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grrrly news 8/2

August 2, 2003 08:10 PM posted by lisa : track it (0)

Spanish mayor orders men to stay home to give women night off
A girls' night out has become official policy in a small southern Spanish town after the mayor announced he would ban men from going out on a Thursday night.
The radical move by Javier Checa will ensure that any men who go to bars in Torredonjimeno between 9pm and 2am on a Thursday night would be fined by police.
Mr Checa says he expects the town's men to stay at home on Thursdays, looking after the kids and washing up. The women, on the other hand, are to be given a free run of the town's bars and nightclubs, which, presumably, will be free of the opposite sex.
The mayor did not say whether men from other towns would be welcome. Money from the fines will go to groups that deal with domestic violence and equality between the sexes.

Obscenity law in Ohio targeted by lawyer
lawyer who specializes in defending the distribution of sex images, including by Larry Flynt's Hustler magazine, has moved to overturn Ohio's obscenity law on the basis of the recent Supreme Court decision legalizing homosexual sodomy.
"Practically all choices made by consenting adults regarding their own sexual practices [are] a matter of personal liberty and thus beyond the reach of state control," H. Louis Sirkin told Common Pleas Judge Richard A. Niehaus in Cincinnati in presenting his view of the Supreme Court's 6-3 June decision in Lawrence v. Texas.

Cops who abuse their wives rarely pay the price
Over the past five years, 41 officers in King and Pierce counties alone have been accused of assaulting, stalking, threatening or harassing their wives, girlfriends or children, a five-month investigation by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer has found.
The officers, employed at 12 police agencies running the gamut from metropolitan to rural, were identified through searches of civil and criminal records, and public disclosure requests for internal investigations.
Most have paid little, if any, professional price. Only half faced charges.
The reasons for that sometimes have little to do with guilt or innocence.

Orphanage proposed as alternative to foster care
Adoptive parents who want a more stable alternative for children than bouncing among foster families have persuaded a group of child-welfare professionals to support establishing an orphanage.
While Ohio licenses group homes for treatment of behavioral problems and substance abuse, the last publicly operated orphanage in Ohio closed in 1995.
The group seeking the orphanage, which includes child-welfare workers, court officials, psychologists and therapists, envisions creating a family style home for up to 40 children awaiting adoption after being removed permanently from their parents.

Transgender Case Focuses on How Sex Is Determined
A conservative legal watchdog group has decided to appeal a decision in which a Florida judge granted custody of two children to a female-to-male transsexual, ruling the individual is a man under Florida law.

Liberty Council, a civil liberties legal defense organization, said the court erroneously concluded that sex is determined "psychologically" when it ruled in favor of Michael Kantaras, born Margo Kantaras, after a bitter custody battle with his wife, Linda.

Reproductive rights get Buffett Foundation help
The Buffett Foundation quietly, almost secretly, has become one of the nation's most generous benefactors for organizations at work for abortion rights, population control and women's reproductive health. The foundation awards most of its grants - $21 million in 2001, or 75 percent of its total giving - to groups that work in abortion access and reproductive health.
The support is crucial to groups on the front line of the abortion struggle.

'Hunting Bambi' Safari Was a Hoax
A promoter who offered to take men on "Hunting for Bambi" safaris in which they could hunt down naked young women with paintball guns admitted that it was a hoax designed to sell videos, the mayor says.
Michael Burdick found himself in the crosshairs of women's groups after he told a Las Vegas TV station that he was selling reservations to men willing to pay $5,000 to $10,000 for the safari experience.

US Rx Drug Import Bill Prompts Fight Among Abortion Foes
Legislation headed to the U.S. House floor this week allowing doctors, pharmacies and qualifying individuals to import prescription drugs has caused a rift among abortion opponents.
House leaders agreed to bring the bill to the floor in June as part of a last- minute deal to secure the votes necessary to pass legislation adding a prescription drug benefit to Medicare.

