Women’s Rights

Many Forms Of Violence Against Women

November 25, 2016 Rene Wadlow, www.ovimagazine.com Educate! Violence, Women's Rights

By Rene Wadlow. 25 November is the day designated by the United Nations General Assembly as the “International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.” Violence against women is a year-round occurrence and continues at an alarming rate. Violence against women can take many different forms. There can be an attack upon their bodily integrity and their dignity. As citizens of the world, we need to place an emphasis on the universality of violence against women but also on the multiplicity of the forms of violence. We need to look at the broader system of domination based on subordination and inequality. The value of a special Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women is that the day serves as a time of analysis of the issues and a time for a re-dedication to take both short-term measures – such as the creation of a larger number of homes for battered women – and longer range programs.

White Supremacists In Suits And Ties In Washington

November 25, 2016 Lacy McCauley, www.popularresistance.org Resist! Fascism, Trump, White Supremacy, Women's Rights

By Lacy McCauley. Washington, DC - Nazi salutes. White people demanding a white “homeland.” A speaker talking about how women like to be assaulted. Glowing remarks about Adolf Hitler. Reporters getting booed for asking tough questions. This was the scene inside a conference held at a downtown Washington DC government building this past weekend and at a local restaurant. White supremacists drank champagne this weekend in our nation’s capital to celebrate Trump’s presidential victory. The mostly-male group, part of the “Alt Right” movement, wore suits, ties, and dubious smiles. I wondered if any of them also had white robes at home. I was outside the building with a crowd of about 500 protesters. Our chants included, “Racists eating creme brûlée? You’re still the KKK,” and, “Fascists, we will shut you down.”

Nicaragua, World Champion of Gender Equality in Politics

November 20, 2016 Staff, www.telesurtv.net Create! Nicaragua, Women's Rights

By Staff of Telesur. Before Sunday's elections, 42 percent of lawmakers were women, making Nicaragua the country with the highest rate of women representation. Half of the candidates running for legislative elections Sunday were women and Congress will be split 50-50 between women and men, as decreed by a 2012 bill that was part of a general effort to address gender inequality in the country. Before Sunday's elections, about 42 percent of parliamentary seats were occupied by women, making Nicaragua the country with the highest rate of female legislators — and ministers — in the world, ahead of Switzerland, Finland, France, Cape Verde and Norway. According to the latest gender gap report released in April by the World Economic Forum, Nicaragua had the best record in all of Latin America and is ranked 10th globally out of 145 countries.

Newsletter: Time For Boldness, Clarity & Assertiveness

November 11, 2016 Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers, www.PopularResistance.org Newsletter Bigotry, Black Lives Matter (BLM), Climate Change, Democracy, Donald Trump, Fair Trade, Hillary Clinton, Immigrant Rights, Labor, Living Wage, oligarchy, Racism, TISA, TPP, Trade, TTIP, War crimes, Wars and Militarism, Women's Rights, Worker's Rights

By Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers for Popular Resistance. In this moment, the movement for economic, racial and environmental justice needs be bold, clear and assertive in putting forth an agenda that will serve the economically dispossessed, those under attack by militarized police, immigrants facing detentions and deportations and demonstrate policies that ensure economic security. Where Trump is right, as in detente with Russia, the movement will support him against the neocons and humanitarian war supporters; and we will push him further for an end to war as the primary tool of foreign policy. Both parties are confronting major fissures, leadership challenges and questions about where they go from here. Their confused leadership provides an opportunity for the popular movement to fill the leadership void with policies that put people, planet and peace over profit.

Stand Up For Abortion Rights

January 13, 2016 Stop Patriarchy, www.StopPatriarchy.org Resist! Abortion, Women, Women's Rights

By Stop Patriarchy. Abortion rights are in a state of emergency! Clinics across the country have been forced to close through unjust laws and anti-abortion violence. Women and staff are shamed, harassed, and threatened. Christian fascist politicians are fighting to shut down Planned Parenthood. Thousands of women are once again risking their lives and prison to self-induce their own abortions. Eleven people have been murdered by anti-abortion terrorists. And a looming major Supreme Court case will affect abortion rights for decades to come. Each year, tens of thousands of fanatics march against women's right to abortion and birth control on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Be part of standing up in counter-protest, letting the world and the powers that be feel our demand that abortion be available to every woman without shame, restriction, or stigma.

