Women's Philanthropy--Women's Issues

Weekly Feminist News Digest: 1/10/2010 - 1/14/2010

January 18, 2010 GET NEWSLETTER | DONATE | FOLLOW US The Weekly Feminist News Digest is a service of the Feminist Majority Foundation, made possible through the support of individuals like you. Your contribution is vital to the continued success of our empowering work.

Top Feminist News - 1/10/2010 - 1/14/2010 Jan 14 2011 Military Commission To Recommend Dropping Combat Restrictions for Women The Military Leadership Diversity Commission announced plans to recommend that the Pentagon change its policies to allow women in combat... http://www.feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswirestory.asp?id=12813 Jan 13 2011 Abortion Provider Prohibition Act Introduced in the House Late last week, Representative Mike Pence (R-IN) introduced the Title X Abortion Provider Prohibition Act in the House... http://www.feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswirestory.asp?id=12811 Jan 12 2011 AZ Law Bans Protesters from Victims' Funerals Yesterday, the Arizona State Legislature passed legislation to ban protestors from coming within 300 feet of the funeral services of the victims of the Tucson shootings... http://www.feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswirestory.asp?id=12809 Jan 11 2011 Feminist Dreams of a Young Girl A budding feminist and nine-year-old elementary school politician, Christina Taylor Green, was the youngest of six killed in the shooting that occurred at the "Congress on Your Corner" event sponsored by Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords... http://www.feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswirestory.asp?id=12807 Jan 10 2011 Iranian Human Rights Lawyer Receives 11 Year Sentence Nasrin Sotoudeh, an Iranian Human Rights lawyer, received an 11 year prison sentence... http://www.feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswirestory.asp?id=12804 OTHER WEEKLY NEWS Jan 14 2011 - Planned Parenthood's Use of Telemedicine Permitted http://www.feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswirestory.asp?id=12814 Jan 13 2011 - Decline In Abortion Rate Levels Off http://www.feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswirestory.asp?id=12812 Jan 12 2011 - Same-Sex Marriage Likely in MD http://www.feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswirestory.asp?id=12810 Jan 11 2011 - Scott Sisters Released from Jail http://www.feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswirestory.asp?id=12808 Jan 10 2011 - Anti-Abortion Bills Proposed in FL and NE http://www.feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswirestory.asp?id=12805 Jan 10 2011 - Sheriff Decries Consequences of Inflammatory "Vitriol" After Tuscon Shooting http://www.feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswirestory.asp?id=12806 You have received this e-mail because of your interest in women's issues. To unsubscribe, please go to: https://feminist.org/email/unsubDIA.asp 1600 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 801, Arlington, VA 22209 | 703.522.2214 | webmaster@feminist.org

