This Week in the War for Women: Dreaming of a Female President Edition

I was dreaming this several months ago, and I’m still dreaming it…

Remarkably, there was a grand total of six women contending for our great nation’s highest office in this election.  Although I’d chosen to focus on only 3 of them in my prior WOW diary (Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, & Kirsten Gillibrand).

And what’s transpired since: Well Gillibrand is now officially out of the race, not having polled high enough to qualify for inclusion in the next debate.  But she bows out the with the utmost class...

And Harris (presently) isn’t polling at the top of the pack either, but she nevertheless remains my favorite candidate.  Like this New York Times columnist (and many others), I think her chances of vanquishing the orange beast are the best, out of the whole lot of them (although, I feel I should also acknowledge that this is all in the realm of speculation- so no one can definitively “prove” that their favorite candidate has the best chances of winning.  I’m mostly just going on a visceral hunch…)

But just because Harris’s chances may be the best, doesn’t mean she’s the only contender who could win.  I mean, seriously- how could I not be over-the-moon thrilled that the inimitable ELIZABETH WARREN(!!) is currently among the frontrunners?  Her politics are as magnificent as any true progressive could possibly wish for- with no exception in the realm of women’s issues.  Along with (fellow Democratic) New Mexico Representative Deb Haaland (one of two Native American women in Congress), she will be introducing legislation which-

…would give tribes - not the federal government - jurisdiction over crimes committed on their land by non-Native citizens and funding to strengthen tribal legal systems.      

to directly address the travesty of indigenous women being assaulted, kidnapped and killed at much higher rates than any other groups, due to predators knowing that they’re less likely to get caught and prosecuted for their crimes if they’re committed on reservations (and please also check out the link to a petition in support of this legislation, down below in the Action Items section).

Ah, President Harris… President Warren… (don’t they just, “roll off the tongue”…?)  😊

The future progressives want: activist Rosa Parks and lesbian astronaut Sally Ride are now Barbies

Although as well-intentioned as this product line may have been- Mattel (rather ironically) was sexist in its inaccurate trivializing of Parks’ accomplishments (see the petition pertaining to this, in the Action Items).

And as noted in this HuffPo article-

While it’s valuable and important for Mattel to make Barbie dolls in the likeness of powerful women, some critics have pointed out that their body types also need to be as diverse and inclusive as the women they are fashioned after.

“You’ve come a long way, baby” (but there’s still a ways to go…)

August 26^th was Women’s Equality Day, in celebration of the 99^th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, granting women the right to vote.  However, it’s also worth noting that-

…not all women gained equal access at the ballot box. Women of color, especially those in the south, did not have full voting rights. Poll taxes and literacy tests deliberately kept African Americans from fully participating in democracy until the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Denial of citizenship, property requirements, and sanctioned violence against voters barred Native Americans from the polls. Literacy tests were used to disenfranchise racial minorities as late as 1970.

Fast forward to 2013: the U.S. Supreme Court rolled back voter protections in the Voting Rights Act in the Shelby County v. Holder decision and, since that time, we have seen countless attacks on the right to vote—too often targeting racial minorities, as has been the case throughout our country’s history. In the aftermath of that decision, we have seen rollbacks to early voting, unjust voter purges, and strict voter photo ID laws that make it harder for young people, women, people of color, and individuals with low incomes to register and exercise their right to vote.

Lots of positive results from the Women Deliver 2019 Conference: 37 ways that it delivered for girls, women, and gender equality.

And some foreign developments: In a landmark verdict, Bangladesh’s top court ordered that “virgin” be removed from Muslim marriage certificates, and be replaced with “unmarried”.

And Saudi women's rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul has rejected a proposal to secure her release from prison in exchange for a video statement denying she was tortured in custody.

Reproductive Rights

On the plus side- a federal judge has blocked Missouri’s ban on abortions after eight weeks from going into effect.  However not all provisions of Missouri’s draconian abortion law were blocked- i.e. the “reason” ban was left in, which prohibits abortion based on considerations such as a Down syndrome diagnosis.  

And further fallout from the new restrictions on the Title X funding program (discussed in detail in last week’s WOW diary), Oregon’s health care agency has said that it will no longer use federal dollars to fund family planning clinics:

Patrick Allen, director of the Oregon Health Authority, said in a statement that banning taxpayer-funded clinics from making abortion referrals — as the newly implemented federal rules require — would cause Oregon to violate its own laws on reproductive care.

The new federal rules also prohibit clinics that receive federal funds from sharing office space with abortion providers.

(And in the Action Items section are links to two petitions relating to the new Title X rules.)

Diana Sanchez, a female inmate of Denver County Jail, was forced to give birth alone on a bench in her cell:

Sanchez alleges she received no medical supervision or treatment, and, furthermore, that Denver Health nurses—who are contracted to work at the prison—and jail staff were fully aware she had been in labor for hours.

Staff "callously made her labor alone for hours, and ultimately give birth alone in a dirty jail cell without any medical care" the lawsuit alleges, noting that they "cruelly chose convenience over compassion."

Harassment and Violence

Two former NYPD cops who had raped a handcuffed teen in their custody, will not be serving any jail time. That’s right- not a single day in jail, for RAPE.  Meanwhile…

Women are now a fast growing segment of the U.S. prison population, largely because of draconian drug laws. More than 61% of women doing time in federal prison are behind bars for nonviolent drug offenses.

…

Conspiracy charges represent one of the most egregious examples of the drug war’s inequitable treatment of women. Although conspiracy laws were designed to target high-level members of illicit drug organizations, they have swept up many women for being guilty of nothing more than living with or not cooperating as an informant against a partner or family member involved in some level of drug sales.

Harsh mandatory minimum sentencing may keep them behind bars for 20 years, 30 years, or life, even if they were never directly involved in drug sales or distribution.

And for a 16 year old high school student in Georgia who was the victim of a sexual assault- it was she who was punished, by being expelled from the school (for simply daring to report the incident to school counselors).

Three prominent video game developers were accused of sexual assault in a single day:

The accusations have started conversations about sexual assault in the video game industry, and about how powerful men can crush the careers of women and non-binary people trying to enter the industry.

Inside Kenya’s All-Girls Boxing Club

You Want Action Items?  I Got Action Items

A Care2 petition to Congress, in support of the legislation by Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Deb Haaland that that would allow Native Americans to prosecute people who commit crimes on their land.

A ColorOfChange petition to Mattel:

With the release of your Rosa Parks Barbie, you have not done justice to Mrs. Parks' full story. The version of Mrs. Park story that you have posted with the doll reduces Rosa Parks decades of activism into a single, "extraordinary moment." But that is not the case. Mrs. Parks spent decades fighting for the rights of women and Black people. She was a leader in her community and she helped make the Civil Rights Movement what it was.

It is crucial that you adjust the language and accessories that accompany your Rosa Parks Barbie.

A CREDO petition to the Senate, to protect Title X and repeal the global gag rule as part of the 2020 budget.

And a Daily Kos petition to Congress to stop HHS from awarding Title X funds to anti-birth control, anti-abortion fake clinics.

A MomsRising petition to Congress to stop ICE from separating breastfeeding children from their mothers (as happened recently to a mother of a 4 month old baby).

A NARAL Pro-Choice America petition to Congress in support of H.R. 2694, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act-

To eliminate discrimination and promote women’s health and economic security by ensuring reasonable workplace accommodations for workers whose ability to perform the functions of a job are limited by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition.