The War on Women is in full force under the Trump administration. We refuse to go back, and we refuse to let the administration quietly dismantle the progress we’ve made. We are watching.
This is the War on Women Report.
Since Our Last Report
+ The Department of Education is now accepting public comments about Secretary Betsy DeVos’ newly proposed Title IX policies—which narrow the definition of what counts as sexual assault and harassment, allow colleges and universities to ignore and dismiss some allegations of assault altogether and deny survivors their right to due process in order to protect alleged rapists. Anyone can submit a comment for the next two months. You can submit your response here.
+Early in the week, President Trump took to Twitter to make big claims about his meeting with leaders from China. What he didn’t tweet was this photo of the all-male panel he met with.
Everyone seated at the table for the Trump-Xi meeting is male. The only women were the translators standing behind each leader. pic.twitter.com/MbpxJJdCOd
— Jennifer Epstein (@jeneps) December 1, 2018
+ The Federal Bureau of Investigation recently published a report revealing that there was a 17 percent rise in reported hate crimes in 2016—which is likely fueled, at least in part, by the rhetoric of the president and his supporters.
Monday, 12/3
+ Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has unfairly earned a reputation for being a supporter of women’s rights—but in this year alone, he has jailed 18 women’s rights activists, many of whom who were campaigning against a ban on women drivers which he lifted. These women have reportedly been tortured, with at least one trying to commit suicide in custody and another being sexually assaulted while imprisoned. Despite bin Salman’s record on women’s rights—and Saudi Arabia’s alleged role in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi—on Monday, The Mercury News published an article calling attention to Trump’s intention to continue forging a friendship with Saudi leaders.
Tuesday, 12/4
+On Tuesday, President Trump tweeted that a border wall would “pay for itself” because we lose so much money on “illegal immigration.” This claim is at odds with economic data, and also obscures the fact that much of the border crisis unfolding now regards the actions of asylum-seekers who have the legal right to enter and apply for safe haven in the U.S. Trump’s rhetoric around immigration has put women and children from Latin American countries in real danger—and his administration has continued to fail to reunite the thousands of children who were taken from their parents forcibly by immigration officers earlier this year under his direction, despite court orders mandating that they do so.
Wednesday, 12/5
+On Wednesday, The Washington Post explored the Trump administration’s false claims that they are fighting human trafficking. Ivanka Trump has stated that she believes “every government in the world has a moral obligation to do all in its power to stop” human trafficking—and yet, there is little to show that this administration actually wants to protect victims, most of whom are women. Trump’s nomination of Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta, who is under fire for protecting serial child abusers, is only the most recent failure by his administration to protect survivors.
Thursday, 12/6
+ 150 doctors and other healthcare workers rallied this week against a proposed federal “public charge” rule—which would let immigration officials consider whether or not an immigrant would be using government services before granting legal status. Doctors who spoke to the crowd declared that the policy would force immigrants to ditch critical care services they truly need to look less dependent.
Friday, 12/7
+ President Trump Today announced his nomination of William Barr for Attorney General, and opposition to his appointment is already fomenting. Barr likely caught Trump’s eye because of his stance that Hillary Clinton’s emails should still should be investigated by federal agents, and his stances on other issues show concern for his level of bias as well. Some say Barr cannot be impartial, given his past leanings towards Trump.
Miranda Martin is a feminist writer and activist and an editorial intern at Ms. She has written for a variety of publications and been published by The Unedit and Project Consent. Miranda recently graduated from University of Wisconsin La Crosse with a major in Interpersonal Communications and a double minor in Creative Writing and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies. She loves to travel, read, exercise and daydream about the fall of the patriarchy.
