Tag Archive for "Health"

Posts Tagged Health

Arizona GOP debate audience boos birth control

The Republican debate booers are back! Earlier in this primary cycle, Republican debate audiences booed a gay soldier, former presidential hopeful Governor Rick Perry bragging about a high number of executions under his leadership in Texas, and cheered the idea of letting an uninsured man who couldn’t afford necessary medical treatment die. Last night, the audience that has shaped the primary season more than any of the candidates returned to boo the very idea of birth control.

CNN Debate moderator John King posed this question sent by one of the viewers to the candidates, “Since birth control is the latest hot topic, which candidate believes in birth control and if not why?”

*Loud Boos”

Via ThinkProgress:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=0eX9SK1Mp00

Not boos for the contraception ...

By Courtney • 12 years ago

How the war on reproductive rights hurts women with disabilities

*TRIGGER WARNING*

With one of today’s articles on Feministing’s main page being Eesha Pandit’s coverage of the NC victims of eugenics sterilization being compensated, as well as the training I participated in for the organization I work for, I got to thinking about just how vulnerable women with disabilities are to sexual assault – and how the current war on our reproductive rights affects all of us, but especially those who have increased difficulty in speaking for themselves.

For a little bit of background: I currently work for an organization that provides services to people with Autism. While I work directly with children, the wide range of services that the organization provides includes extensive services for adults with autism, and beginning ...

*TRIGGER WARNING*

By Eesha Pandit • 12 years ago

Victims of eugenic sterilization in NC to be compensated

From 1929 to 1974 about 7,600 (and possibly more) people were sterilized without their consent because they were assessed by state social workers to be “feeble-minded,” having a “mental disease” or suffering from epilepsy.

Many of those that were forcibly sterilized were poor, black women deemed unfit to be parents. From NPR:

People as young as 10 were sterilized, in some cases for not getting along with schoolmates or for being promiscuous. Although officials obtained consent from patients or their guardians, many did not comprehend what they were signing.

About 2,000 of these people are still alive and on Tuesday a state task force determined that they should recieve $50,000 each, as compensation for their forcible sterilizations. While it still needs approval ...

Many of those that were ...

By Eesha Pandit • 12 years ago

It’s better (and worse) than we thought: UN releases 2011 Human Development Report

Given that it’s a new year, it’s the perfect time to highlight the previous year’s human development news. Human development is about expanding people’s choices and building sustainable societies on shared natural resources.

Recently released, the 2011 Human Development Report from the United Nations Development Fund focuses on linking the challenge of sustainable development to the challenge of achieving equitable progress. In June 2012, world leaders will gather in Rio de Janeiro to seek a new consensus on global actions to safeguard the future of the planet and the right of future generations everywhere to live healthy and fulfilling lives.

First, some sobering bits of information from the report. Many rural poor people depend overwhelmingly on natural resources for their income. ...

Recently released, the 2011 ...

By Lori Adelman • 12 years ago

Dangerously misinformed article on eating disorders posted on Muscle and Fitness website

*Trigger warning: I care a lot about the readers of this blog and I respectfully ask that you please do not read on if you are prone to be triggered around eating and health or body-related themes.*

Feministing reader Ann wrote in this week to alert us to a very disturbing article posted on Muscle and Fitness Hers website. The article is written by well-known female bodybuilder Pauline Nordin and is entitled “Defining ‘Eating Disorder’.” The subtitle of the post is “Since when did caring about what you put in your body become a bad thing?”

…Gross.

If you can’t tell already from the terrible title, the article presents a bizarre, dangerous, and ill-informed perspective on health, diet, exercise, and the psychology behind ...

Feministing ...

By Miriam • 12 years ago

Gynecologists told to prepare to treat transgender patients

The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology has come out with a new statement for their members: it’s time to prepare to work with transgender patients.

To address the significant health care disparities of transgender individuals and to improve their access to care, ob-gyns should prepare to provide routine treatment and screening or refer them to other physicians, according to The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (The College). In a Committee Opinion published today, The College also states its opposition to gender identity discrimination and supports both public and private health insurance coverage for gender identity disorder treatment.

I have criticized ACOG in the past for their policies regarding home birth and midwifery care, but this statement is really good ...

The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology has come out with a new statement for their members: it’s time to prepare to work with transgender patients.

To address the significant health care disparities of transgender individuals and ...

By Vanessa • 12 years ago

Quick Hit: On teets, tots and spats

Our own Jessica Valenti has a must-read about how shaming women who can’t or don’t want to breastfeed — and choose to use formula — is really fucking problematic (something she’s experienced recently):

I support breastfeeding women – long before I had my daughter I was blogging about the heinous lack of resources for breastfeeding mothers and the various ways they are discriminated against. I think we need mandated paid maternity leave, insurance that pays for lactation consultants and breast pumps, employers who are required to have a space and breaks for pumping moms, hospital- and state-funded breastfeeding support groups and more. But I also believe that formula ...

I support breastfeeding ...

By zerlina • 12 years ago

Crisis Propaganda Centers in the NY Times

Today in the New York Times, Katie Stack writes about her first hand experience with Crisis Pregnancy Centers during her junior year of college. We’ve talked before about how CPCs pretend to be centers where women who are pregnant can come to consider all of their options, but are actually anti-choice fronts.

What Katie found is that the CPCs are misleading not only because the staff, who are not medical professionals, wear hospital style uniforms, but also because they scare women about the risks of abortion in order to influence them away from their choice to have one.

Via The New York Times:

I am intimately aware of how false that is. Like many young women, I found myself ...