Source: twitpic.com via Hello_Ladies on Pinterest
The intersection of feminism and life
Source: twitpic.com via Hello_Ladies on Pinterest
Congresswoman Speier
Remember Congresswoman Jackie Speier? Last February, during the House debate over Title X funding to family planning service providers including Planned Parenthood, she bravely shared a very personal story about abortion.
Today Speier again addressed Congress about Planned Parenthood — this time to speak out against Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure’s decision to pull funds from Planned Parenthood. The breast cancer organization, which claims to put the “highest priority on the women they serve,” pulled its funding for Planned Parenthood, an organization that provides women with breast health education, screenings, and referrals for mammograms.
Here is Congresswoman Speier’s statement about Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure.
And here is the speech she made last February.
A female leader who speaks powerfully and from the heart – this is why we need more women in Washington.
Click here to support Planned Parenthood.
Brava to Virginia State Senator Janet Howell who made a statement this week when she proposed an amendment to Senate Bill 484, which would require a pregnant woman to undergo an ultrasound and have the option to view her fetus before having an abortion. Howell’s amendment would have required men to undergo a rectal exam and a cardiac stress test before getting a prescription for erectile dsyfunction drugs.
Proponents of the mandatory ultrasound before abortion argue its part of informed consent – making sure a woman seeking an abortion knows her legal rights and alternatives, and to be sure the confused little lady really understands what she is undertaking. Perhaps Howell just wanted to make sure that men, distressed by their sexual dysfunction, were clear about the risks of Viagra and the choices they had – like abstaining.
Or maybe, she just wanted to make the point that no one should control another person’s body or create legislation requiring unnecessary and invasive procedures on another human being.
Not surprising, Howell’s amendment failed and the bill passed the Senate Education and Health committee. However according to the Richard Times-Dispatch, a new amendment, “being formulated by Democrats would require a physician to offer an ultrasound, but make the ultrasound optional for the patient.” It is expected to come up for a vote in the Senate on Wednesday.
For the 39th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court ruling which made abortion legal in the United States, we are participating in NARAL Pro-Choice America’s Blog for Choice Day by answering the question: What will you do to help elect pro-choice candidates in 2012?
It’s an important question. According to NARAL, in 2011 26 states enacted anti-choice measures. And in the GOP presidential primary race, four anti-choice candidates are vying for the nomination.
In the good news category, on Friday the Obama administration announced it would uphold a ruling that will provide women access to birth control with no co-pays as part of the Affordable Care Act. And today, President Obama issued a statement reaffirming his commitment to protecting a woman’s right to choose. It read, “While this is a sensitive and often divisive issue- no matter what our views, we must stay united in our determination to prevent unintended pregnancies, support pregnant woman and mothers, reduce the need for abortion, encourage healthy relationships, and promote adoption. And as we remember this historic anniversary, we must also continue our efforts to ensure that our daughters have the same rights, freedoms, and opportunities as our sons to fulfill their dreams.”
And ultimately, that’s what reproductive rights are all about. Choice and reproductive freedom are about a woman’s right to govern her own health and body, and lead her own life – and not to allow the government to make those decisions for her. So, to help elect pro-choice candidates in 2012 we will:
The following post, “Personal Responsibility,” first appeared on Hello Ladies in October 2010. It is the most popular post we’ve written in the 2 years since we started this blog. We are reposting it following the disappearance of Sherry Arnold, a female jogger from Montana. Arnold, a mother and teacher, went for an early morning run last Saturday and never returned. One of her running shoes was found on the side of the road and she was reported dead on Friday. Law enforcement officials are not sharing many details while they investigate but news outlets are reporting two men are in custody.
We decided to repost this after reading the reaction to Arnold’s death by some other female runners. Women are asking other women what do you do to feel safe running alone? And the answers vary from carry a cell phone and id bracelet, bring pepper spray, run with a dog or a partner, leave a note behind with your route and running outfit, to carry a gun.
Wow, it’s amazing what women feel the need to do to stay safe. In “Personal Responsibility” we wrote about being harassed while running at night and asked, “Why is it … that as a woman jogging alone at night, it is my responsibility to bring my phone and my dog, check over my shoulder regularly, and plan my route based on street lamps, and yet, these young men feel no responsibility for not harassing me or behaving civilly?”
