Today is the 105th International Women's Day. "It is the one day in the year when the amazing contributions made to ordinary lives by extraordinary women are recognised and celebrated."
The quality of life and fair representation continuum
March is National Women's History Month. Congresswoman Anna Eshoo graces my in box to share her thoughts on advancing women and girls in society. She's joined with other Democratic women in Congress to introduce a package of legislation, The Women's Economic Agenda.
The women's economic agenda will enable women to achieve economic security, raise wages for women and their families, and allow working parents to support and care for their families. This includes paycheck fairness; investment in job training and educational opportunities; support for women entrepreneurs; paid sick, family and medical leave; and adequate funding and promotion of child care programs. In practical terms, this will mean families won’t have to choose between a paycheck and caring for their sick child or parent. No longer will women have to decide between food on the table and paying rent.
She says the women's economic agenda is not just an idea for improving quality of life, it comes with the full force of actions being taken in Congress. I'll be checking my email for updates on this.
Steven Hill, The Nation, asks why the US has so few women in office. If this current rate of progress continues as is, it will take close to 500 years for women to gain fair representation in government.
Women's Campaign Fund Presents MsRepresentation - With great inequality comes great responsibility. And the need for way more women in office.
Racism and the Violence Against Women continuum
While Marissa Alexandra fired two warning shots because her life was in danger, two white men murdered two black teens and walked away with freedom in their pockets. Now Florida State Attorney, Angela Corey, is seeking a sentence from twenty to sixty years because Alexandra's husband, who has a history of Domestic Violence, confessed to beating her. He also stated that she did not point the gun at him.
Angela Davis connects the personal and political, the institutional and the intimate, the public and the private in the context of punishing women.
Internalized racism and luminescence continuum
Oscar Winner Lupita Nyong'o
She is stunning from the inside out, isn't she?
Reproductive Rights and the Absence of Knowledge Continuum
A friend of mine from graduate school had been successfully maintaining a private practice where I could not keep a patient for more than a few weeks. If I had, there was a problem with the insurance and I didn't get paid. I asked her to mentor me and I rented office space as needed. She provided all of the requisite legal and ethical forms including an intake form. On the intake form was the question if the patient had ever terminated a pregnancy. I asked why this question was included on an intake form and she responded that many women who experienced (undefined) guilt, sadness and anxiety had terminated a pregnancy in their past. Right. Did I mention her status as a staunch Republican of the religious type? Indeed, I was her "Jewish" friend, without whom "Christmas would not be possible." This week finds Iowan woman can now sue their doctors for performing a legal abortion up to ten years later.
American women can have no right to choose if there is no right to know.
Because earlier and more accurate information about catastrophic fetal disorders could lead some women to terminate their pregnancies, a medical advance that could be a blessing for many Americans will be seen as a curse by the anti-abortion forces that now dominate the Republican Party.
In an effort to make reproductive rights a part of American history only, Republicans are redefining the "standard of care" for women seeking abortions by requiring that doctors commit medical malpractice by lying to them and requiring they perform medically unnecessary procedures. How far are Republicans willing to go to prevent prospective parents from testing to find out the health of their baby?
The intersection of birth Justice and abortion access is under one roof (seems intuitive to me). Dr. Katherine Morrison, an OB-GYN, says of Buffalo Womensservices,
“I see a connection between respecting a woman’s right to decide to end a pregnancy and her right to determine how she has her baby."
Sexism and fundamental rights continuum
The Republican wave of anti-women candidates and legislation is pushing Dem candidates to mobilize. The Dems don't just get mad when they hear sexism coming from the mouths of Republicans - they cash in.
In Afghanistan, extremists are increasingly working to roll back time since the Taliban was removed from power. Women and girls are experiencing increased oppression as what had been viewed as gains not so long ago, like protecting the rights of women and girls, providing education to girls, and empowering women to join the police and military, has now reverted to the tragic and disheartening.
Action Items
This Inernational Women's Day, Keep Koch out of NYC
On our day, International Women's Day, this year, we are calling for a new day in New York City. Let's close the chapter on the Koch Brothers. The right wing’s biggest bucks simply have no place here anymore.
A coalition of elected officials, labor unions, the NAACP, the Working Families Party, and community groups is coming together this Saturday, March 8 for a Cook Out to Get Koch Out. We’ll gather at 10AM on York Avenue, between 68th and 69th Streets, by the site of the forthcoming Koch Center for a pancake breakfast and a march on the Upper East Side. If you're in New York City this weekend, join us!
Urge Congress to Support On-the-Ground Advocates for Women and Girls
The United Nations Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women can—and has—made a difference in the lives of women around the world. The program’s support for on-the-ground advocates who are rooted in local communities is one of the most effective ways of addressing the root causes of violence.
Unfortunately, the United States hasn’t contributed to this vital effort since 2010. And, at current funding levels, the UN Trust Fund is able to support less than one percent of the local advocates who ask for help to stop violence in their communities every year.
Planned Parenthood: Tell Congress Health has no borders.
RH Reality Check: Stand with Texas Women
Resources
International Women's Day 2014
A global hub for sharing International Women's Day news, events and resources.
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