AWID Resource Net Announcements: Wednesday 19 January 2011

Wednesday 19 January 2011 To contribute to Resource Net, please write to contribute@awid.org. Please allow at least two days for us to consider your request. Items that arrive too late to be included in the newsletter, will be posted to www.awid.org In this Issue Announcements Events Calls for Participation New Resources Appeals and Urgent Actions Quick Links to AWID's Website Announcements Events Calls for Participation  New Resources   Appeals and Urgent Actions Subscribe to Resource-Net Announcements Follow us on Facebook & Twitter   ANNOUNCEMENTS   The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders: Press Release: Turkey: Twelve years of judicial harassment against Pinar Selek January 18, 2011 "The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), appeals for international mobilisation to call for the acquittal of Ms. Pinar Selek, a defender of women's rights and the rights of minorities..." Read more   International Women's Media Foundation (IWMF): Statement to Free Iryna Khalip   "The International Women's Media Foundation is calling on the government of Belarus to immediately release imprisoned journalists arrested for reporting the news, in the aftermath of the presidential election. In particular, we are alarmed at the formal charges filed against Iryna Khalip, a fellow IWMF Courage in Journalism Award winner who has been accused of instigating mass riots and faces possibly 15 years in prison..."   Read more    Statement on Gender, Economic and Environmental Justice by African Women Activists "We are Young African women activists and feminists from various countries who gathered in Accra, Ghana on 20-23 November 2010 for the Regional Consultation and Training on Gender, Economic and Environmental Justice convened by Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era (DAWN) and Third World Network-Africa. Recognizing the challenges and uncertainties that the Africa region is facing in the context of systemic global crises, we affirm the central role of women in the resolution of these crises and the crucial need to address the gaps and fragmentation in the institutional and policy responses from Governments and global governance institutions..." Read more    European Disability Forum (EDF): Media Release: A Landmark Victory in Human Rights Battle as EU signs UN Convention on the Right of Persons with Disability   January 5, 2011 "The European Union has formally concluded the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on 23 December 2010, becoming the first intergovernmental group to sign on to any human rights treaty. The European disability movement has been working hard to make sure the EU conclude the Convention by the end of 2010. The European Disability Forum welcomes this development, which is a significant landmark and will help improve the lives of 80 million persons with disabilities in Europe..."   Read more EVENTS    Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy       March 15, 2011 Geneva, Switzerland On March 15, 2011, as the United Nations Human Rights Council holds its main annual session, the 2011 Geneva Summit for Human Rights and Democracy -- for the third consecutive year -- will assemble hundreds of courageous dissidents and human rights victims, activists, diplomats and student leaders, in an adjacent parallel forum, to shine a spotlight and call for action on urgent human rights situations that require global attention.   Read more   CALLS FOR PARTICIPATION Call for Papers: Netherlands Association for Gender Studies and Feminist Anthropology (LOVA): "Ethnographies of Gender and Conflict"   After LOVA's successful international conference Ethnographies of Gender and Globalization in 2008, LOVA presents another opportunity for researchers to come together in the city of Amsterdam. From 6-8 July, LOVA's 2nd international conference: Ethnographies of Gender and Conflict will take place. Deadline for papers: February 1, 2011.    Read more Call for Contributions: UN: Good Practices to Prevent Violence Against Women The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights is looking to receive more input from civil society and national human rights institutions regarding the report requested by Human Rights Council Resolution A/HRC/RES/14/12 which was adopted in June 2010 and entitled Accelerating efforts to eliminate all forms of violence against women: ensuring due diligence in prevention. Deadline for contributions/input: February 4, 2011.   Read more Call for Applications: CREA's 5th Sexuality, Gender and Rights Institute: Exploring Theory and Practice   CREA's Sexuality, Gender and Rights Institute is an annual, week-long, residential course - begun in 2007 - that focuses on a conceptual study of sexuality. It examines the links between sexuality, rights, gender, and health and their interface with socio-cultural and legal issues. Participants critically analyze policy, research and program interventions using a rights-based approach. The Sexuality, Gender and Rights Institute will be held in Istanbul, Turkey during June 18-26, 2011. Deadline for applications: February 15, 2011.   Read more   Call for Participation: Networking on World Bank's Gender World Development Report (WDR)   In 2012, the World Bank's World Development Report (WDR) will be devoted to gender for the first time. Yet, the draft outline of this flagship publication by the World Bank lacks a women's and human rights framework and almost exclusively focuses on economic empowerment as the sole means to achieve gender equality. As groups with a strong interest in gender, social justice and the World Bank, Washington DC-based Gender Action and London-based Bretton Woods Project are co-hosting a discussion forum to inform global civil society about the gender WDR and coordinate responses.   Read more Call for Submissions/Abstracts: Isis Center for Women & Development: International Conference: "Women & New Media in the Mediterranean Region " With the growing dominance of the Internet, blog, chat and mobile telephony, the great "big bang" of the new media has begun. Communication is rapidly changing and becoming mobile, interactive, personalized and multi-channel. This extraordinary  revolution is affecting the basic structure of Mediterranean societies, especially those in the south, and is raising various discussions and debates that profoundly impact women:  the rapid transformation of the boundaries between the public and the private spaces, the relationship between new technology, orality and women's literature, changes in the relationship between written and oral languages, the increasing use of mother tongues (mainly oral) in the field of education, and the challenges of new transmissions of women's knowledges. Deadline for abstracts: March 1, 2011. Read more   NEW RESOURCES A New Resource: Global Fund for Women (GFW): 20 Years After the Fall: How are Women Faring? (Transcript & Podcast)   This is a broad analysis of women's rights in Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States. You can read a partial transcript of a conversation featuring Betsy Hoody, GFW's Program Officer for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (ECIS), and Masum Momaya from the Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID) and/or listen to the podcast.   