The UN announced Tuesday that the world population is estimated to reach 7 billion by October 2011. And that, says United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) executive director Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, underscores the need to provide “safe and effective” family planning to the 215 million women who lack it because it’s not readily available or prohibitively […]
Month: May 2011
Anti-Gay Politics Hit Home on Mother’s Day
A “Yes on Prop 8” sticker on a neighbor’s house led Jaime Jenett, a non-biological lesbian mother who lives in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, to write this letter: Hello, You don’t know me but I walk past your house three to four days a week on my break from work. Every time, […]
Not Your Mama’s Memoir
Popular mothering memoirs seem to fall into one of two categories. Either they subscribe to the humorous approach, in which the author focuses on the bodily functions, hormones and general hilarity of pregnancy and child-rearing, or they’re the heartfelt, saccharine, love-fest memoir (and yes, Jenny McCarthy has written books in both flavors). Refreshingly, Bring Down […]
Newsflash: House Passes “No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act”
Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed Rep. Chris Smith’s controversial bill, H.R. 3, the infamous “No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act.” You might remember this as the bill that attempted to redefine rape as “forcible rape” as part of its restriction on federal funding for abortions. After activists loudly condemned the bill in February, […]
Newsflash: Cheerleader Denied Justice (Again)
In a Texas case I wrote about on the Ms. Blog in October, Hillaire S. was 16-years-old in October 2008 when she was taken into a dark room at a house party by four high school athletes, one of whom raped her while another held her down. When three students in the hall heard Hillaire’s […]
A Mother’s Day Gift: A Future Without Violence
Mother’s Day is coming up. What to do? Flowers are nice. Jewelry works. A lot of Moms like brunch. The National Retail Foundation predicts that Americans will spend $16.3 billion on their mothers this year. That’s nice for Mom, but here’s something to think about while you’re picking out flowers, earrings or enjoying brunch– almost […]
bell hooks speaks!
Last fall, after blogger Gina Ulysse lamented the public silence of acclaimed scholar and feminist icon bell hooks, the Ms. Blog hosted “bell hooks week,” inviting writers to reflect on hooks’ contributions and apply her trenchant theories to current cultural phenomena. Not surprisingly, bell hooks week was a huge success. We featured writing by Janell […]
Don’t Ms.: Mother’s Day, MOMA Nights, Knit-a-Boob and More
Everywhere: May 8 is Mother’s Day! Stay tuned to the Ms. Blog for posts that put a feminist lens on the day. New York: MoMA nights, in conjunction with the exhibition Looking at Music 3.0, will feature a DJ set by Adam Horovitz (of the Beastie Boys) and a poster signing by artists featured in […]
Newsflash: Indiana to Axe Healthcare for Women
Gov. Mitch Daniels of Indiana says he will sign the controversial bill HB 1210, which will make Indiana the first state to defund Planned Parenthood. According to Planned Parenthood, that will leave as many as “22,000 patients without access to Pap tests, birth control and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases.” The bill also imposes extreme […]
Do We Hail Yale, Or Are The Men There Just (Bull)Dogs?
Last fall, the nation was shocked to learn that frat guys at Yale were parading around campus chanting “No means yes! Yes means anal!” Even more shocking was an apparent pattern of such ritual marches, a pattern that included a rally in front of the campus women’s center with a poster that read “We Love […]