We Just Need to Pee

I’ve had bathroom anxiety since I was a kid. I always felt that using the women’s restroom was always the safest bet—until I began hormone replacement therapy in my late 20s. I remember the moment when a sharp male voice came from behind me, asking, “Excuse me—are you a guy or a girl?” My scariest moment left me unscathed. I survived. Nothing happened. I was lucky. Nex Benedict was not.

Stories of the many vigils held across the country for Nex speak to the care for our community. The story of Nex’s classmates walking out in protest of the school’s bullying policies speaks to the bravery of this next generation joining the ranks marching to the front line. To my trans and gender-nonconforming siblings: You are seen, you are loved, you are worth fighting for. There will come a day when we all can pee in peace. We continue on.

Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation: Black Women’s Priorities Ahead of 2024 Election; European Commission Urges Women’s Inclusion in Politics

Weekend Reading for Women’s Representation is a compilation of stories about women’s representation. 

This week: Pay equity is low in Biden’s administration; Black women’s priorities for the 2024 presidential election; the European Commission on the need for parity; the California primaries are a beacon of hope for increased representation in the state legislature; ranked-choice voting shouldn’t just be used to determine Oscar winners; and more.

Keeping Score: Kamala Harris Is First VP to Visit Abortion Provider; Fani Willis Can Pursue Racketeering Case Against Trump; Birth Control Access Is Key Election Issue

In every issue of Ms., we track research on our progress in the fight for equality, catalogue can’t-miss quotes from feminist voices and keep tabs on the feminist movement’s many milestones. We’re Keeping Score online, too—in this biweekly roundup.

This week: Alabama ruling endangers IVF; childcare costs are a significant barrier to parents having more children; Beyoncé and Olivia Rodrigo launch new charities; more than 9,000 women have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza; Biden addresses abortion access in the SOTU; new research on gender discrimination in the workplace; Kamala Harris’ visit to Minnesota abortion clinic is the first time a sitting U.S. president or vice president has visited an abortion provider; a judge ruled Fani Willis should not be disqualified from prosecuting the racketeering case against former President Donald Trump; and more.

How the Far Right-Wing Plans to Obliterate More of Our Constitutional Rights

In the last decade, the Convention of State Action (COSA) has become the fastest-growing Article V movement.

COSA advocates are pushing for Congress to call a convention to ratify a number of constitutional amendments which threaten the fabric of our democracy. If states have immediate standing to challenge the constitutionality of any enactments by Congress and the executive branch, the lives of women would be at risk.

Biden Takes on Republican-Led Abortion Bans in State of the Union

Biden’s State of the Union forcefully outlined the need for reproductive healthcare access and sounded a three-fold warning to the American people about: the dangers of abortion bans passed by Republican lawmakers at the state level; Republican obstruction in Congress to restore abortion rights at national level; and the federal abortion ban Republicans seek to enact. 

“There are state laws banning the right to choose, criminalizing doctors, and forcing survivors of rape and incest to leave their states as well to get the care they need,” Biden said in his Thursday night address. “Many of you in this chamber and my predecessor are promising to pass a national ban on reproductive freedom. My God, what freedoms will you take away next?”

The Ms. Q&A With Mary Robinson, Ireland’s First-Ever Woman President

When Mary Robinson made history as Ireland’s first woman president, she declared, “I was elected by the women of Ireland, who, instead of rocking the cradle, rocked the system.” This quote encapsulates a woman who was set on disrupting the system to pursue fair representation.

Ahead of International Women’s Day, RepresentWomen had the esteemed privilege of interviewing Mary Robinson for Ms. In this interview, we explore the depths of her humanitarian work, her political journey, and the heartwarming tradition she initiated with her grandchildren, who hold a special place in her heart. 

Beyond the Federal Budget: Hunger, Misogyny and the Absurdity of it All

Extreme House Republicans have been dangling the threat of a government shutdown for months, playing politics with the lives of real people. In addition to being disruptive, wasteful and unnecessary, a government shutdown would have a deep and scarring impact on those facing food insecurity and poverty. This is not a game.

Resistance to safety net programs like the expanded child tax credit, SNAP and WIC is rooted in racist, misogynistic, tired and offensive stereotypes that blame and shame people, rather than help them when they need it most.

Taliban’s Afghanistan: A Country of Only Men

The human rights abuses of the Taliban and re-establishment of gender apartheid in Afghanistan have largely been met with silence by the international community. A trend of normalization of the regime has begun to emerge in the media and in international assessments. Recently, The Washington Post ran an article titled “Taliban vowed to change Kabul. The city may be starting to change the Taliban”, which described a Taliban enthralled with shopping, learning English, and studying abroad. A photo of Taliban enjoying a picnic accompanies the article, but neglects to mention that women are now forbidden from going to the park or anywhere else.

Taliban revels in its male-dominated society, while women languish under house arrest or in jail for daring to defy Taliban decrees. This normalization of the Taliban is devastating to the women and girls of Afghanistan, and portends danger to the rest of the world where attacks on women’s rights have intensified.

Political Abuse Stifles Diversity, Report Shows

In 2022, voters elected the most diverse Congress in history—but that’s not saying much. Congress remains overwhelmingly male and white: Legislators of color make up just 25 percent of the government body, while the overall U.S. electorate is 41 percent people of color. That gap is as wide as it was 40 years ago.

One barrier to fair representation is abuse and intimidation—according to a new report from the Brennan Center. Officeholders at all levels of government face this abuse, but the amount of abuse is disproportionately high for women and people of color. ; It’s interfering with their ability to govern effectively—and it’s making them think twice about staying in politics.