HERVotes Blog Carnival: Fighting Sexual Harassment

By Eleanor Smeal, Feminist Majority Foundation President and Ms. Magazine Publisher

Welcome to the fifth #HERvotes blog carnival. This time we're focusing on the need to keep strong the laws and public policies to end sex discrimination and sexual harassment in schools and in the workplace. HERvotes, a multi-organizational campaign launched in August 2011, advocates that women must use our voices and votes to stop the ongoing attacks on the major advances of the women's movement. We are very excited that HERvotes is reaching a growing list of member groups and organizations and millions of people.

HERvotes called attention in early November to the dangerous personhood state constitutional amendment on the Mississippi ballot--which we're pleased to report was soundly defeated last week by a margin of 58-42 percent. Now, sexual harassment has emerged as an issue in the presidential primaries at the same time that a member organization of HERvotes, the American Association of University Women, has released a historic report on the high levels of sexual harassment in our nation's schools.

Sexual harassment has been ruled decisively by courts as a form of sex discrimination. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects people in the workplace from sex discrimination. Title IX of the Educational Amendments Act of 1972 protects students, teachers, professors and staff in all educational institutions receiving federal funding from sex discrimination.

Both of these federal laws, major advances of the women's movement, are under attack by members of Congress who seek to gut such protections and by Supreme Court decisions that have weakened them.

We must keep Title VII and Title IX strong. We have a right to know where policymakers stand on these issues.

How to join the fight:

*You can share the posts below on Twitter --using the hashtag #HERvotes--and on Facebook. If we spread the word far enough we can make sure Title VII and Title IX are enforced.

* You can ask where candidates and policymakers stand on issues of Title IX, Tile VII and sexual harassment in the workplace and in educational institutions.

The blog posts below share more reasons why we need to take action now. Happy reading, and thanks for joining the fight to end sexual harassment.

Part of the #HERvotes blog carnival.

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• Bullying Vs. Sexual Harassment–Do You Know the Difference?, by Susan Strauss, Ms. Blog



• Just a Typical Day at School, by Catherine Hill, American Association of University Women



• Sexual Harassment a Problem for Latinas, by Rebecca Medina, National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health



• Unions and Sexual Harassment, Carol Rosenblatt, Coalition of Labor Union Women



• Sexual Harassment in the Technology Era: “Apps Against Abuse”, Soojin Ock, National Women's Political Caucus



• Correct. Protect. Respect. Promoting Economic Security with Safe Workplaces, Donna Addkison, Wider Opportunities for Women



• Welcome to the Jungle: Sexual Harassment in College, Bettina Hager, National Women's Political Caucus



• Sorry Rachel, There Still is Sexual Harassment, Joan Grey, Business and Professional Women’s Foundation



• Cain, Sexual Harassment and the Campaign Against Women in Public Life, Erin Matson, National Organization for Women

Why Mississippi’s ‘Personhood’ Measure Is a Threat to Women Everywhere

By Lauren Kalina, Advocates for Youth Intern

On November 8, the state of Mississippi will vote on ballot initiative 26, which will attempt to change the Mississippi constitution to define human life as beginning at conception. The actual text of the initiative is as follows:

Section 33. Person defined. As used in this Article III of the state constitution, “The term ‘person’ or ‘persons’ shall include every human being from the moment of fertilization, cloning or the functional equivalent thereof.”

For the women of Mississippi, this initiative would attempt to ban abortion, certain types of birth control as well as treatment for infertility and miscarriage. This is a major violation of a woman’s reproductive rights. Additionally, Initiative 26 could have many more far-reaching, unforseen legal and political implications.

Recently, many anti-choice presidential candidates, including Mitt Romney, have come out in support of this life-threatening measure. Romney, like many other conservative politicians, seems to be confused about just how extreme Initiative 26 is. Here, you can watch Rachel Maddow set men straight about how birth control works.

