women

When the news broke back in September that Gov. Sarah Palin had charged rape survivors in Wasilla, Alaska for their own rape kits we were all appalled! But guess who else is charging rape survivors for their kits?...the Pentagon. TRICARE, the U.S. Military’s Health system that covers active duty members does not pay for off-base rape kits. Women in the military are twice as likely to be raped as their civilian counterparts. In fact, "women service in the U.S. military today are twice as likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire in Iraq," Congressman Jane Harman told the House Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs in May.

In 2007 there were 2,688 sexual assaults in the military, including 1,259 reports of rape. And the Pentagon acknowledges that 80% of military rapes are not even reported, making these already way too high numbers not even close to actual. I hope that when it comes time for President-elect Barack Obama to appoint a head of the Department of Veterans Affairs, he understands the psychological importance for women to be able to feel a modicum of control during such a horrific experience. It is not purely about the collection of evidence; it is about your ability to press charges, to feel as if you have done something to take your life back as your own. And our own military shouldn’t charge you out of pocket in order to do that, especially when you've been serving our country!

This is another video made by average citizens - Young Girls of America - as a message to Sarah Palin.

With all of the McCain camp's attempts to link the Obama campaign with domestic terroroism, it has been found that Sen. John McCain has some radical supporters of his own. Mary Jacoby at the Wall Street Journal reported on McCain supporter, John Murtagh, a lawyer for a Catholic priest who led a violent protest on an abortion clinic.

Sen. McCain also has ties with Paul Schneck, a millitant anti-abortion activist who had private meetings with the Senator as far back as last year and was given a VIP pass to attend an event where McCain named Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate.

And coincidentally Sen. McCain has also repeatedly voted against bill that would protect women and abortion clinics from anti-choice terrorists such as Paul Schneck and those who John Murtagh defends.

Finally, most recently, Sen. McCain sat silently at an event while anti-choice extremist Marilyn Shannon lauded a women curently in jail for shooting a doctor who provided legal abortions.

The Obama Campaign released a new ad Friday featuring Lilly Ledbetter, the Alabama woman whose fight for equal pay led her to the United States Supreme Court and inspired the 2007 fair pay legislation that bears her name. Women supporters and leaders, including women Members of Congress and Governors joined together to hold events in all 50 states this past weekend as part of the Women’s Weekend for the Change We Need. Women spoke to other women about what’s at stake for women and families in this election, register voters, and to sign up new volunteers.

NARAL Pro-Choice America produced the following video on U.S. Sen. John McCain and Gov. Sarah Palin's very adamant feelings on a women's right to choose.

The New York Times recently reported that the Bush Administration is proposing a new regulation that could potentionally (presumably the intention) discourage clinics and hospitals from providing birth control to women in need.

The legislation purposely confuses the definition of abortion and contraception, calling abortion "any of the following procedures - including prescription, dispension and administration of any drug or the performance of any procedure or any other action - that results in the termination of the life of a human being in utero between conception and natural birth, whether before or after implantation."

Senator Hillary Clinton blogged on Huffington Post stating that the Bush Administration "could prevent providers of federally-funded family planning services, like Medicaid and Title X, from guaranteeing their patients access to the full range of comprehensive family planning services. They'll also build significant barriers to counseling, education, contraception and preventive health services for those who need it most: low-income and uninsured women and men."

This is exactly why we must elect pro-choice candidates. Sen. John McCain has repeatedly voted against allowing women to obtain birth control and he has made it clear he intends to carry on Bush's anti-choice legacy should he reach the White House.

Planned Parenthood Action Fund officially endorsed U.S. Senator Barack Obama yesterday. This is only the second time in history that Planned Parenthood Action Fund has endorsed a presidential candidate. See below the endorsement statement by president Cecile Richards and accompanying clips of Senator Obama.

Mary Curtis of the Washington Post talks to feminist about how Michelle Obama isn't the first strong woman to cause problems on a campaign.

Clark Hoyt of the New York Times discussed the Times' supposed sexist reporting of U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton's campaign.

Rebecca Traister at Salon.com on why Clinton supporters still won't supporter U.S. Senator Barack Obama

The Gallup poll reports that Senator Barack Obama has made gains in women voters after Senator Hillary Clinton left the race, indicating that Senator John McCain's opposition to equal pay for women, support for overturning Roe v. Wade, opposition to legisation expanding access to emergency contractopion and support for limiting access to all forms of birth control is not making him popular with women voters.

Media Matters reported on Maureen Dowd's repeated uses of gender roles to mock Democrats.

Similarly, Susan Faludi points out in the New York Times how Republicans are attempting to paint Senator Barack Obama as feminine because he doesn't play into a typical gender role.

Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Brave New PAC collaborated on this video to highlight John McCain's record on choice.