The future of feminism needs to be acknowledged — Chloe at Feministing writes in "Young women are the future of feminism:"

Closely connected to the feeling that young women aren’t grateful, it seems, is the feeling that young women today are so entitled. They’re ambitious and they speak their minds and sometimes it feels like they’re doing that before they’ve paid their dues, and that seemed to make the older women at the More event uncomfortable. But you know what? You’re the ones who fought for a world where ambitious, outspoken young women could speak their minds. You’re the ones who raised their daughters to believe that they could do and be anything they wanted, that it was their right not to be limited or defined by what society said is right. So if we’re entitled, it’s because feminism taught us to feel that being women didn’t make us inferior.

Also from Feministing, in the post "Action against Arizona anti-immigrant legislation continues," Miriam blogs about her Saturday night in DC.

I attended this vigil on Saturday night in DC to protest the Arizona anti-immigrant legislation and stand in solidarity with the people of Arizona. It was a beautiful event and I was blown away by the amazing folks gathered. Particularly inspirational were the number of young folks who shared their stories of being undocumented themselves after coming from Latin America with their parents as really young kids. Despite the fact that these young people were raised here, their opportunities are severely limited by their immigration status.

They spoke of the importance of the DREAM Act, which would give kids who were brought here before the age of 16 a path to citizenship.

Morra Aarons Mele at BlogHer explains why the pill is necessary to maintain a decent living standard and some semblance of work/life balance: "The Pill at 50: It’s about money not sex."

When you sit down with a financial planner and hear that if you want your baby to be able to attend private college in 17 years you’d best set aside half a million dollars, it can really change your thinking. People always ask me, do you plan to have more than two children? And I’ll crack, "Not unless we win the lottery." And a lot of the people look a bit offended, as if I’ve said something crass and taboo. You’re not supposed to measure babies by their cost. Perhaps. But the U.S birth rate has fallen during the Recession, for the first time since 2000. That’s not an accident.

The birth control Pill is now 50 years old. I was absorbed by Nancy Gibbs’ article in Time magazine that traced the history of the Pill since its introduction. What’s most clear in the article is that reliable contraception, more than any other single factor, enables women’s current status as breadwinners. 79% of married employees are part of a dual-earner couple (up from 66% in 1977).  In 2008, women contributed 44% of the annual dual-earner family income, up from 39% in 1997, according to Families and Work Institute.”

One more Equal Pay Day post — "Peaceful Revolution: Equal at Birth but Not at Work." Nanette Fondas at HuffPo explains the differences and the pay gap in the future between her two children, one boy and one girl.

Ten years ago I gave birth to two babies: one girl, one boy. Their birthday is today, Equal Pay Day. Right now they are neck-in-neck with their weekly allowance, but if they were fifteen years older, my daughter’s college degree, MBA, technological training, organizing and management experience, and even her Rhodes Scholarship would all probably be worth less than those of her brother. Why? Because there is a stubborn pay gap between males and females that persists even among those with equal credentials. On average American women earn 77 cents for every dollar American men earn.

Unequal pay persists for many reasons. Here are some important ones that I call “The Four P’s of Pay Inequality.”

According to a new study, federal guidelines on obesity should be revised so more women fit into the category of "obese." From Business Week: "More U.S. Women May Be Obese Than Thought"

U.S. guidelines determine who is obese based on body-mass index, a measurement of whether a person’s height and weight are proportional. The researchers found that about half the women of reproductive age considered obese under World Health Organization guidelines — which use body-fat analysis instead — were not obese under federal guidelines.

Under the international guidelines, about half of white women and more than two-thirds of Latino women are considered obese.

"It is especially important to accurately assess obesity in reproductive-age women, as they are more likely to be obese than similarly aged men," study author Dr. Mahbubur Rahman, an assistant professor at the University of Texas Medical Branch’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, said in a news release from the school. "These women are at risk for cardiovascular disease, diabetes andother obesity-related health conditions, and may forgo or be overlooked for needed tests and treatments."

What about the rest of the world? Rosemary Nchiny wrote on The Press Institute about the constitutional debate over abortion in Kenya, "Constitutional Debate Over Abortion Heats Up in Advance of July Vote."

NAIROBI, KENYA – The walk to Evelyn’s house is long and difficult. A half-mile hike through Kibera, Kenya’s largest slum, over trenches of raw sewage and huge garbage heaps, reveals a home made of scrap metal, browning with rust.

She sits outside her home in an old, dirty wheelchair. She is in her forties, but appears much older. Ill health, difficult living conditions and family tragedy have taken a toll. 

Evelyn, 45, is a widow, a mother of four and HIV positive. She is paralyzed. She is alone.

In early 2007, she was hospitalised at Kenyatta National Hospital for nearly two years with Tuberculosis. She suffered spinal damage and has since been confined to a wheelchair.  In May of 2008, her husband died from complications of AIDS and tuberculosis. When her husband died, Sarah, her eldest daughter, dropped out of school to help take care of her family.

Last but not least, this week’s post is In memory and honor of Dorothy Height’s and Carolyn Rodgers.

You want more feminist links? Check back here next Tuesday! And, if you have links to share, please email them to us or leave them in the comments.