$8 Million For Women In Sex For Home Repair Scandal

January 10, 2016 Marie Lodi, www.jezebel.com Resist! Sexual Assault, Women, Women's Rights

By Marie Lodi for Jezebel. Twenty women who filed a lawsuit against the Housing Authority of Baltimore City are splitting a settlement worth almost $8 million. The lawsuit alleged that maintenance workers at various housing complexes had demanded sexual favors from the women in exchange for receiving badly needed repairs on their units. If the women did not agree, the maintenance requests would go ignored, exposing residents to unsafe conditions. A resident of the Gilmor Homes housing project said that Clinton Coleman, a maintenance supervisor, and Michael Robertson, another worker, demanded sex when the woman asked them to get rid of a bug infestation and fix her pipes. As punishment for her refusal, she had no heat in her apartment for two years. One young mother said she had sex with Coleman because she had feared for the safety of her daughter. “I was scared and ashamed,” the woman said. “I tried to forget about the incident.” Each time the woman needed something repaired, Coleman demanded sex.

For Abortion Providers, A Constant Barrage Of Harassment

December 6, 2015 Nina Martin, www.propublica.org Resist! Abortion, Planned Parenthood, Women's Rights

By Nina Martin for ProPublica. Shootings like the one at a Colorado clinic are rare. Stalking, hate mail, and intimidating protests are the daily reality. Since 1993, 11 people have been killed in abortion-related attacks — doctors, clinic staff, and last week, a police officer and two visitors in the line of fire at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs. While the investigation continues into the shooter’sbackground and motives, David Cohen, a law professor at Drexel University, says that stalking and harassment pose a much more common threat to abortion providers and their families. For their May 2015 book “Living in the Crosshairs: The Untold Stories of Anti-Abortion Terrorism,” Cohen and co-author Krysten Connon interviewed 87 providers in 34 states — clinic owners, doctors, and other employees.

Trump Repeatedly Interrupted In Raleigh Speech

December 5, 2015 Kevin Zeese, www.PopularResistance.org Resist! #BlackLiveMatter, Donald Trump, Immigrant Rights, Wars and Militarism, Women's Rights

By Kevin Zeese for Popular Resistance. On Friday, December 4th at a campaign rally in Raleigh, NC, Republican frontrunner, Donald Trump was interrupted 14 times by protesters. His speech, which lasted about 50 minutes was interrupted at five to 10 minute intervals by people shouting slogans opposing racism and facism. No one was arrested by all the protesters were escorted out of the rally by police. The Trump campaign has shown concerns about protesters by not allowing people into some of their events. In the end, Trump was interrupted 14 times and shortened his usual presentation. All the Democrats and other Republicans have also been interrupted during this campaign season at public events. Are these protests effective? They certainly do get the message out through the media that people are upset with the way a candidate is responding to an issue of concern.

‘Suffragette’ Raises Question Of Property Destruction’s Effectiveness

November 15, 2015 George Lakey, www.wagingnonviolence.org Strategize! Democracy, Suffragettes, Women's Rights

By George Lakey for Waging Nonviolence. “Suffragette,” a British film now in U.S. theaters, tells a gripping story drawn from the direct action wing of Britain’s woman suffrage movement. Because it spotlights one tactic – property destruction – the film raises the question of effectiveness. Leader Emmeline Pankhurst’s argument for escalating with arson and explosions was to hasten their win. Did it? One way to answer the question is to compare the struggle with Alice Paul’s strategy on this side of the ocean. Paul also escalated with nonviolent tactics but chose to rule out property destruction. The fact that Alice Paul cut her teeth in the British movement, and then in this country made a different strategic choice, provokes some thinking about a tactic that some U.S. activists look upon with favor. Why would property destruction slow us down instead of speeding us toward our goal? The answer lies in noticing who controls the narrative. Even though, in my definition of the word, property destruction is not the same as violence, in many cultures it does get framed as violence by prevailing opinion-leaders and their mass media operations. Certainly in the United States and Britain, where the power-holders respect private property more deeply than human life, property destruction is branded “violence” while militarily invading other countries is called “force.”

Newsletter: The Revolution Of Values

September 27, 2015 Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers, www.popularresistance.org Newsletter Capitalism, climate crisis, Colonialism, Immigrant Rights, Indigenous Rights, Pope, Poverty, Religion, Wars and Militarism, Women's Rights

By Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers. Pope Francis built his speech to Congress around three activists and President Lincoln. The three activists were the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton. This shows the pope recognizes where change comes from. While the pope is imperfect in his call for justice, he has certainly moved conversations on a range of issues forward unlike previous popes. There is a moral imperative to our activism as we must act in the face of injustice. Values are not defined only by religious leaders but by each of us. José Mujica, the Former President Of Uruguay began his political life as a guerilla fighter against dictatorship. In an interview he describes what makes us human. He talks about understanding the suffering of others, responding to their injustice and living humbly so all can live decently.

