Last week a Taliban hit squad in Pakistan targeted and shot Malala Yousafzai, a 14-year-old who was fighting for the right of girls to be educated. I cried at the inhumanity on and off all day when I heard. Maybe she should have just dressed the part and saved her life. I’m not being flip. [...]
Tag Archives: violence against women
Violence Against Women is STILL A Global Pandemic
Next month is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and at the end of November, the annual 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence takes place. Last Fall, I wrote an article in the Huffington Post called “Violence Against Women is a Global Pandemic.” If you click on the link, you can review the deplorable statistics. It [...]
We Are All Sonali
Why is it so hard for some people to understand that women’s bodies are their own? This is what Eve Ensler calls a #ReasonToRise: Today 27-year-old Sonali Mukherjee will have surgery to help reconstruct her face. It melted nine years ago, leaving a painful mask in its place, after three young men poured acid on her while she slept. [...]
Slap Happy: The Romanticization of Rage
Admit it: you’re angry. You have every right to be. In fact, anger is a normal emotional reaction to perceived injustices. And, these days, the perception that the cannons of injustice are aimed squarely at the figurative (and literal) chests of women is increasingly endorsed by feminists and non-feminists alike. When women experience rage within [...]
Outing Your Rapist on Twitter: Savannah Dietrich’s Fire Power
A lot has been written about Savannah Dietrich, the 17 year old girl who almost faced jail time for tweeting the names of her rapists. After her story went viral, the prosecutor decided not to file charges against Dietrich for violating a judge’s order to stay quiet about her case. Guilt was well proven – [...]
It’s Open Season on Women in Afghanistan
Najiba was recently executed by nine bullets for alleged adultery. The crowd of 150 men cheered on the shooter with cries of “God is great!” Not far from the site of the shooting, 15-year old Tamana was beaten and killed for being a disobedient wife after her forced marriage to a cousin whose advances she [...]
On Aurora, Gun Violence, and Women
Here we are again. In the wake of yet another tragic mass shooting, people who have opinions about guns are starting up their arguments again. We need stricter gun control laws! Don’t challenge my right to own assault weapons! More thorough screenings and waiting periods could help prevent future shootings, and may have helped prevent [...]
Surfing the Rape Wave: What Tosh Teaches About Humor, Power and Privilege
In a promo video hyping Comedy Central’s highest-rated show, host Daniel Tosh promised, “On season 3 of Tosh.0, we’re raping everybody.” The clip’s copy read, “It’s about to get pretty rapey up in here.” Apparently, that should have been printed as a buyer-beware on tickets for Tosh’s gig at the Laugh Factory last weekend. If [...]
The Gaslighter
Gaslighting (verb): A form of intimidation or psychological abuse, sometimes called Ambient Abuse where false information is presented to the victim, making them doubt their own memory, perception and quite often, their sanity. A more psychological definition of gaslighting is an increasing frequency of systematically withholding factual information from, and/or providing false information to, the victim [...]
An AIDS-Free Generation Begins With Women
Last week the Supreme Court declared that Obamacare was constitutional and this was a huge victory for women’s health. Once Obamacare goes into effect health insurance companies won’t charge women more money and birth control will be covered. But the fight for women’s health does not end here, as other health issues affecting women need [...]