- In this video clip, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) speaks out against the health care reform bill’s Stupak-Pitts Amendment, which limits how private insurance companies can offer coverage for abortion. More conservatively inclined Democrats voted for the House of Representative’s version of the health care bill this past Saturday night only after the Stupak-Pitts Amendment was included. The video is a little snoozy at first, but 45 seconds in, Sen. Gillibrand gets to the good stuff about why Stupak-Pitts isn’t good for our reproductive rights. [YouTube]
- Speaking of the Stupak-Pitts Amendment, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) has said today that the Senate has the 60 votes needed to block the controversial bill when it makes its way to there. Let’s hope so. [Huffington Post]
Today’s Lady News: Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand Speaks Out Against The Stupak Amendment
Today’s Lady News: After Homecoming Dance Gang Rape, City Struggles With Blaming The Victim
- The city of Richmond, California, is struggling to deal with the horrific gang rape of a 15-year-old girl, which allegedly had up to 20 witnesses, outside a homecoming dance. For some in Richmond, this means blaming the victim and criticizing the “snitches” who put seven of the alleged rapists in jail. [NY Times]
- A study of 13,000 high school students found girls who play team sports are less likely to smoke, be depressed, and use marijuana. Unfortunately, it also says boys who play team sports are more likely to behave violently and binge drink. [ABC News]
Today’s Lady News: Marilyn Manson’s New Music Video Is Disturbing — Shocker!
- Marilyn Manson has an extremely disturbing new video for his song “Running To The Edge of the World” where he murders a bikini-clad woman who looks like his ex, Evan Rachel Wood. I guess it wasn’t enough for Marilyn to tell Spin after their breakup, “I have fantasies every day about smashing her skull with a sledgehammer.” [You Tube]
Polish bikini model-slash-“Dancing With The Stars” contestant Joanna Krupa says posing for Playboy is feminist because so many women are involved in the photo shoot. I have to admit she’s got some good points in the interview. [Fox News]
Today’s Lady News: 2009 Best Books List Has Zero Women Authors On It
- The magazine Publisher’s Weekly compiled its annual list of the year’s best books and it has zero women on it. Zilch! WTF? Tell us the names of incredible books written by women in 2009 that you’ve read in the comments. [New York Times]
- Meet Margarita Vargas, an 18-year-old girl and the one decent human being who thought to call the police when a 15-year-old girl was being gang-raped outside a high school homecoming dance in California while as many as 20 people watched. “I’m like ‘We should call the cops because that’s the right thing to do.’ I didn’t think about it twice,” Vargas said. “I think people are scared, especially in a community like this where ‘snitching’ is a big thing to people.” [CBS]
- A dozen anti-abortion activists were arrested at Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s office in D.C., some for disorderly conduct and others for unlawful entry. Pelosi’s staff said the protesters were upset about the wording regarding abortion in Obama’s health care reform bill. [AP]
Today’s Lady News: Is Emma Thompson Finally Off Team Polanski?
- Emma Thompson initially signed a petition calling for Roman Polanski’s freedom, but has she had a change of heart? A reader at the blog Shakesville may have convinced her to remove her name from his list of supporters. [Shakesville]
- An Illinois judge has blocked the enforcement of the state’s controversial parental notification law, which mandates that a physician inform a parent or guardian if a minor age 17 or younger seeks an abortion. The law was blocked through a temporary restraining order by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois. [Chicago Breaking News]
Today’s Lady News: Illinois’ Parental Notification For Abortion Law Is Delayed
- Illinois’ controversial parental notification law for minors seeking an abortion has been delayed at least until Wednesday morning as officials meet to verify that girls can waive the notification process by petitioning a judge, who has 48 hours to rule on it. The parental notification law does not give parents consent, but requires that they be notified. An exemption is made in the case of a medical emergency or if a girl puts it in writing that she was sexually abused. [Chicago Tribune]
Today’s Lady News: 6 Bodies Found At Cleveland Rapist’s Home
- Six women’s bodies were found at the home of Anthony Sowell, 50, of Cleveland, Ohio, when police arrested him on a rape and felony assault warrant last Thursday. Sowell already served 15 years in prison for a 1989 rape of a 21-year-old woman. Although the bodies have not yet been identified, at least two women who lived within several blocks of Sowell went missing over the summer. [CBS News]
- Illinois’ parental notification law, which requires physicians to inform a parent or guardian when a girl under the age of 17 wants an abortion, will go into effect tomorrow. The parent or guardian will not be allowed to give consent, but he or she must be notified about the abortion. Girls can bypass notifying their parents by going before a judge, but the judge has 48 hours to rule. Parental notification also isn’t required in the case of a medical emergency or if the girl declares in writing that she is the victim of sexual abuse. [Chicago Tribune]
Today’s Lady News: 6th Person Arrested In Gang Rape & Obama Lifts HIV+ Immigration Ban
Today’s Lady News: TV Shows Boobs To Help Screen Breast Cancer & Women Are Banned From Wearing Jeans
Today’s Lady News: Bea Arthur Does Good & Iceland Is Best For Women
- Bea Arthur, the “Golden Girls” star who passed away earlier this year, left $300,000 for a homeless shelter for LGBT youth. Thank you for being a friend, Bea! [PinkNews]
- Iceland is the best place in the world for women, according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index. The index ranked 134 countries based on women’s access to resources and opportunities like income parity, health care, paid maternity leave, and political empowerment. Iceland took Norway’s place this year as the best place in the world for women to live, while both the USA and the UK slid down the list. [Forbes]
- Five people have been arrested in connection with the gang rape of a 15-year-old girl outside a homecoming dance in Richmond, California, last week. So far all of the men arrested are under the age of 21, which is depressing. But what is even more horrifying is how police say possibly as many as 10 suspects took part in the gang rape while as many as 20 stood by and watched. [ABC News]
