From the monthly archives:

January 2008

Manila Women Fight for Birth Control

by Cara January 31, 2008

Female activists from poor communities in Manila are demanding access to contraceptive services: Women from three slum communities in Manila asked the appeals court on Wednesday to allow them access to contraceptives in public clinics, revoking a local law that bans condoms and pills. In 2000, the capital’s mayor issued an order stopping doctors, nurses [...]

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Only One Question

by Cara January 31, 2008

Why the fuck do people still keep referring to the practice of selling a child’s body to men as “forced prostitution” instead of what it is: holding a child hostage and allowing men to rape her for a set fee? Selling rape is not “forced prostitution.” It’s selling rape. The rape of a child is [...]

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Burmese Refugees Held Prisoner in Thai “Human Zoo”

by Cara January 30, 2008

No, really, I swear this time: I have no idea what to say. *sputters something incoherent about racism, colonialism & sexism* . . .

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Offensive Remark of the Week: Sometimes You Gotta Smack Up the Bitches Edition

by Cara January 30, 2008

There’s apparently some MSNBC show called Morning Joe. I’ve never seen it — I almost never watch TV news unless I’m waiting for election results or a debate. But Media Matters apparently watches, and check out what they caught this morning: Joe Scarborough warned his female co-host Mika Brzezinski that if she didn’t respect his [...]

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So you’re saying that women don’t get pregnant on their own?

by Cara January 29, 2008

Despite all the talk of unexpected pregnancy and abortion centering around a woman’s “responsibility,” men do actually play a role in conception. In fact, it’s a pretty important one (the guy doesn’t have to be there, but at some point a penis will be required). Taking the huge leap that defies all social conditioning, men [...]

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For the Love of the Game: Covering Up Rape to Win the Rose Bowl

by Cara January 29, 2008

Via SAFER comes this stomach-turning story from the Seattle Times about the violent history of the University of Washington football team and the way that UW has worked to cover up their crimes for the sake of winning games. In 2000, the year that team won the Rose Bowl, a dozen of its players had [...]

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You know who I fucking hate?

by Cara January 28, 2008

Bush. I know, I’m just full of surprises, aren’t I? Take the unimpressed face of Barack Obama, multiply it by the unimpressed face of Hillary Clinton and throw in a pinch of the unimpressed faces of Ted Kennedy and Nancy Pelosi, and you’ll get an idea of what my unimpressed face looks like right about [...]

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On “Pro-Choice Republicans”

by Cara January 28, 2008

This RH Reality Check article on pro-choice Republicans has intrigued me and got my brain whirling. To someone like me, “pro-choice Republican” is quite the oxymoron. Yeah, I’ve heard of them existing (though I don’t recall every knowingly meeting one in person). But every time I hear the concept, my head just about explodes. The [...]

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Bad Ass Women’s Activist of the Week: 20 Years of Legal Abortion in Canada Edition

by Cara January 28, 2008

Today is the 20th anniversary of the R. vs. Morgentaler decision that legalized abortion in Canada — more or less, a Canadian version of Roe. Dr. Henry Morgentaler, the doctor whose arrest for performing abortions illegally was the basis of the case, is quite the hero to all who believe in medical privacy and the [...]

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Sexual Violence Escalates in Kenya

by Cara January 27, 2008

I’m a bit late on this story, though I unfortunately have a feeling that it’s going to be relevant for some time. Unsurprisingly, reports of rape in Kenya have skyrocketed in the past few weeks — more than doubled, though those figures don’t count the majority of rapes that go unreported, since they are obviously [...]

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