'Gay' high school opening in NYC
The first stand-alone public high school for homosexuals in New York City will open this fall with 100 "gay" students.
According to a report in the New York Post, the new Harvey Milk High School currently is undergoing a $3.2 million publicly funded renovation. The homosexuals-only program has operated with just two classrooms for two decades, but now is expanding.

Vatican Seeks to Stop OKs for Gay Unions
The Vatican hopes to rally public opposition to gay marriages in a worldwide campaign spurred by its alarm over growing legal acceptance of same-sex unions in Europe and North America.
Pope John Paul II has been speaking out for months against legislative proposals to legalize same-sex marriages. But instructions to be released this week go a step further by outlining a course of action for politicians and other lay people to oppose extending the rights accorded to traditional couples, Vatican officials told The Associated Press.

Film by female journalists highlights plight of Afghan women
Afghan and American delegates to the US-Afghan Women’s Council took time from their official meetings with politicians and non-governmental organisations to view and discuss the documentary film “Afghanistan Unveiled,” made by thirteen Afghan women journalists, a press release said on Tuesday.

It said the film, shown on July 16 at a luncheon at the National Geographic Society in Washington, communicates the continuing struggle and the brutal realities facing Afghan women. The documentary was made possible, in part, by a grant by the US Department of State to the Asia Foundation, which in turn gave assistance to the French-based non-governmental organisation AINA in Kabul, which trained the journalists and produced the film.

Bush administration wrestles Title IX into easy compliance
Buried in the news recently was the Bush administration's resolution to what has been perhaps the stickiest of all gender-equity battlefronts - Title IX, the 1972 law prohibiting discrimination based on sex by any college or university receiving federal funds.
The resolution: Title IX standards will remain unchanged. The reason: The law has always had within it the flexibility to level the playing field for women without cutting men's sports.

Advocates Laud Post for Gay Announcement
It wasn't the typical bride and groom photo in The Washington Post "Weddings" section - but rather the smiling faces of two women, happily announcing their marriage after 18 years together.
A gay-rights advocacy group hailed the nuptials notice in the Post as the first announcement of a legally married same-sex couple in a major U.S. newspaper. The announcement appeared in Wednesday's "Engagements, Weddings and Anniversaries" section

Treating women like children
Safety and Justice is a consultation document, which among other things proposes radical changes to the law. Its buzzwords are the three Ps: Prevention, Protection, and Perpetrator. It begins with three 'headline' pronouncements: domestic violence is primarily directed against women; 120 women each year are killed by their partners or ex-partners; and one in four women will experience domestic violence at some point in their lives. It intends to call perpetrators to account.

The biggest problem with this document is that it seeks to introduce the ethos of child protection work into dysfunctional adult relationships. It posits a picture of women at risk. It assumes that women, like children, are vulnerable and in need of help, and that as a society we should be vigilant to protect them from harm. But women are not children, and the argument that we should treat them like children demeans both women and the law.

The law and the 'one in four'
When it comes to domestic violence the UK government has a clear view: domestic violence is prevalent, it is serious and it needs to be tackled. So in his foreword to Safety and Justice, the government's new consultation paper on domestic violence, the Home Secretary, David Blunkett, begins by telling us that 'domestic violence accounts for a quarter of all recorded violent crime'.

Porn in the U.S.A.: Ready for prime time
‘‘Skin,’’ the first U.S. prime-time network series to take on what is euphemistically called the adult entertainment industry. And with a soupçon of Shakespeare, yet. ‘‘Skin’’ tells of the forbidden romance between a 17-year-old Mexican-Irish Romeo, whose father is the Los Angeles district attorney, and a 16-year-old Jewish Juliet, whose father is a porn king. Or as the show’s Web site sums it up: ‘‘‘Skin’ is about sex and race. ‘Skin’ is about politics. And most of all, ‘Skin’ is about skin: complexion, beauty, desire, attraction, obsession and prejudice in contemporary Los Angeles.’’