We’re reposting this as reminder that while of course it makes sense to take precaution, be aware of your surroundings and use common sense, the responsibility for harassment and crime lies with the harassers and the criminals. And we cannot tolerate it. Prayers to the family and friends of Sherry Arnold.
“Personal Responsibility”
I went for a run after dinner tonight. It was a beautiful night. The moon was full and I wanted to unwind after a long week of work. I was responsible. I wore a bright, white vest so cars could see me. I took my big dog with me so I wouldn’t be alone. And I carried my cell phone and a bag of dog sh*t in case I ran into trouble on the road. That’s what it takes for me to feel safe running at night.
About one mile into the run, a car full of young men in their teens or early 20s drove by me. One of the passengers leaned out of the car window and screamed at me. He said he wanted to shove something up my ass. I didn’t catch what object he wanted to use. It scared me. But it has happened before and I had my dog, my phone and my goody bag with me, so I was pretty confident I would be okay. Still, I spent the next mile constantly looking over my shoulder (which caused me to twist my knee).
I decided to shorten my route to avoid a dark patch of road. But as I approached my house after just two miles, I felt good and wanted to keep going. I decided I would keep running and loop around the neighborhood. And then, a car full of boys drove by me and one of the passengers leaned out the window and screamed at me. I went straight home.
I walked in the door far less relaxed than I had been when I set out. In fact, I was furious. Why is it, I wondered, that as a woman jogging alone at night, it is my responsibility to bring my phone and my dog, check over my shoulder regularly, and plan my route based on street lamps, and yet, these young men feel no responsibility for not harassing me or behaving civilly?
If something had happened to me during my run – if I had been attacked – and the incident made the paper, do you think most people reading the story would have first thought, “Why do those men behave that way?” Or would their first thought have been, “Why was that woman running alone at night?”
Like what you’ve read? Then sign up here to receive future posts by email or RSS.
Betty Dukes and Walmart plaintiffs
Another year almost over, another few cents narrowing the wage gap. Here’s a look back at some of the stories that impacted or involved women in 2011:
Reproductive rights under attack: Three days into the year we wrote, “Congressman John Boehner (R-Ohio) will become Speaker of the House Wednesday and women should pay attention. … In fact, he represents a significant threat to women’s reproductive rights.” And indeed 2011 saw some of the most aggressive attacks on women’s reproductive health. Ashley Portero at the International Business Times has a round up of the staggering number measures related to reproductive health introduced in 2011 including:
Rape and intimate partner violence a very real threat: Speaking of women’s health, in November the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey, a comprehensive survey on sexual violence, stalking, and intimate partner violence revealing in the United States nearly 1 in 5 women have been raped, and more than 1 in 3 women have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner.
Two brave women speak out: Two women bravely spoke out against sexual violence and took to the mainstream media thereby letting the world know the stigma of rape belongs to the rapist, not the raped. Nafitassou Diallo, the woman who accused Dominique Strauss Kahn (DSK), former head of the International Monetary Fund of raping her in a New York hotel room, and Lara Logan, the CBS correspondent who was brutally assaulted in Egypt went on primetime television and shared their stories.
Ginni Rometty
IMF and IBM appoint women to top spots: Following the allegations against Strauss Kahn, Christine Lagarde, France’s finance minister, was named the new head of the International Monetary Fund. And technology giant IBM appointed its first ever woman CEO, Virginia (Ginni) Rometty while former eBay chief Meg Whitmasn was named CEO at Hewlett Packard. However, Avon’s CEO Andrea Jung, stepped down and Carol Bartz was fired by Yahoo. While there was plenty of movement, the 2011 Catalyst Census:Fortune 500 Women Board Directors, Executive Officers and Top Earners reported in the corporate world “women have made no significant gains in the last year and are no further along the corporate ladder than they were six years ago.”
The Supreme Court blocks Walmart discrimination suit: In June, The U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in the Walmart v. Dukes case in favor of Walmart. The court ruled the gender discrimination suit against Walmart could not proceed as a class action. In doing so the court overturned a U.S. appeal court ruling that granted class action status to female employees of the giant retailer. The decision was widely viewed as a win for big business and a blow to women and we wrote, “The decision leaves women alone in their fight against discriminatory practices, steeling for a long, expensive, and sometimes nasty battle, or merely biting their tongue.”
