“They think I throw soft, but then they see my fast ball, and they get kind of scared.” Mo’Ne Davis, the pitcher for Philadelphia’s Taney Dragons couldn’t be more right: after helping her Little League team secure an 8-0 shutout victory, along with a spot in the Little League Baseball World Series, there’s good reason […]
Author: James Hildebrand
James Hildebrand is a senior at Amherst College and editor-in-chief of the independent student blog AC Voice. He is interning this summer at Ms. magazine.
Reshaping National Security: What Angela Canterbury Brings to the Table
The U.S. government is expected to spend more than $1 trillion on national security projects in 2015. Discussions of national security—from policymaking to implementation—have long been a central fixture of the American news cycle, and decisions made in the name of national security directly affect domestic and international landscapes. With this in mind, it’s clear […]
When 9-1-1 Can’t Find You: How Wireless Providers Can Save Women’s Lives
Last month, Michelle Miers was shot and stabbed at her home by an attacker. Still breathing but in need of urgent medical care, she picked up her cellphone and dialed 9-1-1. Like most Americans, Miers probably presumed that calling 9-1-1 guaranteed help was on the way. For the 26-year-old mother of two, however, help would come too […]
Free the Japanese 3D Vagina Artist!
Megumi Igarashi, the Japanese artist who goes by the name Rokudenashiko (“good-for-nothing girl” or “n’er-do-well kid”) was arrested this week by Tokyo police for allegedly violating Japanese obscenity laws. Her crime? Distributing imaging data of her own vagina—data which could potentially be used by a 3D printer to reproduce a model of her genitals. A […]
Honoring History’s Forgotten Women, One-Too-Many Chardonnays At A Time
There’s something strangely empowering about hearing that Mary Dyer, the 17th century Quaker who dared to challenge the Puritans’ religious intolerance, “freaked their dicks off.” On Comedy Central’s Drunk History, which premiered its second season this month, crass is king as comedians rely on a little liquid courage to help them retell overlooked episodes in […]
One Year After U.S. v. Windsor: The Marriage-Equality Map
“In America, even sincere and long-held religious beliefs do not trump the constitutional rights of those who happen to have been outvoted.” So explained U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn II on Tuesday as he delivered his decision striking down Kentucky’s ban on same-sex marriage. Heyburn is the latest federal judge to overturn anti-marriage-equality legislation […]
Senate Hearing Reignites Hope For CEDAW and I-VAWA
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), surveying the chamber before her, a room packed with senators, diplomats, feminist leaders, scholars and activists, proudly proclaimed, “I’m looking at an iconic picture here.” At last week’s U.S. Senate Subcommittee on International Operations and Organizations, Human Rights, Democracy and Global Women’s Issues hearing on Combating Violence and Discrimination Against Women: A […]
Heckled Japanese Politician Stands Up to Sexism, Gains Worldwide Attention
When Ayaka Shiomura, member of Japan’s Your Party, approached the podium at a Tokyo assembly session last week, she probably wasn’t planning on ending her speech in tears. Unfortunately for the Tokyo assemblywoman, it seems that arguing for increased government childcare and pregnancy services was reason enough for male members of the assembly to launch […]
The Clock’s Ticking: Can We Still Meet U.N. Goals for Maternal and Child Health?
As we approach the 2015 deadline for meeting the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals, adopted in 2000, there is increasing pressure to improve the work on behalf of goals four and five: combating child mortality and improving maternal health worldwide. To this end, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in collaboration with UNICEF, the […]
Good Riddance to Dov Charney
At this point, it seems Dov Charney is better at making headlines than unisex tri-blend T-shirts. After years of rumors, allegations and lawsuits, the founder and CEO of struggling clothing giant American Apparel is finally out of the job. The company’s board of directors voted unanimously this week to strip Charney of his chairmanship and […]