Read more   A New Resource: Women's Initiatives for Gender Justice:  "Gender Report Card on the International Criminal Court 2010" On 6 December 2010, the Women's Initiatives for Gender Justice launched the Gender Report Card on the International Criminal Court, 2010, during the 9th Session of the ICC Assembly of States Parties in New York. The launch, one of the first events to be co-hosted by UNIFEM as part of the new agency for women (UN Women), was attended by States Parties, UN officials, ICC officials and NGO members. Speakers included Margot Wallström, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Sexual Violence in Conflict; Joanne Sandler, Deputy Director of UNIFEM; and Brigid Inder, Executive Director of the Women's Initiatives for Gender Justice.    Read more   A New Resource: Women and Habitat Network Latin America: World Summit of Local and Regional Leaders - UCLG The Women and Habitat Network - Latin America, a Member Network of the Huairou Commission, participated in the World Summit of Local and Regional Leaders held by United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) in November. The following is a summary of their experience their and their successes in bringing women's voices and gender equality issues into the Summit. Read more A New Publication: Institute of Development Studies (IDS) Practice Paper: "Bringing Together Pleasure and Politics: Sexuality Workshops in Rural India" What are the linkages between sexuality and violence against women -beyond sexual violence? Do poor rural women want to talk about sex? What does it mean to take a political approach to sexuality? Should pleasure be a part of this politics? How can women's rights activists be persuaded to prioritize sexuality in their work? How do categories of caste, class, rural, educated, intersect with sexuality? These are some of the questions that Nirantar, a women's NGO working on gender and education in India, sought to answer. Read more A New Resource: WIDE Annual Conference 2010 Report: "Migration in the Context of Globalisation: Women's Human Rights at Risk?" Women from all corners of the globe including many representatives from European migrant women associations came together at the WIDE conference to share and reflect on this open question of migrant women's human rights at risk, compelling us to rethink, expose and denounce the architecture of policy-making in Europe (and globally), and to explore the links between decisions taken at a global level and the impact they have on the ground.   Read more  A New Resource: CIVICUS and IPS: Civil Society Gateway   CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation and the Inter Press Service (IPS) developed the Civil Society Gateway to facilitate the relationship between civil society and the media. It is an online civil society communication resource for journalists and the media. It is designed to help the media quickly and easily find sources for their stories within civil society on a variety of themes. Organisational profiles within the database are searchable by both thematic and regional focus.    Read more   New Resources: Hesperian: Disability Books/Titles "Among Hesperian's acclaimed health manuals are our series for people with disabilities. These guides provide families, communities, and health workers with clear, accessible information to help women and children who are blind, deaf, or physically or mentally disabled develop to the best of their abilities. Simply written and heavily illustrated, these books have been used around the world to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities - and for the communities in which they live..." Read more     APPEALS AND URGENT ACTIONS Take Action: World Pulse: Send your visions and recommendations for the new UN Women agency!   As the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women officially begins its work this month, World Pulse is asking women worldwide: What is YOUR vision and recommendation for UN Women? You are invited to raise your voice by writing a letter to UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet outlining your recommendation for how this new UN agency can truly affect change on the ground to promote gender equality and uphold the rights and needs of women both on a local and global scale.   Read more   Take Action: Front Line: Cambodia: New draft NGO law would severely restrict the work of human rights defenders    On 15 December 2010, a new draft Law on Associations and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in Cambodia was publicly released. The provisions of the draft law are highly restrictive and, if passed, the law could have a severely detrimental impact upon the work of human rights defenders in Cambodia. Read more AWID Membership Change doesn't just happen. We collectively make it happen. By becoming a member of AWID, you are joining a movement that seeks to advance the rights of women around the world as you connect with other individuals and organizations that are committed to building our collective voice, power and influence in achieving full equality of women and human rights of all people.   Find out more Resource-Net is brought to you by The Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID). AWID is an international, multi-generational, feminist, creative, future-orientated membership organization committed to achieving gender equality, sustainable development and women's human rights. AWID's mission is to strengthen the voice, impact and influence of women's rights advocates, organizations and movements internationally to effectively advance the rights of women.   You are free to replicate AWID's information in other formats, and use it in your work, provided you give credit to AWID. To contribute to Resource-Net write to contribute@awid.org. Please do not send attachments to this email address.

