On Tuesday, the United States Supreme Court blocked a lower court’s decision that exempted refugees from the Trump Administration’s travel ban. The US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals had ruled that refugees who currently have contracts with resettlement sponsors or refugee organizations would be permitted to enter the country while the legality of travel ban […]
Marriage Equality Activist Edith Windsor Dies at 88
Edith Windsor, LGBTQ and civil rights activist, dies at 88 in Manhattan on Tuesday. After the death of her wife, Thea Spyer, in 2009, Windsor attempted to claim federal tax exemptions on her wife’s estate tax. Since same-sex marriage was not recognized by the federal government under the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), Windsor was […]
Deadline Extended to Submit Comments to Department of Education
In June, the Department of Education opened a comment period for the public to provide input on whether the Department of Education should keep, modify, or eliminate rules that protect the civil rights of students of color, women, students with disabilities, pregnant or parenting students, immigrant students, LGBTQ students, and other groups affected by civil […]
Yale University Changes College Name to Honor Grace Murray Hopper
Yale University recently announced that Calhoun College, named after Yale graduate John C. Calhoun, a fierce defender of slavery throughout his lifetime, will be renamed for the fall 2017 semester. The University intends to rename the college in honor of Yale graduate Grace Murray Hopper, an American computer scientist, mathematician, professor, and United States Navy […]
Abortion Clinics in Texas Help Women Impacted by Hurricane Harvey
Whole Women’s Health (WWH), a group of clinics that provide abortion care and other reproductive health services, announced on September 8th that it will offer free abortions to women impacted by Hurricane Harvey in Texas for the entire month of September. They have stated that they will set up four locations in Texas in partnership […]
Civil and Human Rights Groups Urge Lawmakers to Pass DREAM Act
Late last week, the Feminist Majority Foundation joined 186 civil and human rights groups who signed onto a letter to Congress urging them to pass the DREAM Act without amendment. The DREAM Act, introduced to Congress by Democratic Senator Richard Durbin (D – IL) and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham (R – SC), is a bipartisan […]
Success of Afghan Girls’ Robotics Team Inspires More Girls to Join Robotics Program
After the success of the Afghan Girls’ Robotics Team that visited the United States in July, more and more young girls in Afghanistan have expressed interest in becoming more involved with robotics and technology. The Afghan Girls’ Robotics Team participated in the First Global Challenge in Washington D.C. After the State Department denied the girls […]
DeVos Attacks Title IX Campus Sexual Assault Guidelines
In an announcement at the Antonin Scalia School of Law at George Mason University, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced that she is working to replace Title IX protections for survivors of gender based violence and sexual assault. In her speech, DeVos criticized the guidance put in place under the Obama administration in the Dear […]
Writer and Activist Kate Millett Dies at 82
Dr. Kate Millett, a groundbreaking feminist writer, artist and activist, died this week in Paris at 82. Millett’s 1970 book Sexual Politics became a cornerstone of the women’s liberation movement. In that text, originally prepared as a doctoral thesis by Millett at Columbia University, she exposed how patriarchy was woven into the fiber of society and its […]
Anti-Abortion Law in Texas Temporarily Blocked by Federal Judge
Last week, a federal judge handed down the decision to temporarily block a anti-abortion law set to take effect in the state of Texas on September 1. The law, SB 8, would have gone into effect on Friday and banned two types of procedures that are usually used in second trimester abortions. The two types […]
What to Expect as Congress Heads Back to Washington
Members of Congress returned to Washington yesterday after a month long August recess and there is a long agenda on the docket, but their first priority will be to pass a budget bill that will fund the government for fiscal year 2018. If they do not pass a budget bill by September 30, the federal […]
Trump Administration Set To End DACA Immigration Program
President Trump has reportedly decided to repeal the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA, as soon as Friday. Implemented under President Barack Obama, DACA is a two year, renewable program for undocumented immigrants who entered the United States as minors. Immigrant rights activists say the DACA program has improved the lives of thousands […]
Trump Administration Shuts Down Initiative to Combat Gender-Race Wage Gap
The Trump administration has announced that they will shut down a 2016 Obama-era initiative that empowered the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to collect pay data sorted by gender, race, and ethnicity from businesses with 100 or more employees.
South Carolina Governor Blocks Funding to Abortion Providers
In the latest attack on abortion access, South Carolina joins a long list of states who have attempted to pass legislation or set up obstacles for individuals trying to access abortion services. Last week, South Carolina Governor Henry McMasters signed an executive order that bans funding of any non-profit organization or practitioner that offers abortion […]
Trump Pardons Notorious Arizona Sheriff Despite Widespread Outrage
Last week, President Trump issued an executive pardon for former Maricopa County sheriff Joe Arpaio, a notorious Arizona official who abused his position to unconstitutionally racially target and detain individuals he suspected of being in the country without proper documentation.
Lebanon Repeals Legal Loopholes for Rapists
Last week, the Lebanese Parliament voted to repeal Article 522 of the government’s penal code which halts the prosecution or conviction of an alleged rapist if the perpetrator marries their victim. Lebanon joins Jordan, Morocco, and Tunisia on the list of countries to recently repeal similar legislation.
Trump Reinstates Ban on Recruitment of Transgender Troops
President Trump issued a memorandum last week reinstating a ban on transgender individuals serving openly in the United States military and forbidding the Department of Defense from providing medical treatment related to healthcare for transgender service members.
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Reflecting on the 19th Amendment: The Right to Vote and Women’s Equality
August 26 is Women’s Equality Day, the 97th anniversary celebrating the day when the 19th Amendment went into effect mandating that the vote “shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”
US District Court Strikes Down Texas’s Revised Voter ID Law
United States District Judge Nelva Gonzalez Ramos handed down a decision to strike down Texas’s revised voter ID law (Senate Bill 5) on the basis that it continues to discriminate against African American and Latino voters. Judge Gonzalez Ramos issued a 27 page decision on the 23rd of August stating that the voter ID law violates the Voting Rights Act and is unconstitutional.
New Poll Shows Strong Public Support for Abortion
The Center for Reproductive Rights has released the results of a new poll that shows 61 percent of adults in the United States support the federal government passing legislation to protect women’s access to abortion and prevent state’s from passing laws meant to restrict that access, known as TRAP laws.