Tag: Colleges and Universities

I Refused to Let Texas’ Abortion Ban Decide My Life. Other Women Aren’t So Lucky.

The following is Madysyn Anderson’s personal story, as told to Courier Dallas:

“SB 8 became Texas law on Sept. 1, and I found out about my pregnancy just a couple of weeks later. I didn’t want an unwanted pregnancy to prevent me from completing the biggest achievement in my life thus far. I decided that I wanted to share my experience with abortion and be an educational resource.

“Unless our country gets a reality check about who we elect to office and we educate ourselves on their positions, we women have no hope of deciding whether we want to start a family or not—or if we want to carry a rapist’s child. We stand no chance unless we fight for what we believe in.”

It’s Not Easy to Be the First … or the Thousandth

As I’ve answered interviewers’ questions, I’ve noticed myself saying things like: “I was surprised how difficult it was to be a woman in seminary, even at a seminary that’s fully committed to supporting women in ministry.” I’ve come to realize that of course it’s still difficult to be a woman in these spaces. Of course it’s still hard—even after many decades, even after hundreds or even thousands of women have walked this path before me—because the reality is that the roads were not built with us in mind. They were not shaped to fit us. So many different intricacies and twists and turns and building materials went into making these paths, all of which are more difficult to navigate for those who were not their original intended walkers.

New College of Florida Destroys Gender Studies Books

On Jan. 6, 2023, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis orchestrated a rightwing takeover of New College of Florida in Sarasota, the state’s only public liberal honors arts college. DeSantis appointed six new members to the college’s board of trustees who promptly voted to eliminate the diversity, equity and inclusion office and the gender studies program.

On August 15, administration at New College of Florida in Sarasota destroyed hundreds of books that had been housed in the Gender and Diversity Center on campus, placing them in a huge dumpster for disposal. 

Keeping Score: Court Blocks Student Loan Relief Plan; Former N.Y. Cop Sentenced 10 Weekends in Jail After Child Rape; Trump’s ‘Tampon Tim’ Jab Backfires

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: Kamala Harris reaffirmed her candidacy for president at the DNC; Republican-appointed judges strike down Biden’s student loan relief plan; a new law bans women from speaking in public in Afghanistan; working moms earn just 71 cents per dollar earned by dads; understanding the orgasm gap; gold-medalist boxer Imane Khelif fights back against racist and sexist abuse; new reproductive rights bills signed into law in Illinois; and more.

From the Frontlines of the MAGA War on Higher Education: The Ms. Q&A With New College of Florida Professor Amy Reid

“New College is a flashpoint for what’s going on. We’re a cautionary tale.” —Amy Reid

With Project 2025 promising to do to higher education across the country what DeSantis has done to New College of Florida, Ms. sat down with New College professor Amy Reid to discuss how the college has changed since the takeover, and how faculty are fighting back. Reid joined the faculty at New College as a French professor in 1995 and helped develop the gender studies program at the college. After the takeover, her peers elected her chair of the faculty, making her a member of the board of trustees.

Kentuckians Sound the Alarm: Abortion Bans Are Driving Doctors Out of State

Advocates, medical students, faith leaders and physicians came together in Bowling Greens, Ky., to mark the two-year anniversary of the Kentucky Court of Appeals decision that allowed one of the nation’s most draconian state abortion bans to take effect. The near-total ban in Kentucky has no exception for abortion care in cases of incest or rape.

With a mobile billboard truck reading “Kentucky’s Abortion Ban Is Driving Away Doctors” as a backdrop, the press conference highlighted the devastating implications of Kentucky’s abortion ban—chief among them its power to drive doctors away.

The Paranoid and Unhinged Rhetoric of Project 2025

Project 2025 is a wishlist of rightwing policy goals for the next conservative president.

I took a dive into the Project 2025 cesspool and fished out some of the choicest morsels, which I’ve organized into several categories: rebuilding the patriarchal family; ending sex discrimination … against men; reproductive rights and wrongs; demonizing our enemies; oil and gas will save the country; and eliminating government as we know it. Enjoy!

DOJ Asks Supreme Court to Allow Most of the New Sex Discrimination Rule to Go Into Effect

The Justice Department went to the U.S. Supreme Court this week in defense of the Biden administration’s new Title IX sex discrimination rule that includes transgender protections—arguing strongly that the logic of the rule is “compelled” by the Court’s ruling in Bostock.

The rule, issued under Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, is set to go into effect on Aug. 1.

Title IX: Upholding Justice for Student Survivors in a Historic Election Year

This year marks the 52nd anniversary of Title IX, a landmark civil rights law that has transformed the landscape of U.S. education. The Biden-Harris administration’s new Title IX regulations, set to take effect Aug. 1, represent a significant step toward acknowledging and addressing the unique challenges faced by student who face discrimination and sexual violence, especially female, LGBTQ+ and pregnant or parenting students. But Republicans hope to block these Title IX revisions and revert them back to the restrictive Trump-era Title IX guidelines.

In this historic election year, with President Biden stepping down from the presidential campaign and Vice President Kamala Harris stepping up as the new candidate, the stakes are even higher.