AWID | 215 Spadina Ave Suite 150 | Toronto | Ontario | M5T 2C7 | Canada

Stand Up Against Blanket Abortion Coverage Prohibition

Stand Up Against Blanket Abortion Coverage Prohibition Tell Secretary Sebelius not to undermine women’s reproductive health in the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plans. Remember how angry women got when we were told we couldn’t use our own private dollars to obtain coverage of abortion care? Well it’s back. The Administration decided — without justification in law or policy — to ban abortion coverage in the newly created Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plans. It is still bad policy and your voice is needed. Tell Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius how this harmful restriction undermines women’s access to reproductive health care now. Submit your comments today. If adopted, this ban would prevent women with serious pre-existing medical conditions — like cancer or diabetes — from getting the abortion coverage they need to protect their health. And it will not even allow women the ability to pay for such coverage with their own private premium dollars. Comments are due this Tuesday, September 28, so take action and tell Secretary Sebelius to stand up for the health of these vulnerable women and to reject this dangerous policy once and for all. The National Women’s Law Center will not rest until the restrictions on abortion coverage are fixed. Thank you for continuing to fight with us to protect women’s health.  Sincerely, Judy Waxman Vice President for Health and Reproductive Rights National Women's Law Center P.S. Help us continue to protect women’s reproductive rights and expand the opportunities for women and their families. Support our work today.

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Clintons Address Women's Rights - The Daily Beast

Clintons Address Women's Rights - The Daily Beast.

Ratify the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) | Women's Rights | Change.org

Ratify the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) | Women's Rights | Change.org.

Women’s Rights — Global Issues

Women’s Rights — Global Issues.

Virginia can impose tougher abortion clinic oversight, AG Cuccinelli says

Virginia can impose tougher abortion clinic oversight, AG Cuccinelli says.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/23/AR2010082305460.html?wpisrc=nl_politics

GLOBAL ISSUES -- Women's Rights

SOURCE:  http://www.globalissues.org/article/166/womens-rights

Global Issues

Social, Political, Economic and Environmental Issues That Affect Us All

Women’s Rights

• by Anup Shah
• This Page Last Updated Sunday, March 14, 2010

• This page: http://www.globalissues.org/article/166/womens-rights.
• To print all information e.g. expanded side notes, shows alternative links, use the print version:
  • http://www.globalissues.org/print/article/166

Women’s rights around the world is an important indicator to understand global well-being.

A major global women’s rights treaty was ratified by the majority of the world’s nations a few decades ago.

Yet, despite many successes in empowering women, numerous issues still exist in all areas of life, ranging from the cultural, political to the economic. For example, women often work more than men, yet are paid less; gender discrimination affects girls and women throughout their lifetime; and women and girls are often are the ones that suffer the most poverty.

Many may think that women’s rights are only an issue in countries where religion is law, such as many Muslim countries. Or even worse, some may think this is no longer an issue at all. But reading this report about the United Nation’s Women’s Treaty and how an increasing number of countries are lodging reservations, will show otherwise.

Gender equality furthers the cause of child survival and development for all of society, so the importance of women’s rights and gender equality should not be underestimated.