Women’s access to birth control could be severly limited by Initiative 26 because this measure considers a fertilized egg as a human life. However, many forms of birth control prevents the implantation of fertilized eggs, therein creating a conflict. Maybe if our politicans had received better sex education they might understand this more thoroughly…

This vote on November 8th is of particular importance to Mississippians, but should be of great importance to women all over the country. According to CNN, Mississippi is the only state with a “personhood” initiative on the ballot this year. However, according to the CNN article, similar measures are being planned for next year in Florida, Montana and Ohio; and efforts in at least five other states are in the planning stages.

A yes vote on this measure would open the floodgates for more bills such as this to be introduced in other states. Mississippians for Healthy Families has created a coalition of organizations that oppose Initiative 26. The coalition includes: the American Civil Liberties Union, Planned Parenthood, The Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, The American College of Obstetrician Gynecologists and many more.

Regardless of where you live, you can help make a difference in the lives of women and families throughout Mississippi by donating today to the Vote No on 26 campaign. Your support will help the campaign’s grassroots efforts to prevent the passage of this harmful initiative.

Crossposted from Amplify Your Voice.

Part of the #HERvotes blog carnival.

Losing Your Rights Via Personhood

By Janet Hill, Coalition of Labor Union Women, National CLUW Vice President (United Steelworkers)

Don’t be fooled by Initiative 26, Mississippi's the “personhood amendment." Government has gone too far and this amendment raises many disturbing questions about the status of women if enacted. The essential question to ask is, if a woman is lying unconscious in a burning building with a rack of embryos, which would be saved first? Initiative 26 would seem to imply the rack of embryos. Why else would Initiative 26 make it possible to deny lifesaving treatment to women? It raises serious questions about medical treatment of common problems such as ectopic pregnancies, infertility and even high-risk pregnancies. This could be why the American Society of Reproductive Medicine and Mississippi Chapter of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists are opposed to this initiative. Clearly it comes between the doctor and his or her patient. The Mississippi Nurses’ Association and the Mississippi State Medical Association oppose it as well.

Even more appalling, a girl raped by her father could be forced by the state to bear her father’s child because there are NO allowances for rape or incest. This goes against all of our society’s values. Perhaps this is why Catholic Bishops in several states oppose this law.

Initiative 26 also poses this disturbing question: If a woman miscarries, no matter how early, no matter what the reason, does the personhood amendment allow her to be charged with murder? Keep in mind that between 50 and 70 percent of first-trimester miscarriages are caused by chromosomal abnormalities in the fertilized egg. Studies estimate that between 30 to 50 percent of fertilized eggs miscarry before or during implantation.

This amendment may radically change over 4000 laws in the state and cause strange lawsuits and criminal charges. It would also outlaw many common forms of contraception. Shouldn’t a state with the highest poverty rate and 31.9 percent of its children living in poverty be thinking about creating good paying jobs not more children? Over the past decade, the cost of raising a child to 18 for a two income middle class family rose 40% to $226,920. Then there is the $155 million a year price tag for Mississippi teen pregnancies, the nation’s highest teen pregnancy rate.

The folks in Colorado voted down the personhood amendments--twice. I encourage everyone in Mississippi to vote NO on Initiative 26, aka the “personhood amendment,” November 8. If you don’t live in Mississippi but have friends and family there encourage them to vote no. Make sure to contact your state representative in Mississippi and ask her or him how this amendment creates jobs when the average income went down and more women and children are slipping into poverty. Ask how this helps create jobs and, finally, tell him or her to quit wasting time and do something about the jobs crisis.

Part of the #HERvotes blog carnival.

Cross-posted with HERvotes

Photo from Flickr user themonnie under Creative Commons.

Wisconsin Rep Planning "Personhood" Bill to Criminalize Abortion

By Sofia Resnick, The American Independent

The “personhood movement” has recently grown legs in Wisconsin, where state Rep. Andre Jacque (2nd Assembly District) has promised to introduce a proposed amendment to the state constitution that would change the definition of a person to include “preborn” babies. The intended effect of “personhood” amendments is to criminalize abortion; many critics say such laws could also criminalize some forms of birth control and in vitro fertilization.

In a YouTube video on the recently launched website of Personhood Wisconsin — affiliated with Pro-Life Wisconsin and Personhood USA — Jacque explains that his state’s constitution is flawed because in order to have access to the rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, Wisconsinites must first be born.

He continues:

“What this simply does is takes out that requirement that you be born to have these inalienable rights that I think we all should enjoy as human beings. Unfortunately, if you take a look at the possibilities of Roe v. Wade being overturned, we would not have constitutional protection for the unborn in Wisconsin. And that’s why I feel that short of having this change in the constitution and putting it before the voters, there will be the ability for an activist Wisconsin state Supreme Court to deny rights to people that clearly should have that kind of protection – all people, every person at all stages of development.

It really is something where if you take a look at the statute that we already have on the books here in Wisconsin, in terms of prohibiting abortion, that could be stripped away, and it’s important that we find a way to restore that guarantee to all Wisconsin citizens that their human dignity will be respected from the movement of conception until natural death.”

According to Personhood Wisconsin, the amendment is “currently in drafting” but will be introduced this month. This week Personhood Wisconsin unveiled a billboard advertising the to-be-proposed amendment with pictures of humans at different stages of development and an all-caps message on the billboard reading: “YOU. ME. EVERYBODY. WE’RE ALL JUST GROWN-UP EMBRYOS.”

The billboard was designed by Youth Defence, an anti-abortion-rights media group based in Dublin, Ireland, and is sponsored by Pro-Life Wisconsin, 40 Days for Life of Green Bay, Personhood USA and Youth Defence. According to Pro-Life Wisconsin, it is currently located on Highway 41, south of Green Bay, but will move to a different location in Green Bay every three months.

“Demonstrating that at one point, all of us were just embryos, the personhood message is one we can all identify with,” said Pro-Life Wisconsin spokesperson Virginia Zignego in a statement.

On November 8, Mississippians will vote on whether to add a “personhood” amendment to their state constitution.

Excerpted from The American Independent News Network.

Part of the #HERvotes blog carnival.

Original photo of bowl and spoons from Flickr user gniliep under Creative Commons 2.0; text added.

HERvotes Takes On the Mississippi “Personhood” Amendment

By Eleanor Smeal

Welcome to the fourth #HERVotes Blog Carnival! This time, we’re writing with an especially urgent focus. There’s an extremely dangerous constitutional amendment to the Mississippi state constitution on the November 8th ballot. It grants personhood and constitutional rights to a fertilized egg.

Election day is just one week away. We must stop the outrageous movement to give fertilized eggs more rights than women and girls.

The implications are staggering. By giving constitutional rights to a fertilized egg, the amendment could ban emergency contraception, birth control pills and IUDs as well as all abortions, even in cases of rape, incest, or to save the life of the woman or girl. It could eliminate medical choices for women, such as some cancer treatments or in vitro fertilization. It could allow the state to investigate and even prosecute a woman for a miscarriage. Undoubtedly it would lead to many court cases.

How to join the fight:

• You can help in this get-out-the-vote effort by urging everyone you know in Mississippi– your friends, family, co-workers, or members of groups you are affiliated with–to Vote No on Initiative 26.
• To take direct action, you can donate here to help the statewide Mississippi coalition campaign buy desperately needed television and radio ads.
• You can share the posts here on Twitter–hashtags #HERvotes and #NoOn26—and Facebook. If we spread the word far enough, we can reach every women’s-rights voter in Mississippi.

With your help, this outrageous Mississippi Initiative 26 will be defeated. The blog posts here share more reasons why we need to take action now. Happy reading, and thanks for fighting for women’s lives!

Part of the #HERvotes blog carnival.

Photo from the Mississippians for Healthy Families Facebook page.

