Pro-choice advocates all over can breathe a tepid sigh of relief. U.S. District Judge Daniel Jordan has extended a temporary order to allow Mississippi’s lone abortion clinic to stay open, despite efforts by that state’s government to close it’s doors. It’s not a total win – we won’t really be able to relax until the [...]

Youth and innocence – two things that go together like peanut butter and jelly, peas and carrots, Cephus and Reesie. We generally seek to prolong the innocence of youth for as long as possible, shielding our children from sights, sounds and experiences that might force them to grow up too quickly, shattering their idyllic and tender [...]

I’ve got to be honest, the prospect of spending a beautiful, sunny NYC day cooped up for eight hours in a media workshop didn’t sound very appealing at first, but once Jasmine Burnett of the New York City Reproductive Justice Coalition started letting the F-bomb fly as she was explaining the day’s purpose, I enthusiastically [...]

Like Parlourista Hillary, I too have identified with an episode of “Girls.” I remember having a Hannah moment in college when one of my roommates came home from the campus health center with tears in her eyes. As we sat together on our cheap first apartment furniture and I asked her what was wrong. “I [...]

It’s no coincidence that “My Sister’s Place” is a common name for battered women’s shelters across the United States. The feelings and imagery that such a name conjures – that of community, safety, and understanding – is essential in what’s likely to be the most traumatizing and disruptive moments of a woman’s life. Women have [...]

Former Miss America, singer, actress, and mom, Vanessa Williams, revealed that she had been molested as a child in her new memoir You Have No Idea. Williams recalls that a family friend – a woman she trusted – touched her inappropriately during a sleepover when she was just 10 years old. One might wonder why an accomplished, [...]

You’d be hard pressed to find a person who didn’t associate the words “I Have a Dream” with Dr. Martin Luther King and the struggle for African-American self-determination and equality during the Civil Rights Movement. While blacks have made significant progress, there’s a new generation struggling to achieve their own version of King’s dream. Through the [...]

Let me get this straight: we’re really going to let men decide that we can’t enjoy wedges anymore? I made it through the Kitten Heel Revolt of 2010 relatively unscathed and we’re still fighting the Cold War of the Ballet Flat but I cannot go quietly into the night this time. Wedges? Really? Let me [...]

It’s widely recognized that domestic violence is a serious human rights violation that affects women, children and families worldwide. Violence against women* impacts the stability of families, increases the burden on our bursting-at-the-seams healthcare system, and negatively impacts our economy. Violence against women can result in the loss of one’s home, job, and dignity or, [...]

March 10 is National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, where government agencies, healthcare providers, community organizations, people living with HIV/AIDS, and more, come together to raise awareness about the continued impact of HIV/AIDS on the lives of women and girls in the U.S. and around the world. As a woman interested in public health [...]