29 April 2005

Poor women in the US denied abortions, even after rape, incest

Poor American women who become pregnant after rape or incest are being denied access to abortion, according to Stephanie Poggi from the Centre for American Progress. On AlterNet today, Poggi reports that legal protections that should allow women on Medicaid… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 29 April 2005

Women fight it out to be Chile's president

Two Chilian politicians are fighting it out for a chance to become the country’s first ever female president. Michelle Bachelet and Soledad Alvear are only competing to be the presidential candidate for Chile’s centre-left coalition, but it is widely predicted… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 29 April 2005

28 April 2005

Women speak out about their abortions

It’s often said that abortion is not given much in the way of airtime. And certainly not in a way that portrays the complex reasons behind women’s choice to have an abortion. So, following on from I’m not sorry, the… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 28 April 2005

Daisy, Daisy ….

The Guardian today reports concerns from the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), the newest sexual fad amongst schoolchildren is daisy chaining - the practice of group sex (in a circle, or so the rather romantic name for this decidedly non-romantic… Read more...

Posted by Lynne Miles at 28 April 2005

27 April 2005

Half of voters will not have the option of voting for a woman

Just under half of voters in next weeks general election will be denied the opportunity to vote for a woman, the Fawcett Society said today. None of the parties are doing that well, then, but Labour seems to do the… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 27 April 2005

Mexico City shelter to house elderly prostitutes

A new shelter is being set up for elderly survivors of the sex trade in Mexico City, the Guardian reports today. The site of the shelter is a grand, abandoned sports museums, which the local authorities are providing rent free…. Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 27 April 2005

26 April 2005

Embroideries

Nerve is running a really interesting interview with Iranian comic book artist/writer Marjane Satrapi, about her latest comic Embroideries. The comic documents Satrapi and her female friends and relatives talking (mostly about sex) over tea one afternoon. From her comments… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 26 April 2005

Robert Downey Junior "compliments" Lorraine Kelly

Viewers of morning TV were apparently concerned by Robert Downey Junior’s “compliment” to presenter Lorraine Kelly on This Morning. Downey, in response to Kelly saying how well he looked, passed remark on Kelly’s “tits”. The outrage, obviously, is that he… Read more...

Posted by Louise Livesey at 26 April 2005

Be heard

Women in London have set up a sister site to provide a forum for women to express their views on political issues ahead of the general election. The website, Women and e-democracy is pretty sparse, but includes an online survey…. Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 26 April 2005

Women to play golf alongside men

Women may compete alongside men for the first time at a prestigious golf tournament, the Open at St Andrews. The tournament\x92s organisers have said that American teenager Michelle Wie willbe allowed to play if she qualifies this year. Maybe this… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 26 April 2005

25 April 2005

Tick, Tock

So, the best age for women to start a family is apparently 34. You have to take all these soundbite generalisations with a pinch of salt of course, but at least it’s more refreshing than those doom laden, backlash inspired,… Read more...

Posted by Catherine Redfern at 25 April 2005

Do it yourself teenage sex offending

Alistair Gillespie, of the governments net task force, is calling for a re-think on how we deal with underage sex offenders after the case was dropped against a teenage girl who had taken topless photos of her friends and posted… Read more...

Posted by Barbara Felix at 25 April 2005

Hidden army of girls uncovered

Girls around the world are being abducted and forced to work in the army, as soldiers, porters, cooks and cleaners, according to a report by Save the Children. Most of them are also forced to serve as sex slaves or… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 25 April 2005

24 April 2005

London women win recognition

Southwark Council are giving the public a chance to vote for who should be the recipients (both people and places) of the next round of blue plaques, commemorating the history of the area. There a couple of interesting ones, including… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 24 April 2005

23 April 2005

Fairytales are bad for you, it's (kind of) official

An American psychotherapist is to present a paper next month that suggests reading too many fairytales featuring submissive role models is bad for girls. As reported in the Guardian, Susan Darker-Smith found that women who were stuck in abusive relationships… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 23 April 2005

Selfridges Boob?

The window displays at Selfridges, Oxford Street, London are “legendary” and “groundbreaking”; they also seem to have somewhat of an obsession with stripping and sex work. A few years ago, in collaboration with Stringfellows, the windows contained live pole dancers;… Read more...

Posted by Catherine Redfern at 23 April 2005

Vagina badge sparks contraversy

Here is a story (via Boing Boing)which is interesting on a couple of levels. A teenager in the US has been banned from wearing an ‘I (heart) my vagina’ badge, the Winona Daily News reports. In most UK schools, wearing… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 23 April 2005

Pilot wins sex discrimination case

A pilot who flies for British Airways has won her landmark sex discrimination case. Jessica Starmer, who has a young child, found it difficult to cope with the long and irregular hours of a full-time pilot, and asked to work… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 23 April 2005

22 April 2005

Musical doctors

The life of Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, the first female doctor in the UK, is to be turned into a musical. According to this local news story, it is to be funded by the Camden Central Partnership, which exists to promote… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 22 April 2005

Ball Breaking Millionaire Females

Thoroughly objectionable article in The Telegraph today \x96 a new report published today by the Centre for Economic and Business Research for the Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society indicates that in 20 years\x92 time there will be more female millionaires than… Read more...