Let(ting) Her Die is NOT an Option

“I was pregnant, I was miscarrying, I was bleeding. If I had to go from one hospital to the next trying to find one emergency room that would take me in, who knows if I would even be here today. What my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are trying to do is misogynist,” admonished Representative Jackie Speier (D-CA) from the floor of the House last week. What she’s warning against sounds impossible. Why would a dying woman be refused life saving measures?

If the House Republican Majority has its way, this scenario would not just be a horror story- it would be reality. The Let Her Die bill (officially called the “Protect Life Act” H.R. 358), sponsored by Representative Joe Pitts (R- PA) and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA), seeks to do just this. The bill would “prohibit federal funds from being used to cover any part of the costs of any health plan that includes coverage of abortion services.” The Hyde Amendment has prohibited federal funding of abortion since 1976, so what makes this bill different? Let Her Die allows any hospital with moral objections to abortion to deny women the procedure, even if the life of the woman is at risk.

Hospitals would be allowed to NOT save the life of a dying woman on “moral grounds”.

Such a cruel bill would never become law, right? Unfortunately, this is not necessarily the case. Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Let Her Die bill with all Republicans except two voting for it. That’s right, members of the United States Congress actually signed off on a law that would allow women to be denied lifesaving treatment!

Before becoming law, the bill has to be approved by the Senate, a situation that is extremely unlikely to happen. Plus, President Obama has said he would veto the bill immediately. Still, this bill should never have made it this far through our government. Congress should be protecting women, not signing off on legislation that blatantly endangers their lives.

Members of Congress should not be playing political games with women’s lives. Our elected officials must not pursue misguided, brutal, and dangerous bills like Let Her Die. We should not forget that an overwhelming majority of House Republicans voted for the Let her Die bill. With so many Americans out of work, Congress should be focusing on creating jobs and bettering the lives of the American people. Instead, members of the House of Representatives are using their position to take away women’s reproductive rights, and, as this bill shows, their right to lifesaving medical procedures.

As Representative Speier’s story shows, real lives are at stake. Real women will die if this bill would become law. Congress must realize that Let[ting] Her Die is NOT an option.

Women Have Lives On The Line With Health Care Reform

by Jessica Mason Pieklo

Like thousands of other families the recession has hit ours hard, but it could be worse. My family currently has health insurance, and both my husband and I still have jobs. We live paycheck to paycheck but still I feel lucky.

It’s a tenuous luck, a luck that is one medical emergency away from bankruptcy if we lose these protections. Even with insurance the recent c-section birth of my daughter still left us with a nearly $10,000 hospital bill, which is especially difficult to pay when there is no paid family or medical leave and returning to work means a return of childcare costs approaching $2000 a month.

But thanks to the Affordable Care Act my family can take a few steps back. We can exhale a bit. We can turn our attention to the countless other challenges we face raising children and balancing careers. Maybe it doesn’t seem like much to others, but for us it might literally be everything.

Thanks to the Affordable Care Act insurance companies can no longer impose lifetime dollar limits on essential benefits such as hospital stays, nor can they deny coverage to any child under the age of 19 due to a pre-existing condition. The Affordable Care Act means that all health insurance plans must cover preventative services such as contraception, mammograms and colonoscopies without charging a deductible, co-pay or coinsurance. Should my children reach adulthood in a time of economic contraction like we have now, they can stay on our insurance until they are 26 years old–a benefit I did not have and one that cost me thousands in uncovered medical expenses at a time when I was just trying to set out as an adult.

That all could change in the next election. The value of reproductive health care as preventative medicine is being questioned, as is the entire foundation of health care reform. Young adults may soon find themselves again without insurance, and given the current state of the economy, no employment prospects to either provide that coverage or an income to defray unexpected medical costs. Women may once again be discriminated against in terms of coverage and cost and families may find themselves kicked off insurance through no fault of their own.

At a time when women and families are facing what can seem like insurmountable challenges, now is not the time to roll back these kinds of protections. Quite simply, too much is at stake.

This blog is part of the #HERvotes blog carnival. Read more HERvotes posts by the Feminist Majority and other women’s groups.