Last week, the Maryland Board of Public Works has agreed to lease public land in Montgomery County to Holy Cross Hospital, a Roman Catholic Hospital. The hospital will likely not offer a full range of reproductive health services, including access to birth control or abortion services. Jodi Finkelstein, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Maryland, stated, […]
In a critical five to four vote, with Justice Antonin Scalia writing for the five justice majority, the Supreme Court made it much harder for the victims of discrimination to take class action cases against large employers. The US Supreme Court majority ruled that the largest sex-discrimination class-action suit in history, filed on behalf of […]
The State of the World’s Midwifery 2001, a report released yesterday by UNFPA, indicates that if midwifery services were improved by 2015, approximately 3.6 million lives could be saved each year. The report underscores the current disparity between the number of midwives currently practicing and the number needed to reduce infant and maternal mortality. Dr. […]
In response to the US Supreme Court’s ruling in favor of Wal-Mart yesterday, Equal Rights Advocates, the civil rights group that took the case ten years ago, and other organizations rallied in support of the women of Wal-Mart outside the Supreme Court today. Representatives from Feminist Majority Foundation, the American Association of University Women (AAUW), […]
A New York Times report released earlier this week uncovered the deception of many athletic programs in schools regarding gender equity in sports, distorting the numbers in order to comply with the requirements of Title IX. Title IX, which bans sex discrimination in any federally-financed education program, has largely drawn attention to and been labeled […]
Following a lawsuit filed by Foliage Development Inc., Dr. Mila Means has agreed not to perform abortions in the office space that she leases from the company and stated that she will seek another space for her medical practice. Foliage Development claimed that by offering abortions, Dr. Means would create safety issues and a public […]
David Kato, a gay rights activist in Uganda, was beaten and killed in his home yesterday. Kato worked for Sexual Minorities Uganda and was a vocal critic of the Anti-Homosexuality bill, which would impose life sentences or the death penalty for gay people. In October, Kato was included in a list of Uganda’s “top homosexuals” […]
Senators Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced the Life at Conception Act in the Senate yesterday that would establish that human life begins at the moment of conception. If passed, the bill would extend equal protection under 14th article of amendment of the Constitution to unborn fetuses and would reverse Roe v. Wade, […]
The Military Leadership Diversity Commission announced plans to recommend that the Pentagon change its policies to allow women in combat. The Commission, established by Congress in 2009, is comprised of senior retired and active military officers. Members of the Commission stated that the report will be given to Congress and the White House by March. […]
Nasrin Sotoudeh, an Iranian Human Rights lawyer, received an 11 year prison sentence. Sotoudeh was arrested in September and went to trial on November 15 for allegedly acting against state security, assembling, and collusion with intent to disrupt national security. She was also charged for working with the Center for Human Rights Defenders, which was […]
Anti-choice organizations staged a demonstration and press conference at the Reproductive Health Services clinic in Germantown, Maryland, where prominent abortion provider Dr. LeRoy Carhart began practicing today. Protesters included the Christian Defense Coalition, Family Research Council, Operation Rescue, Concerned Women for America, Students for Life, and the Center for Bio-Ethical Reform. Montgomery County police and […]
