More Than A Magazine, A Movement
The U.S. ranks as the 19th most dangerous country for women, 11th in maternal mortality, 30th in closing the gender pay gap, 75th in women’s political representation, and painfully lacks paid family leave and equal access to health care. But Ms. has always understood: Feminist movements around the world hold answers to some of the U.S.’s most intractable problems. Ms. Global is taking note of feminists worldwide.
This week: news from India, Germany, Malaysia, Iran, and more.
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 in this biweekly round-up.
This week: Massachusetts bill will strengthen reproductive rights for college students; Justice Alito defends his ruling in the name of “religious liberty”; Rep. Cori Bush introduces legislation for reproductive health services; WNBA star Brittney Griner sentenced to nine years in prison; Hong Kong guarantees space for women on company boards; and more.
Nada Stotland, a psychiatrist and past president of the American Psychiatric Association, has written extensively about the mental health effects of abortion denial. “The reasons women decide to abort are all mental health factors,” she wrote in a journal article. “These include poverty, lack of social supports, domestic violence, rape, incest, heavy ongoing responsibilities, lack of education, and preexisting mental illness.”
RepresentWomen’s Gender Parity Index (GPI), which weighs women’s representation at the national, state and local levels, shows how incremental and sporadic progress for gender balance truly is. According to this year’s Index, there are no states that have reached gender parity — a basement metric if we’re to call ourselves a truly reflective 21st century democracy. A majority of states earned a “D” grade for women’s representation in government, further proving that we are not even close to fully cheering “shattered ceilings” or taking victory laps for national “broken records.”
Over 100 years ago, my great-great-great grandfather Fredrick Douglass advocated for Black freedom and women’s rights. He was determined to push America to be a true democracy that encompasses all Americans regardless of race or gender.
Unfortunately, the fight for equality persists into 2022 and I am fighting for the same causes along with many members of my generation.
Without the protections of Roe v. Wade, state laws—rather than federal law—now regulate whether people across the nation can receive abortion care. This grim moment also means that state supreme courts will be much more crucial in deciding state laws on abortion access.
Re:power, an organization dedicated to a future of inclusive politics, challenges the public to look at the power of state courts and speak truth to it. “The only way out is through.”
Demystifying Cybersecurity highlights the experiences of Black practitioners, driving a critical conversation on race in the cybersecurity industry, and shining a light on Black experts in their fields.
This month, we spoke with Hope Goins, the majority staff director of the U.S. Committee on Homeland Security, about how cybersecurity affects everyone. “We need to find ways to make people realize the practical application of cybersecurity to their lives—from ensuring that children consume information via secure platforms to understanding how utilities like water and energy can be impacted by poor security.”
During the 45 years that award-winning author Nikki Grimes has been publishing children’s and young adult novels, she’s seen massive changes in the industry. Protagonists today are far more diverse, featuring more protagonists of color and characters who are disabled, non-binary, questioning or LGBTQIA+.
Right-wing organizations think many children’s books are offensive and have launched a campaign to squelch this progressive turn.
“The right is wrong. A more inclusive, accepting and humane world is possible.”
“We felt it our responsibility to depict the war on Black women’s bodies raging in this conservative state,” said Katori Hall, creator of Starz’s P-Valley.
Weekend Reading for Women’s Representation is a compilation of stories about women’s representation.
This week: the best and worst states for women’s representation and gender parity; what’s working around the globe to increase percentages of women in office; the presence of women artists at MoMA; the vital connection between the work for gender equity and the work to address climate change; and more.
