Childcare Programs: Closures, Resignations and Tuition Hikes After Federal Funding Expires

It’s been two months since the federal government’s $24 billion in childcare stabilization grants expired, sending the sector over what many have come to refer to as the “childcare cliff.” Tens of thousands of Americans missed work in October, the first month without stabilization grants, due to childcare problems. In the weeks after the funding expired; 29 percent of U.S. families reported that their childcare tuition had increased; 28 percent of childcare providers said they had reduced staff wages; and another quarter of providers reported that they were serving fewer children than when they’d been receiving stabilization funding. 

The Biden administration has asked Congress to approve $16 billion in supplemental funding to support the early care and education sector. Short of that—which would be something of a miracle in the current political environment in Washington—providers and families are left to fend for themselves. “It’s an economic imperative. It’s a moral imperative. But lawmakers should also see it as a political imperative: It’s affecting families’ bottom line.”

Combating Terrorism and Misogyny Together

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In the grim landscape of global conflict, one element stands starkly at its core: the systematic oppression and subjugation of women. The narrative of international security and foreign policy ignores gender, overlooking the crucial role women play in the fabric of societal stability.

The war that begins with women’s bodies does not end there. To effectively counter the scourge of terrorism, we must reject the false dichotomy between human rights and national security. Instead, we must recognize that the protection and empowerment of women are not just moral imperatives but strategic necessities. 

Lillian Vernon’s Legacy of ‘Kitchen Table’ Entrepreneurs Celebrated at Smithsonian

More than half a century before the COVID-19 pandemic normalized working from home, Lillian Vernon (1927-2015) launched what would eventually become a multi-million-dollar catalog business from the kitchen table of her modest home in Mount Vernon, N.Y. Her accomplishments as a pathbreaking entrepreneur were recently recognized with the installation of an exhibit: “Lillian Vernon, Kitchen Table Millionaire,” at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.

Keeping Score: Voting Rights Act Weakened; Fighting Back Against Abortion Bans; Remembering Rosalynn Carter

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: Federal judge weakens the Voting Rights Act; Congress fails to fully fund WIC; Attorney General Merrick Garland defends women traveling to receive abortion care; Jill Biden launches an Initiative of Women’s Health Research; American women are living six years longer than men.

Sexual Assault Accusers Can Be Sued for Defamation. This Will Discourage Survivors from Coming Forward.

The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has allowed Saifullah Kahn, a student accused of sexual assault, to sue his accuser for defamation, relying on a Connecticut Supreme Court opinion finding that the accuser was not entitled to absolute immunity for statements she made during a Title IX proceeding.

This decision will have a chilling effect on sexual assault survivors’ willingness to come forward, as they are now vulnerable to defamation and other civil suits, which are increasingly used to silence and intimidate victims. But the ruling also could impact how schools conduct future Title IX proceedings, and influence proposed new Title IX regulations, which the Biden administration has been working on since 2020.

Solutions to the Pay Gap for Native American Women Could Be Found in Their Tribes

November 30 marks Native American Women’s Equal Pay Day, spotlighting that those working full- or part-time are still earning only 55 cents for every $1 paid to non-Latino white men. Only Latinas have a wider gap. But 55 cents is, in many ways, an incomplete figure. 

There is much that is unknown about the nuances of the pay gap for Native American women. For years, the United States has failed to invest in data collection on Indigenous communities, making it difficult to reliably track wage gaps among the 574 federally recognized tribes.

Some Republicans Were Willing to Compromise on Abortion Ban Exceptions. Anti-Abortion Activists Made Sure They Didn’t.

On the floors of state legislatures over the past year, doctors detailed the risks their pregnant patients have faced when forced to wait to terminate until their health deteriorated. Women shared their trauma. Some Republican lawmakers even promised to support clarifications.

But so far, few efforts to add exceptions to the laws have succeeded.

What Happens Next in the Case Seeking to Block Texas’ Abortion Bans?

The Texas Supreme Court heard arguments on Tuesday in a case which seeks to clarify the scope of Texas’ “medical emergency” exception under its state abortion bans. The plaintiffs—20 Texas women denied abortions, joined by two doctors—were denied abortion care in Texas for their medically complex pregnancies, including cases where the fetus was not expected to survive after birth.

A ruling from the state Supreme Court is expected in the coming weeks or months. All the while, the case is working its way through the lower courts, which goes to full trial on March 25, 2024. In the meantime, the Center for Reproductive Rights “stands ready to help anyone in a situation where their life is on the line and they’re not getting the care they need.”

Ms. Magazine’s Prison and Domestic Violence Shelter Program: Let Women on the Inside Know They Are Not Alone

Women in prison often spend 17 hours a day isolated in their cells, with no reading material except the Bible, or with only books and magazines they must share with hundreds of other women. And this past year has seen reading bans inside prisons grow at a more concerning rate than those in public schools and libraries.

If you would like the deep satisfaction of knowing you’re a part of letting women know they’re not alone, please make a tax-deductible contribution to the Ms. Prison and Domestic Violence Shelter Program.