This article explores these issues further.

This web page has the following sub-sections:

1. Progress
2. Lack of Progress
3. Women Work More Than Men But Are Paid Less
4. Gender discrimination throughout a lifetime
5. Feminization of Poverty
6. Women, Reproductive Rights and Population Issues
7. Women and children: the double dividend of gender equality
8. Women and Climate Change
9. Women and the Media
10. Beijing +5 Special Session
11. Beijing +15 Special Session
12. Women, Militarism and Violence
13. More Information

Progress

It isn’t easy to change tradition overnight. However, a small example of successes include:

• The gains made in South Africa
• Childhood concerns in Latin America
• Poor women gaining greater access to savings and credit mechanisms worldwide, due to microcredit.
• A dwindling number of countries that do not allow women to vote including Bhutan (one vote per house), Lebanon (partial), Brunei (no-one can vote), Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (expected in 2010), and the Vatican City.
• Women gaining more positions in parliament throughout Africa. In many cases African countries have more women in parliament than some western ones.
• A protocol to protect womens’s rights in Africa that came into effect in 2005 (though many nations still need to sign up).
• An almost universal ratification of the women’s rights treaty, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)

On the 30th anniversary of CEDAW Inter Press Service (IPS) listed a number of benefits the women’s right treaty has provided around the world, for example:

• Morocco gave women greater equality and protection of their human rights within marriage and divorce by passing a new family code in 2004
• India has accepted legal obligations to eliminate discrimination against women and outlawed sexual harassment in the workplace
• In Cameroon, the Convention is applied in local courts and groundbreaking decisions on gender equality are being made by the country’s high courts
• Mexico passed a law in 2007 toughening its laws on violence against women
• And the CEDAW committee in Austria decided two complaints against Austria concerning domestic violence in 2007
• UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also noted that within the UN itself, the number of women in senior posts has increased by 40 percent
• “The Convention has been used to challenge discriminatory laws, interpret ambiguous provisions or where the law is silent, to confer rights on women,” Navi Pillay, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said.

Ban Ki-moon also described the treaty as “one of the most successful human rights treaties ever”, according to IPS.

THE ELIMINATION OF ALL FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION AND VIOLENCE AGAINST GIRL CHILDREN

SOURCE:  http://pacific.unifem.org/documents/Girlchild.pdf.

 

 

Download Girlchild-1

Young girls are trained to step off pathways when males approach, ..... behind the boys to catch the bus without breakfasting themselves.129 This early ...... divided into 5-year groups (0-4, 5-9, 10-14, 15-19) so it is difficult to get ...

ABORTION & DIALOGUE

SOURCE:  http://books.google.com/books?id=uVD9TdluiR0C&dq=WOMENS+ABORTION+RIGHTS&source=gbs_navlinks_s

Abortion & dialogue: pro-choice, pro-life, and American law

 By Ruth Colker

Book overview "The issues she takes on are crucial -- not solely the subject areas of reproductive rights and law, or public policy lenses and judicial impact in women's and children's lives, but also the more difficult and fundamental questions of how these 'hot topics' can be approached so as to make the most of the good will of all and the force of free discussion for social learning.... she brings a strong, evolving and distinctive perspective to the discussion." -- Emily Fowler Hartigan Offering an arresting range of accounts by specialists in music, media, and popular culture on how the popular arts have represented opera, this book raises issues about the sociology of music and its implications for television and video culture. Her feminist-theological perspective on reproductive health issues encourages both pro-choice and pro-life advocates to consider how the value of life is implicated in discussions of reproduction. Colker argues that theology can contribute to our understanding if we apply the concepts of love, compassion, and wisdom to problems identified by feminist theory and to actual concrete situations: the impact of abortion regulations on poor female adolescents; the judicial treatment of abortion regulations; state intervention into women's decision-making during pregnancies carried to term. Colker concludes by examining effective and respectful family-planning strategies that truly help women in making reproductive choices. Limited preview - 1992 - 179 pages