The wage gap remains: Underscoring why the Walmart ruling matters, in March the White House Council on Women and Girls issued the report, Women in America: Indicators of Social and Economical Well-Being, which noted women have not only caught up with men in college attendance but younger women are now more likely than younger men to have a college or a master’s degree and the number of women and men in the labor force has nearly equalized in recent years. However, the gains in education and jobs has not translated into wage and equity. At all levels of education, women earned about 75 percent of what their male counterparts earned in 2009.
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
Three women win the Nobel Prize: In October, The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to three women in recognition of “their non-violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work.” The Nobel Committee divided the award equally between Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Leymah Gbowee and Tawakkul Karman.
Politics continues to be a sexist sport: In August we published “The Hello Ladies Guide to Sexism in Politics” so women could follow along during a wild year for women in politics. The year began with a horrific attack on Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords who we were thrilled to see return to the House in August for the debt ceiling vote. Also in January, the formidable Maryland Senator Barbara A. Mikulski became the longest-serving woman in U.S. Senate history. Mid year Congresswoman Michele Bachmann announced her candidacy for president and thankfully former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin did not. In September, Elizabeth Warren officially entered the Massachusetts Senate race. And throughout the year, many in the media, and certainly Herman Cain, continued to demonstrate sexist behavior towards women in politics. Name It Change It has a good roundup of sexist media coverage in 2011.
We said goodbye to two strong women and hello to many more: Former Congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro, who was the first female vice presidential candidate of the United States, passed away in March as did Former First Lady Betty Ford in July. As we said goodbye to these inspiring women, we were introduced to emerging leaders like:
We’re looking forward to covering more heroines in 2012.
If I were Santa, I’d be making my list and checking it twice. And here are the gifts I would give:
For Our Daughters: The gift of self-esteem and positive role models
The mass media perpetuates a message that women and girls’ value comes from beauty and sexuality – and it affects us. Sixty-five percent of women and girls have an eating disorder. Eighty percent of the op-ed pages are dominated by men. The number of women in senior management positions globally has gone from 24 to 20 percent from 2004 to 2009.
For Corporate America: More women in leadership positions
There is a large, and growing, body of research connecting women at the tops of organizations to a strong bottom line performance. However, women comprise 53 percent of new hires, but only 37 percent of managers, 26 percent of vice-presidents, and just 14 percent of executive committees.
For Working Mothers: Flexible work arrangements … and a day of rest
The life of a working mother is challenging. Flexible work arrangements give parents the ability to work more flexibly and better manage the challenges of work and family.
For Working Families: Passage of the Paycheck Fairness Act
According to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau, women earn, on average, just .78 cents for every dollar a man earns. And for women of color, the gap is much greater. Fair pay is not a woman’s issue, it’s a family issue. An estimated two-thirds of all U.S. households rely on a woman’s salary at least partially.”
For All Women: The ratification of CEDAW
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) is an international treaty that supports fundamental human rights and equality for women around the world. CEDAW was adopted in 1979 by the United Nations General Assembly. To date, 186 of 193 countries have ratified the treaty. The United States has not.
For President Obama: The courage to stand up for women’s reproductive rights
Women helped President Obama get elected in 2008 and they can be expected to play a major role in the 2012 election too. In return, women need Obama to take a stronger stance on women’s rights, and in particular, women’s reproductive health – regardless of the pressures he’s facing from his opponents.
For the GOP: The Sanctity of Life
The US ranks poorly for infant mortality rates and maternal death rates; more than two women die every day from pregnancy related causes. Yet many lawmakers try to block women’s access to much-needed health services, supposedly in the name of life. For Christmas, we want to give them the gift of truly honoring the sanctity of life – all life – and to see them work toward improving the health and life of mothers.
For Massachusetts: A woman Senator
Massachusetts has never sent a woman to the Senate. Although 51 percent of the U.S. population is female, women hold just 16.5 percent of the seats in Congress. That puts the US at 69th in the world for gender parity. We need more women in office.
For Victims of Domestic Violence: Hope
Domestic violence victims and their advocates need money to gain freedom from abuse, to protect children from abusive partners or ex-partners and develop public policy efforts related to domestic violence. Please donate and give them support and hope.
What gifts would you give? You can add to my list at The Skinny Scoop.
The all-male Catholic Bishops are weighing in on women’s reproductive rights again. This time they are upset about a requirement in the Affordable Care Act mandating employers offer free contraceptive coverage as part of health insurance policies beginning next August.
