On Wednesday (5-15), a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing met on the implementation of the Violence Against Women Act, part of the 1994 crime law. Asking that the Act be fully funded, chief sponsor of the legislation Sen. Joseph Biden (D-Del.) testified that he had not been able to persuade lawmakers to restore $1.3 million requested […]
Wednesday (5-15) was Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz’ deadline for Catholics in his diocese to quit 12 groups or face excommunication. The list of the groups Bruskewitz deemed unacceptable includes Planned Parenthood, Catholics for a Free Choice, and Call to Action, a group advocating discussion of the ordination of women and married men. Excommunicated Catholics may attend […]
In a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing on legislation to allow states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states, gay and lesbian rights activists said the measure was divisive and politically motivated. Along with other Democratic colleagues, Rep. Melvin Watt (D-NC) accused supporters of the bill, which would define marriage as the “legal […]
On Wednesday, the Food and Drug Administration approved the new drug Taxotere to treat breast cancer patients who do not respond to standard treatment, including chemotherapy. Given intravenously every three weeks, Taxotere has demonstrated in trials that it can shrink tumors. Like Taxol, an drug approved in 1994 to treat breast cancer, Taxotere can cause […]
Chief Petty Officer George Powell has been discharged from the Navy. Powell had been convicted of groping two women sailors – one aboard a commercial airplane in October – was penalized in rank and pay, and was sentenced to 89 days in confinement. Powell, 49, will not receive retirement benefits, but he is eligible to […]
The National Basketball Association will be publicizing the U.S. women’s basketball team, the first women’s national team recruited by USA Basketball a full year before the Olympics. NBA Properties markets the team, negotiating deals between it and corporate sponsors, licensees and television partners. It also creates advertising campaigns and helps plan exhibition games for the […]
Postmenopausal women taking estrogen therapy may find reduced accuracy in their mammogram screenings for breast cancer. According to Dr. Mary Laya, a University of Washington assistant professor of medicine, estrogen replacement therapy often increases breast tissue density which increases the overall difficulty in reading mammograms. It may also lead a physician to mistakenly diagnose benign […]
Candice Gingrich urged her brother Speaker Newt Gingrich to “stop this Congressional gay-bashing” on the eve of a House hearing on an anti-same-sex marriage bill. Candace, an out lesbian said, “The raising of this issue now, at the national level, is nothing more than election-year scapegoating of one group of Americans.” While the bill would […]
Efforts to raise the minimum wage are favorable to 81 percent of people polled by USA Today/CNN/Gallup. Democrats are leading the fight to raise the minimum wage. The Republican proposal to repeal the gas tax is favored by 56 percent. Of the 3.66 million workers earning the minimum wage of $4.25/hour, 63 percent are women.
North Carolina state representative Ken Miller was publicly censured by the state House of Representatives Monday (5-13) for sexually harassing women. A House Ethics Committee found that Miller had made unwanted advances and inappropriate sexual remarks to three women, including a 16-year-old volunteer page. The committee recommended the public censure after an expulsions proposal failed. […]
The San Francisco Chronicle reported Monday (5-13) that the University of California allows children of alumni to apply as residents of California, giving them an admissions advantage. California residents can typically be admitted to the UC system with lower grades and test scores than applicants from other states. The “legacy” admissions policy considers children of […]
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has decided to reinstate a lawsuit brought by male professors at Virginia Commonwealth University who objected to giving women faculty members pay raises to eliminate disparities in salary. A pay equity study had shown women making far less money than their male counterparts of similar rank and experience. […]
Representative Barney Frank (D-Mass.) has called Sen. Dole’s anti-same-sex marriage bill a “sleazy” attempt to divide President Clinton and his supporters. While Clinton has said he does not favor same-sex marriages, he has not taken a position on Dole “Defense of Marriage Act” which would define marriage as a union between a man and a […]
Officials at Mitsubishi Motor Corporation announced Tuesday (5-14) that they have hired former Labor Secretary Lynn Martin to investigate claims of sexual harassment at the company’s Normal, Ill. plant. The former Republican Congresswoman will investigate the claims filed by the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission in what could be the largest sexual harassment case in U.S. […]
Two hundred people from 20 nations attended “Beijing and Beyond,” a weekend conference called to discuss rights denied to Muslim women and to urge Muslim communities to pursue the goals for the U.N. Fourth World Conference on Women held last September in Beijing, China. The Sisterhood is Global Institute sponsored the conference and issued a […]
National Organization for Women chapters across the country picketed Mitsubishi auto dealerships this weekend to protest the company’s handling of charges of pervasive sexual harassment at its Normal, Ill. plant. Carrying signs that read, “Solutions, not retaliation” and “Mitsubishi, women are watching,” the protesters expressed their outrage over Mitsubishi’s denial of the claims made by […]
As a board member of the “No on CCRI” Campaign and the executive director of the Lawyers Committee on Human Rights in San Francisco, Eva Paterson met with President Clinton last week to discuss his opposition to an anti-affirmative action measure on the November ballot in California. Clinton said he believed the “California Civil Rights […]
Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto has indicated he may not honor his predecessor’s promise to apologize to the 100,000 or more women forced into brothels run by the Imperial Army in World War II. After refusing to assist the women who were kidnapped and forced to have sex with 20 or more soldiers a day, the […]
During his Saturday radio address (5-11), President Clinton asked Congress to pass legislation that would require insurance companies to pay for 48-hour hospital stays for women and their newborn babies. Currently, many insurance companies refuse to pay for stays beyond 24 hours, and some recommend releasing women only eight hours after delivery. Mothers who giving […]
The Canadian House of Commons overwhelmingly passed legislation Thursday (5-9) to ban discrimination against gays and lesbians. In an amendment to the 19-year-old Human Rights Act, isexual orientationi will be added to a list of characteristics that may not be used to discriminate in the hiring or promoting of workers in federal civil service or […]
