Tag: Black Women

Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation: Women Leaders Reckon With a Loss of Abortion Rights; The Lack of Women at G7

Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation is a compilation of stories about women’s representation in politics, on boards, in sports and entertainment, in judicial offices and in the private sector in the U.S. and around the world—with a little gardening and goodwill mixed in for refreshment!

This week: Women leaders reckon with the Dobbs ruling and its catastrophic impact women’s lives and health; political strategies that deliver women real power; the lack of women leaders at the G7; democracy experts share their take on politics and the landscape for reform on the eve of the 246th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence; and more.

Against All Odds, She Became a Lawyer

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson just officially took her seat on the Supreme Court, making her the first-ever Black woman to serve as a justice in the Court’s 233-year history. 

Just 65 out of the 175 active judges on the federal circuit courts are female, and just 37 percent of state Supreme Court seats. Only 14 states have gender-balanced Supreme Courts. Out of the 115 justices that have served on the highest court of the United States, just six were women—four of whom are currently on the bench, including Jackson. In the face of recent events regarding the overturning of Roe v. Wade, we must change the face of justice in America through intentional actions and data-backed best practices to elect and appoint more women to judicial offices.

War on Women Report: Roe v. Wade Overturned; FINA Bans Transgender Women; Sexism and Racism at the Heart of Jan. 6 Attacks

The War on Women was in full force under the Trump administration. While the battle may look different today, we are staying vigilant in our goals to dismantle patriarchy at every turn. The fight is far from over. We are watching.

This week: the United States Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade; sexism and racism enter the Jan. 6 Attack hearings; FINA bans transgender women from participating in women’s swimming competitions; and more.

The Supreme Court Clearly Doesn’t Care About Women’s Lives

If we pay attention to those whose lives have already been destroyed by an inability to access abortion, we can see our collective future and the depths the challenges to come. Centering the voices of those who have struggled to get care—even as we recognize the implications of Dobbs on everyone—allows us to predict at least three immediate consequences of last week’s decision.   

Supreme Court Overturns Roe v. Wade

On Friday, June 24, the United States Supreme Court ended constitutional protections for the right to abortion.

The sweeping decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization overturns Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey and leaves legal protections at risk for contraception, same-sex marriage and IVF. The decision has allowed abortion bans to go into effect in 18 states.

Nationwide Campaign To Create an Abortion Sanctuary Network Starts in New York

Faced with the likely end of Roe v. Wade, reproductive rights advocates are seeking to create a nationwide sanctuary network for abortion services by passing interlocking legislation in blue states to ensure every American can safely access legal abortion services.

Celebrities and high-profile activists rally behind the Geraldine Santoro Act—named after Geraldine Santoro, who died from an unsafe abortion in 1964.

As We Mark the Anniversary of Title IX, I Regret I Never Met Toni Stone—The First Black Woman To Play Professional Baseball

As we mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX, landmark legislation that enabled girls and women to participate fully in interscholastic sports, I regret that I never met Toni Stone.

Unfamiliar with the name? I’m not surprised. Instead, my editors directed me to write articles about a white, San Francisco 49ers football player whose injuries they always deemed headline news. In a rarity for a 1980s Black woman reporter, I once interviewed, at home plate, then-Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda. In hindsight, I would have gladly traded the experience for a chat with Toni Stone.

Demystifying Cyber: Raenesia Jones Pays It Forward to Young Black Girls

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 Raenesia Jones, a cybersecurity operations analyst, about how her work keeps people safe and educates the next generation of Black women. “there are pervasive gender biases that have prevented women from going into cyber but I think it’s time we change that. I’d like for little girls to see someone who looks like them doing the work, so that they too can see themselves in this industry.”