Women of Baghdad united in fear of rape, abduction
Since the war's end in April, fear keeps her at home, without electricity, unable to visit friends or even to watch television. She has heard rumours of women being abducted in broad daylight or being drug into cars at gunpoint and raped, as law enforcement has remained nonexistent after the war.
Khazraji is one of millions of Iraqi women whose lives have been transformed by the fear of kidnapping and rape. Some families will not let female members of their tribe go to school or work.
For the women that do decide to venture out, most are escorted by a male relative directly to and from their homes. Even a trip to the corner store does not occur unaccompanied. No one travels about after sundown.

False Rape Charges Hurt Real Victims
The media coverage of the felony sexual assault charge leveled at basketball star Kobe Bryant includes an element that has been rarely introduced into public discussion in recent years: Commentators are openly speculating on whether the accusation is false. Could the woman be lying?
And yet, whenever an unwitnessed crime is alleged, such speculation is valid. This is especially true if the allegation of crime is not unambiguously backed up by physical evidence. In a "he said/she said" scenario, the credibility of the accuser is key. This is why Western jurisprudence recognizes the right of the accused to face his or her accuser and ask questions in a court of law.

Military Women Prevented from Having Abortions Overseas
A proposal died in Congress to permit U.S. military women to pay for abortions in overseas military hospitals with their own money. For now, those opting for abortions still must return to the U. S. or risk a procedure at a private overseas facility.

Female Voters May Swing California Recall Election
Women are mobilizing against removing California Gov. Gray Davis, arguing the recall is about turning back the clock on their rights. Davis is pro-choice and has fostered laws expanding the availability of medical abortion in physician offices

Title IX Advocates Will Now Focus on Enforcement
While celebrating the government's recent affirmation of Title IX, advocates are determined to pressure the Office for Civil Rights for better enforcement of the law, which they now consider safe through the next general election

Battered Wives Often Recant or Assume Blame
Mabely Lugo, married to professional baseball player Julio Lugo, may not be a battered wife. However, she has just done what many battered wives do, which is recant the original story and take the blame for the man's violence toward them.

Swearing in of Female Judge Delayed by U.S. Forces
The United States Marines has indefinitely postponed the swearing in of Nidal Nasser Hussein, the first female judge ever appointed in Najaf, Iraq, according to press accounts.
The Marines are supervising the reconstruction of Najaf's city government. The appointment was approved by Rachel Roe, a lawyer from Wisconsin who is currently serving as the Najaf court system adviser. The postponement was based mainly upon objections from local lawyers, Islamic clerics and other judges.

Feds Award Women's Businesses 2.5% of Contracts
Women-owned businesses only receive about 2.5 percent of federal contracts. A new series of reforms up for Senate approval may help women business owners gain better access to government dollars.

'Partial-Birth' Abortion Term Puzzles Many Doctors
Doctors are divided about the medical implications of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act, now in final revision in Congress. While some say it refers to one procedure, others think vague wording will inhibit doctors from performing any abortions.

Dorothy Kenyon Bridges
Women's Strike Day" -- August 26, 1970 -- marked the 50th anniversary of winning female suffrage and announced a new wave of feminist activism. Tens of thousands demonstrated in major American cities and in Paris, a small group near the Arc de Triophe held a banner that read, "More Unknown Than the Unknown Soldier: His Wife." In New York City, marchers defied mounted police who had been instructed to keep them on the sidewalks. Arm-linked in the first line that defiantly "liberated" all of Fifth Avenue was an octogenarian named Dorothy Kenyon who had declined organizers' offer of a parade car for "first wave" veterans. Judge Kenyon preferred to walk.

Mirrors Don't Reflect Kindly on Women Working Out
The research found sedentary women who exercised in front of a mirror for 20 minutes felt less energized, less relaxed and less upbeat and positive than women who exercised without a mirror.
The McMaster University study also found women who didn't exercise with a mirror felt less physically exhausted after a workout, while those who did their workout in front of a mirror reported no change in their levels of exhaustion.
The findings may provide insight into how best to encourage sedentary women to get physically active. Currently, standard guidelines for exercise promotion recommend that workout rooms have mirrors on at least two of four walls.

