Tag: Menstrual Equity

U.S. Backslide on Abortion Rights Is a Grave Danger to Democracy, Say Both Reproductive Rights Experts and Legal Analysts

Saturday, Jan. 22, marked Roe v. Wade’s 49th anniversary—and it very well may be its last. 

On Friday, Jan. 21, experts on democracy and elections from the Brennan Center and Ms. discussed the implications of the Texas abortion law S.B. 8 and the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case that directly challenges the precedent of Roe.

Sponsored by Ms. and the Gender and Policy Center at George Mason University’s Schar School, the rousing discussion set the stage for how the U.S. got to this point, and outlined where we go from here.

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Keeping Score: NYC’s First Women-Majority Council Takes Office; Only 55% of Non-Parents Want Kids Someday; D.C. Students Get Free Period Products

This week: Nebraskans face one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the nation; New York City’s first women-majority city council takes office; Ahmaud Arbery’s murderers sentenced to life in prison; D.C. Council approved free menstrual products in all schools; the gender gap in higher education widens; and more.

Michigan Lawmakers End the Tampon Tax: The Case for Bipartisan Period Legislation

Michigan Lawmakers End the Tampon Tax: The Case for Bipartisan Period Legislation

Michigan has officially made menstrual products exempt from tax, joining several other states who have voided the tampon tax that disproportionately affects menstruators in many ways. What is unique to Michigan’s recent legislation is the bipartisan efforts made to have successful period legislation.

Michigan’s case is important and the bipartisan work can be seen as guidance for the future of the menstrual movement as challenges lay ahead.

When "Six Weeks" Is Actually Two: Understanding Periods Is Essential to Fighting Abortion Bans

When “Six Weeks” Is Actually Two: Understanding Periods Is Essential to Fighting Abortion Bans

There continues to be a visible, troubling disconnect in our collective literacy of the menstrual cycle—especially vis-à-vis the way we frame early pregnancy and abortion. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott spoke to the press about S.B. 8, the new law that all but obliterates the right to abortion in the state, saying, “[O]bviously it provides at least six weeks for a person to be able to get an abortion.” He is 100 percent wrong.

What is the Legacy of the “Gender-Equal” Tokyo 2020 Games?

When the IOC announced last winter that Tokyo 2020 would be “the first gender-equal Olympic Games,” they were touting the near 50% representation of female athletes, an all-time high.

Now that the summer games have concluded, the IOC statement turned out to be prescient in other unexpected ways: fierce feminism has been on full display for the past two weeks as athletes boldly broke norms and pushed back against sexist protocols and practices.

Summer 2021

Sneak Peek into Ms. Summer 2021 Issue: Don’t Filibuster Democracy

A glimpse at what you’ll find inside the upcoming Summer issue of Ms.:

In “Don’t Filibuster Democracy,” Jennifer Weiss-Wolf explains how advancements for women’s and civil rights hinge on eliminating an anti-democratic Senate rule: the filibuster; “The Women in the Room” provides a firsthand account of the Afghan peace talks from negotiators Fawzia Koofi and Fatima Gailani; Carrie Baker breaks down why abortion rights are in a “code red”; stories of period-positive activists; and more.