Posted by Lynne Miles at 22 April 2005

Sexism in the FT

It is annoying to find outdated, sexist sentiments, where-ever you find them. But it is even more annoying when you find sexism in the headline of a newspaper article that is purporting to highlight an example of discrimination against women…. Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 22 April 2005

Position Offered: Editor, Cambourne Chronicle

The editor of The Chronicle, the parish magazine for Cambourne, West Cornwall, has come under fire after half of the magazine\x92s 550 subscribers cancelled their subscriptions as a result of his lampooning of the local Women\x92s Institute. Dr Morley defends… Read more...

Posted by Lynne Miles at 22 April 2005

"Moulin Rouge meets Chicks on Speed"

Immodesty Blaize, \x91queen of British burlesque\x92 starts a run at the Arts Theatre on 20th April. The show is billed as \x93a seductive blend of hot charm and high camp\x94 and was featured in the Sunday Times Magazine last weekend,… Read more...

Posted by Lynne Miles at 22 April 2005

21 April 2005

We Love A Wife Beater, We Do

So apparently it\x92s okay to hit your wife, as long as you\x92re a lovable rogue with it. And, let\x92s face it, if you write a book about it afterwards saying how terribly remorseful you are, we\x92ll probably even shower you… Read more...

Posted by Lynne Miles at 21 April 2005

20 April 2005

My Name is Rachel Corrie

Guardian journalist Katherine Viner and the stupendous actor Alan Rickman have co-written a play about Rachel Corrie, the American activist who was killed by an Israeli bulldozer when she was protesting the destruction of Palestinian homes. My Name is Rachel… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 20 April 2005

Women's votes?

For anyone agonising over how to vote in the upcoming elections, the Fawcett Society has put together a neat booklet comparing the main parties’ policies on issues of concern to women. The news is good (a bit), with all of… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 20 April 2005

New pope has 'limited' understanding of women

So, the white smoke has puffed out of the holy chimney, the bells have rung, and the world’s 1 billion Catholics have a new pope. I for one am already worried. The German Joseph Ratzinger is a hardline right winger,… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 20 April 2005

19 April 2005

Further assault on reproductive rights of US women

Pursuant to recent attempts by the evangelical Christian right in America to outlaw abortion, reports have been coming through recently of pharmacists refusing to complete prescriptions for the Morning After Pill (MAP), and even the contraceptive pill where it “goes… Read more...

Posted by Lynne Miles at 19 April 2005

Woman attempts gruelling army training

A 23 year-old from Birmingham is to attempt one of the most gruelling training regimes in the world, in a bid to become the army\x92s first female Para. Lieutenant Jenny Hands said in the Scotsman “I am looking forward to… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 19 April 2005

18 April 2005

Today's Gender Transgressors

I just realised why I stopped reading the METRO; it’s guaranteed to make any commute more infuriating. For starters, Page 3 of today’s issue highlighted the apparently newsworthy fact that at the Bafta TV Awards, David Walliams from Little Britain… Read more...

Posted by Catherine Redfern at 18 April 2005

Bam Bam and Celeste

Fans of the unstoppable Margaret Cho will be excited to know that filming has just wrapped on her first self-written movie, Bam Bam and Celeste. According to the press release, “In Bam Bam and Celeste, Celeste (Margaret Cho) and Bam… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 18 April 2005

What's Your Pleasure?

Madeleine Bunting’s recent Guardian article, The Price of Pleasure, rightly draws attention to contraception’s failure to break the link between sex and reproduction. But is it really true that such a link is “wishfully ignored”? We are, after all, talking… Read more...

Posted by Holly Combe at 18 April 2005

Girls still not getting a fair deal in school

UNICEF is set to release a report today showing mixed progress in getting more girls into school around the world. According to the report, there are now the same number of girls as boys in school, world-wide. However, there is… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 18 April 2005

16 April 2005

Palindromes - choosing sides?

Todd Solondz is a director who provokes strong reactions. From ‘Welcome to the Dollshouse’ to ‘Storytelling’, Solondz thrives on controversial, whacked out, grim and gritty stereo-type busting. So it should come as no surprise that he has entered into America’s… Read more...

Posted by Jess McCabe at 16 April 2005

The Dove Effect

Dove have recently brought out a new wave of adverts under the banner of its “Campaign for Real Beauty”. Feminists have been divided over the ads. Some expressed concerns over the term “real women”, the emphasis on selling “firming products”,… Read more...

Posted by Catherine Redfern at 16 April 2005

Vive La Similarite!

I always thought it was really cool when a close male friend would drop the phrase “male intuition” into conversation. “How’d you guess?” I’d say, and he’d shrug nonchalantly: “Male intuition”. It made me smile, and I appreciated the anti… Read more...

Posted by Catherine Redfern at 16 April 2005

15 April 2005

Andrea Dworkin 1946-2005

Many of you will have already heard about the untimely death of Andrea Dworkin last weekend. She died in her sleep, aged 59. You can read a biography of Andrea (which she prepared before her death) on the Women in… Read more...

Posted by Lynne Miles at 15 April 2005