Young working women have higher STD rate than students
The stubborn epidemic of sexually transmitted diseases among young adults has long been largely blamed on the risky ways of college students.
But research out Friday by Group Health shows young, single, working women are having even more unprotected sex -- and with more partners -- than students.
The study of 1,100 single women -- two-thirds from the Puget Sound area and one-third from North Carolina -- pinpoints a previously overlooked high-risk group: sexually active women ages 18 to 25 outside of the college setting.

Group canvasses enhancement of women participation in politics
Nigerians have been urged to allow women to be actively involved in politics and in the leadership of the nation with a view to improving the quality of leadership.
This was contained in a communique on National Workshop on Gender, Politics and Power: Overcoming the Barriers to the Emergence of Women Political Leaders in Nigeria, held at Lagos Airport Hotel, Ikeja and organised by the Centre for Social Science and Development, Lagos

Anti-HIV gel could put control in women's hands
An Australian company said on Friday it was preparing for human trials of a hi-tech gel that had been 100 percent effective in preventing HIV infection in monkeys.

Biotech company Starpharma was given permission by the US Food and Drug Administration to test its product VivaGel on humans and the tests were likely to proceed in Australia in the next three months.

Starpharma chief executive John Raff said the gel contained a protein that prevented the HI virus from connecting to healthy cells and infecting them

Saddam's girls find refuge
Two of Saddam Hussein's daughters took refuge in Jordan while the Bush administration approved a US$30 million payment to the tipster who led U.S. troops to the deposed Iraqi leader's two sons.
Earlier, two American soldiers were reported killed as troops chased the ousted dictator in northern Iraq, and the country's U.S. administrator said the U.S.-appointed Governing Council could be replaced through general elections held within a year.
Raghad and Rana Saddam Hussein, whose father had their husbands killed in 1996, arrived in Amman, Jordan with their nine children Thursday, Jordanian Information Minister Nabil al-Sharif told The Associated Press. They were allowed into Jordan on King Abdullah II's orders.

Peace Camp Focuses On Girls
Eleven girls, ages 15 to 17, sat together on a hot summer afternoon recently, knitting and talking.
You'd never guess that these girls -- Israeli Jews and Arabs, a Palestinian and an Israeli Druze -- are supposed to be "enemies."
The girls were attending a two-week "Creativity For Peace Camp" in Glorieta, N.M., sponsored by the Deva Foundation.
The camp aims to create a peaceful environment where the girls can share their experiences and opinions and develop strong friendships, helping to promote Arab-Israeli reconciliation.

First lesbian in Colorado House Now First Lesbian in State Senate
Jennifer Veiga, the first lesbian in the Colorado legislature has also become the first lesbian to sit in the state Senate.
Veiga was elected by a selection committee to fill the seat of Doug Linkhart who left state politics to run for Denver city council. She will face the voters for the first time in 2004.
Veiga becomes just one of ten openly lesbian, gay or bisexual state senators currently serving in the country.

Bi with a Boyfriend: the Latest Hollywood Trend?
When she told The Advocate in 1999, "I consider myself bisexual, and my philosophy is, everyone innately is," actress Megan Mullally (Karen on Will & Grace) was one of only a few celebrities to ever publicly identify as bisexual.
Since then, however, there have been a stampede of well-known women admitting their attraction to women, although only a few actually embracing the word "bisexual," as Drew Barrymore recently did in a July 2003 interview with New Woman magazine when she said "I have always considered myself bisexual" because "I think a woman and a woman together are beautiful, just as a man and a woman together are beautiful."
Israel rules on Arab-Palestinian marriages
Israeli Arabs who marry Palestinians will have to live together outside of Israel or live separate lives within Israel, the country's parliament ruled on Thursday. The law, which will be in effect for a year, is a government attempt to keep Palestinians, living in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, from getting residency permits through marriage.

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