Protesters Urge Pope To End ‘Thousands Of Years Of Misogyny’

September 24, 2015 RuMellen, www.huffingtonpost.com Resist! Catholic war on women, Pope Francis, Women's Rights

By Ruby Mellen for Huffington Post - Sister Janice Sevre-Duszynska, a Kentucky native ordained by the Roman Catholic Women Priests and one of the leaders of the protest, voiced frustration at what she said was a great injustice. "This is an act of violence, denying priesthood to women," she told The Huffington Post. Pope Francis, Sevre-Duszynska said, should draw the connection between the oppression of women within the church and violence against women in the world. Doing so, she said, would heal "hundreds, thousands of years of misogyny." "I think folks are forgetting that Pope Francis is the CEO of an institution that's a patriarchy. It wasn't heavy theology," Bourgeois said. "It's called discrimination."

Privilege And Social Identity: Getting Real

July 19, 2015 Eva Orbuch, www.kosmosjournal.org Organize! LGBTQ, Racism, White Supremacy, Women's Rights

By Eva Orbuch in Kosmos Journal. Oakland, CA - Last Fall, I participated in one of the most meaningful educational experiences of my life—a training facilitated by Generation Waking Up. A very diverse group of 25 young adults spent three whole days together examining the major issues of our time and learning enlightening frameworks from which to re-view things like social justice, oppression, and the environment. What made the training go beyond solid curriculum and into actual shifts in our mindsets and hearts was our commitment to working deeply and intimately with ourselves and with each other. By the middle of the second day, we had shared a lot of our personal stories and often some of the pain that was behind who we are and why we act today.

Something’s Missing From Pope Francis’ Vision Of Equality: Women

July 9, 2015 Roisin Davis, www.truthdig.com Educate! Equality, Latin America, Pope Francis, Women's Rights

By Roisin Davis in Truthdig - Pope Francis this week embarked on a seven-day “homecoming” tour of Latin America on his unstoppable quest to defend the planet and the poor. The continent—the most unequal region in the world, and the Argentine pontiff’s home turf—will likely provide fertile ground for more of his legendary sermons on poverty and inequality. After addressing a crowd of a million in Guayaquil, Ecuador, on Monday, Francis is scheduled to attend a meeting of grass-roots political activists and visit one of the continent’s largest prisons, in Bolivia, as well as a slum and a children’s hospital in Paraguay. While he advocates for South America’s impoverished and disenfranchised, its prisoners, its indigenous peoples and its children, one group is unlikely to feature in Francis’ apparently radical agenda: its women.

Scenes From Domestic Worker Organizing

June 30, 2015 Rucha Chitnis, www.reimaginerpe.org Resist! California, Feminism, Women of Color, Women's Rights, Worker Rights and Jobs

By Rucha Chitnis in ReImagine - “There is an entrenched devaluation of immigrant women workers. Domestic workers are breadwinners of their families throughout Latin America and Asia. In so many ways they are uplifting the economies of their countries through remittances,” said Katie Joaquin, campaign director of the California Domestic Workers Coalition. “We see this as an international struggle that is critical to the leadership of women,” she said. There are nearly two million domestic workers in the United States, more than 90 percent of them women, mostly low-income immigrant women from diverse ethnicities. Over the past 25 years, MUA has built a worker-center model of sharing power and harnessing workers’ collective bargaining rights.

Women Human Rights Defenders: Protecting Each Other

April 26, 2015 Sarah Marland, www.opendemocracy.net Resist! Human Rights, Women's Rights

In 2012 the Women Human Rights International Coalition released a report on the growing threats faced by women around the world working to defend human rights. The rise of fundamentalisms, militarism and conflict, globalization and neoliberalism, crises of democracy and governance, patriarchy and heternormativity, are the key contexts that overlap and combine to put women human rights defenders at particular risk. In 2015, these risks have increased dramatically across the world, but systems to keep women human rights defenders safe are lagging far behind. At the 59th Session of the Commission of Status of Women (CSW) in New York last month, a persistent theme raised in panels was that in the absence of protection from the UN, regional bodies and national governments, it is the networks of women human rights defenders themselves that provide protection.

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