Bad-Ass Woman of the Day: Eufrosina Cruz

In her Zapotec village in Mexico, women aren’t allowed to vote, attend town assemblies, or hold elected office. But Eufrosina Cruz decided to run for mayor anyway.

The all-male town board tore up ballots cast in her favor in the Nov. 4 election, arguing that as a woman, she wasn’t a “citizen� of the town. “That is the custom here, that only the citizens vote, not the women,� said Valeriano Lopez, the town’s deputy mayor.
Rather than give up, Cruz has launched the first serious, national-level challenge to traditional Indian forms of government, known as “use and customs,� which were given full legal status in Mexico six years ago in response to Indian rights movements sweeping across Latin America.
“For ...

In her Zapotec village in Mexico, women aren’t allowed to vote, attend town assemblies, or hold elected office. But Eufrosina Cruz decided to run for mayor anyway.

The all-male town board tore up ballots cast in her ...

Progressive Women’s Voices

I spent the weekend at the Women’s Media Center–started by Gloria Steinem, Jane Fonda, and Robin Morgan–as part of the first meeting of the Progressive Women’s Voices Program:

a new media training and spokesperson program from the Women’s Media Center to connect media professionals with smart, media-savvy women experts in a variety of fields. Funded by a generous grant from the NoVo Foundation, the program will provide each of the participants with intensive media training and ongoing support to promote their perspective and message into the national dialogue.

I am humbled to be a part of such a wildly fascinating and successful group of women fighting for everything from immigrant rights to hurricane relief to intergenerational feminist dialogue to family-friendly ...

I spent the weekend at the Women’s Media Center–started by Gloria Steinem, Jane Fonda, and Robin Morgan–as part of the first meeting of the Progressive Women’s Voices Program:

a new media training and spokesperson program from the ...

Monday Monty blogging (peekaboo edition)


Monty has figured out that if he hides under the blanket, his sneak cuddle attacks don’t startle Neidra so much. And that was my weekend. Taking pictures of the animals and cleaning my apt. I’m so glamorous, I know. How was your weekend?
PS. Happy (belated) birthday, Dad!


Monty has figured out that if he hides under the blanket, his sneak cuddle attacks don’t startle Neidra so much. And that was my weekend. Taking pictures of the animals and cleaning my apt. ...

Oral pleasure? Heavy sarcasm warning

I found myself cracking up at this. Because, really, the symbolism is too subtle for me to understand. What are they getting at? I think there’s an undercurrent here beyond how delicious candy is, but I can’t quite figure it out.

I found myself cracking up at this. Because, really, the symbolism is too subtle for me to understand. What are they getting at? I think there’s an undercurrent here beyond how delicious candy is, but I can’t ...

Canada celebrates 20 years of choice

Today marks the 20 year anniversary of the Supreme Court decision that struck down Canada’s anti-choice laws as unconstitutional.

In the majority decision chief justice Brian Dickson stated: “State interference with bodily integrity and serious state-imposed psychological stress, at least in the criminal law context, constitutes a breach of security of the person. Section 251 (the old abortion law) clearly interferes with a woman’s physical and bodily integrity. Forcing a woman, by threat of criminal sanction, to carry a fetus to term unless she meets certain criteria unrelated to her own priorities and aspirations, is a profound interference with a woman’s body and thus an infringement of security of the person.”

So congrats to our neighbors in the north, on ...

Today marks the 20 year anniversary of the Supreme Court decision that struck down Canada’s anti-choice laws as unconstitutional.

In the majority decision chief justice Brian Dickson stated: “State interference with bodily integrity and serious state-imposed ...

Bush’s last State of the Union tonight

Gotta say it’s nice to type that. I mean, damn. In the wackiness that is presidential campaigns, I lost sight of the bright side. This jackass is going away. The subject of the speech sounds interesting, the theme is “trust and empower,� and his plans to “advocate his philosophy of trusting Americans, empowering them to make good and wise decisions�.
Hey, great! I’m a fan of all of those things. If only he meant it the way I do. I’m pretty sure he’s just talking about tax cuts for rich people. Oh well.
What would your State of the Union address this year? Mine would take a stroll down memory lane of Bush’s previous State of the Union ...

Gotta say it’s nice to type that. I mean, damn. In the wackiness that is presidential campaigns, I lost sight of the bright side. This jackass is going away. The subject of the speech sounds interesting, the ...

Quick Hit: Taking the Pill Decreases Ovarian Cancer Risk

A new study came out last week indicating that women who take oral contraceptives have a greatly reduced risk of ovarian cancer.

The protection from ovarian cancer is greater than the risk of other cancers associated with use of the Pill, such as breast and cervical malignancies, Beral said.
“There is a slight transient risk of breast cancer and cervical cancer, but that goes away when you stop taking the Pill,” she said. “But the decrease in ovarian cancer is persistent and long-lasting. The magnitude of this outweighs the other risk.”

Thanks Marg for the link.

A new study came out last week indicating that women who take oral contraceptives have a greatly reduced risk of ovarian cancer.

The protection from ovarian cancer is greater than the risk of other cancers associated with ...

Weekly Feminist Reader

Hillary Sexism Watch: More name-calling.
Three women in Canada file a complaint against their imam for treating them differently than men and using abusive language toward them.
Ema has a nice rundown of the history of Kansas patient-chart stealer Phill Kline.
On the gross new “reality” TV show, Battle of the Bods.
Margaret Cho calls out the racist, sexist assumption that women of color will have to “choose” their race or gender while voting. “Why are white men allowed to look at the issues and judge for themselves and the rest of us are expected to take sides grade school style?” (DnA has a counterpoint.)
Our Bodies Our Blog asks, “do women really ...

Hillary Sexism Watch: More name-calling.
Three women in Canada file a complaint against their imam for treating them differently than men and using abusive language toward them.
Ema has a nice rundown of the ...

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