While there is an exemption in the law for some religious employers, primarily churches that employ mostly people of the same faith, the bishops say it is too narrowly defined and “even the ministry of Jesus and the early Christian Church would not qualify.” They want to see the exemption broadened to include universities, hospitals and clinics associated with religious organizations. Doing so would take away a key aspect of healthcare reform from countless women.
Said U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Service Kathleen Sebelius when the administration first announced the requirement last summer, “These historic guidelines are based on science and existing literature and will help ensure women get the preventive health benefits they need.”
But now it appears the White House is reconsidering. Following a meeting between Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, and President Obama, The New York Times reported, “Several lawmakers said administration officials had left them with the impression that the president was leaning toward a broader exemption.
“But the White House said Mr. Obama had not made a final decision and would listen to all points of view at a meeting of administration officials soon after he returns on Sunday from his trip to Asia.”
Contraception is part of preventative health services and should be accessible. Click here and tell the President that all women should have coverage of contraception without co-pays.
Women should be able to make health-related decisions in consultation with our doctors. We should be able to vote for our lawmakers on a ballot. And if we choose to practice a religion, we should be able to do that too. What we shoud not be subjected to is the beliefs of some dictating the laws of all. If the Catholic Bishops cannot trust their followers to live according to their doctrine, then they should examine why that is – not try to legislate compliance.
And you may find this interesting: The Pew Forum, in a recent report on religious lobbying, cited the Catholic Church as one of the largest religious lobbyists in Washington. Click here to see the tax status of religious and religion-related organizations that are located in the D.C. area and are involved in public policy.
A coworker was discussing the Penn State scandal. He was so angry. “Don’t the student rioters and Paterno supporters have any sympathy for the victims,” he asked? “Don’t they understand how hard it must be for the victims to see and hear them defend the coach?”
A friend from college posted about Penn State on his Facebook page. He questioned why the media refer to what Jerry Sandusky did in the shower as sex instead of rape. He was amazed some Penn State supporters favored the football program over the well-being of the victims.
A listener called in to a sports radio program I was listening to during my commute to work. He just couldn’t comprehend how so many people knew about Sandusky’s actions and didn’t make him stop.
It’s called rape culture gentleman, and it sucks. And because I’ve been writing about women’s rights for the last four years I am unfortunately familiar with it. I get the anger you are feeling over what happened at Penn State. I feel it too – I read the grand jury report and I cried. Sadly, I don’t share you’re shock and disbelief over the way Penn State handled the accusations. Nor am I surprised by the rioting students – sickened, sure, but not surprised. And the media, well, I’ve just read too many stories about rape to expect anything else.
Rape culture, gentlemen, it contributes to Hollywood celebrities rallying behind Roman Polanski, the rapist who fled the country. And yes, even though the media said Polanski had sex, it was rape. His victim was a child.
Rape culture contributes to sportscasters declaring during the 2011 Super Bowl that a win could mean redemption for Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger who was accused of sexually assaulting (yes, we know that means raping) several women. As if a Super Bowl title could wipe out a violent crime?
Rape culture: definitely a factor in a community victim-blaming an 11 year old girl in Texas who was gang raped by up to 18 men and boys; some of the accused were star athletes in the community.
And could it have been rape culture that contributed to at least a dozen people watching the gang rape of a 15 year old girl in Richmond, California and not helping her?
Rape culture: it’s what we get when we accept the media euphemisms for rape, or we invoke false rape claims as a reason to discredit victims, or when we put the accuser on trial and hold them to a higher moral code than we do the accused, and when we support the accused because friends, neighbors and colleagues say he was a “good guy.” It’s hard to witness, impossible to comprehend and we’ve seen it rear it’s ugly head at Penn State.
So please, continue to support the Penn State victims and express your outrage at the cover up, the coverage and the misguided reactions. Call people out. Use social media, send letters to editors. And then, remember to extend the same to all victims. They all need our support.
For more facts on rape and information on prevention and victim support, visit RAINN, The Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network.
Like what you’ve read? Then sign up here to receive future posts by email or RSS.
Photo used courtesy of acaben’s photostream on Flickr.
Did you know 88 percent of the women on the Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women list are mothers with an average 2.5 children each? How do we harness that power for better maternity leave policies, paid sick days, flex work arrangements and affordable, quality childcare? Thank you to OnlineSchools.com for the great infographic.
Courtesy of: OnlineSchools.com
