News

A Federal Court sentenced Jennifer Sperle to 30 months in prison and will report to an unnamed federal facility on March 12th. Sperle was convicted of arson in relation to a Norfolk abortion clinic.

The Population Council has announced it has settled litigation regarding control of the abortion pill mifepristone (formerly known as RU 486). A new privately-held company called Advances for Choice has been established to sell the drug and will be publicly identified as the U.S. distributor of mifepristone. Jack Van Hulst, president and chief executive of […]

A report from the Alan Guttmacher Institute has found that the U.S. has the highest rates of teen pregnancy in the industrialized world though rates are down worldwide. In the U.S,. 14% of girls aged 15-19 gave birth in 1996, twice the rate in Britain, the first-runner up. Of the teen pregnancies in the U.S. […]

Three male U.S. Army instructors at the Darmstadt, Germany training center have been relieved of their duties because of allegations made by 11 female soldiers that the instructors sexually assaulted and harassed them. Allegations also include forcible sodomy, indecent assault, and cruelty and maltreatment of a subordinate. Two of the instructors were placed into custody […]

Mississippi Gov. Kirk Fordice signed a law banning same-sex marriages in the state, calling the relationships “perverse.” The law will also deny recognition of same-sex marriages performed in other states and would ensure that same-sex couples be excluded from the benefits of marriage such as health insurance which Fordice said were intended for “traditional families.” […]

A study, published in the journal of the American Psychological Association, of nearly 5,300 women shows that having an abortion does not cause emotional trauma for young women. Researchers Dr. Nancy Felipe Russo and Dr. Amy Dabul Marin interviewed 773 women who had had abortions and compared them to women who had not had abortions. […]

A senior Army official has confirmed that two more women have made allegations that Sergeant Major Gene McKinney sexually harassed them. The official also said there might also be a third woman. The Army’s Criminal Investigation Command is currently looking into the allegations and McKinney has been suspended from duties until the matter is resolved. […]

Prosecutors in Mexico have dropped murder charges against a woman who shot a man who was attempting to rape her. The state claims that Claudia Rodriguez used excessive force in her defense, but Prosecutor Victor Hugo, without comment, dropped charges against her in a paper filed on February 7th. The overturned ruling, which denied a […]

The former executive producer of “Lifetime Magazine,” a woman’s news program, and ABC’s 20/20, died on February 11 at age 50. Eleanor Prescott had also served as the senior producer for the “Good Morning America Sunday” show and as executive producer of “Business World.” Prescott has most recently served as producer of ABC News. She […]

The Army has suspended Gene McKinney from his duties as Sergeant Major amid allegations that he sexually harassed an employee. The Army maintains that it had become “increasingly difficult” for McKinney to carry out his duties amid “continued public attention.” Brenda Hoster, the woman who alleges he sexually harassed her, commented on ABC’s “This Week”, […]

The unofficial U.S. military newspaper, Stars and Stripes, reports that authorities are looking into allegations of sex crimes at an Army Training Center in Darmstadt. Female students allege that three male instructors committed acts of rape, sodomy, cruelty and maltreatment against them. The three men have been removed from their jobs at the training center.

Lobbyists on both sides of the abortion debate are intensifying their efforts as the first abortion vote of the 105th Congress draws near. The first vote concerns when, March or July, the government will release funding for overseas family planning and how much, $215 million or $92 million. While those funds will not cover abortions, […]

San Francisco City Supervisors unanimously approved a deal with United Airlines on February 10th over a dispute concerning the City’s new domestic partner law. The agreement requires United Airlines to offer health benefits to same-sex partners of their employees within two years. The supervisors had earlier refused to approve a lease for an expansion of […]

A study by Egypt’s National Population Center has produced some stark statistics regarding the treatment of women and girls in that nation. The study shows that 35% of Egyptian wives polled were victims of domestic violence at some point in their lives. Of the 35%, 70% were attacked for refusing to have sex. The study […]

When allegations of sexual harassment in the Army first broke in relation to events at Maryland’s Aberdeen Proving Ground, Army officials dismissed the complaints as a result of a “few bad apples”. As the count of women alleging sexual harassment at Aberdeen escalates, from 19 at the first count in November to 50, the Pentagon […]

Citing that drill sergeants accused of misconduct are suspended from training duties, Republican Senators Olympia Snowe (ME) and Rick Santorum (PA) both stated on February 7th that the Army should suspend Gene McKinney. McKinney, the top ranking enlisted Army man, has been accused of sexual harassment by Brenda Hoster, a retired sergeant major. Hoster alleges […]

Cynthia Bundy has filed a discrimination complaint with the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights against the Fairdale Christian Church Day Care. The Commission heard Bundy’s complaint that the Church violated her civil rights and the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act when it fired her because she became pregnant and did not marry the father. Jeffery Stamper, […]

Authorities have questioned suspects in relation to a Tulsa abortion clinic which was bombed twice on New Year’s Day and twice on January 19th. FBI spokesman Dan Vogel announced that authorities have four persons, two of them juveniles, in custody for questioning. “Everybody in there is a suspect. And there’s a possibility that we may […]

Pamela Harriman, Ambassador to France, Democratic fund-raiser, political socialite and the ex-daughter-in-law of Winston Churchill, died on February 5th in Paris due to complications resulting from a cerebral hemorrhage. President Clinton commented on Wednesday, “[she was an] extraordinary U.S. ambassador. She was a source of judgment and inspiration to me, a source of constant good […]

In the first abortion related votes of the 105th Congress, the House will vote on whether or not to speed up overseas family planning funding and whether or not to outlaw overseas funding to organizations which perform abortions, even if the abortions are paid with private funds. If the House votes to speed up the […]