai. The consortium says […]
After almost 700 years of forbidding women from climbing the sacred mountain Omine in western Japan, the Japanese temple Ominesanji is considering permitting women climbers. The temple sits on top of the 5,640-foot Omine Mountain, one of only two Japanese shrines that forbid women. Ominesanji is a temple for male followers of the Shugendo sect, […]
On Nov. 4, Houston voters will decide whether or not to abolish the city’s affirmative action plan. California citizens voted to ban state affirmation action programs last year. An Oct. 2 poll said that only 29% of voters want to ban the program. The 13-year-old program states that 20% of city contracts must go to […]
Congressional hearings began yesterday for the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), a bill that would outlaw work place discrimination based on sexual orientation. The bill was narrowly defeated in the Senate last year by a vote of 50-49. Gays and lesbians who were fired because of their orientation described the hostile work environments and blatant discrimination […]
Diane Silberstein, a former publisher and senior vice president for the New Yorker magazine filed a lawsuit Wednesday alleging that her boss fired her because she was pregnant. Silberstein says that New Yorker president Thomas Florio actively discouraged her from taking other job offers while she was publisher. When he found out she was pregnant, […]
Female air traffic controllers testified about pervasive sexual harassment in the work place for the House Transportation Committee yesterday. Several female victims and both male and female witnesses complained that the male-dominated air traffic controller field was hostile to women. They said that women who complained of the constant sexual remarks and fondling were ignored […]
In a comprehensive study released Wednesday, the U.N. reaffirmed that sex education does not lead to higher rates of sexual activity among teens, and encourages safer sex practices among those already sexually active. The study reviewed 68 studies worldwide on the impact of AIDS and sex education on young people. UNAIDS Executive Director Peter Piot […]
The Pope announced yesterday that relations between the Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church had suffered a setback because of the Protestant church’s 1992 decision to ordain women. The Pope explained his view that Jesus desired only male priests and denies that male-only ordination discriminates against women. The Pope also stated that he […]
The military announced Wednesday that they will take personal and military arms away from any military employee who has been convicted of domestic violence. The ruling came a year after the Domestic Violence Gun Ban was passed, which forbids guns to anyone convicted of domestic violence. Conservative politicians such as Newt Gingrich still oppose the […]
A group of Thai and Latino immigrant sweatshop workers who were freed from slave labor in 1995 by a federal raid, won a lawsuit against the garment industry yesterday. B.U.M. International, L.F. Sportswear, Mervyn’s and Montgomery Ward agreed to pay 150 workers $2 million, and Hub Distributors/Miller’s Outpost will pay an undisclosed amount. As part […]
