Drew Davies from the Map of Gaps campaign forwarded along an awesome resource. Basically, what the map shows are locations of services meant to help women get out of dangerous situations involving domestic violence of sexual exploitation. What the map ALSO shows is how geography gets political — note that most of Britain is red (meaning zero access to facilities) for many of the resources the map is meant to help you find.

This is both an awesome resource for abuse … READ MORE

Just spreading the word!

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I’m pleased to announce a call for submissions for the first Asian Women Blog Carnival as well as suggestions for themes and hosts for possible future carnivals. I hope that there will be enough interest for us to continue this, monthly or bimonthly or quarterly so please do let me know if you are interested in hosting a future Asian Women blog carnival with (or without!) a specific theme in mind. I am new to this and … READ MORE

It’s making the rounds - over at Shakesville,The Curvature, Feministing, and Hoyden About Town - as it should be. Most of the sites I’ve linked to have the video of McCain puting scarequotes round the notion that the health of the mother should be a consideration for abortion; as if women’s health is such a joke to him that he can’t even make it through the words.

You’re probably expecting me to call that misogynistic, but really, what’s the point? … READ MORE

An Open Letter to All Feminists: Statement of Solidarity with Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim Women Facing War and Occupation
by Piya Chatterjee and Sunaina Maira
http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/cm130308.html
As feminists and people of conscience, we call for solidarity with Palestinian women in Gaza suffering due to the escalating military attacks that Israel turned into an open war on civilians. This war has targeted women and children, and all those who live under Israeli occupation in the West Bank, and are also denied the right to … READ MORE

Tenth Annual Women’s History Month Conference

Sarah Lawrence College, Bronxville, NY (20 minutes from midtown Manhattan)

Black Power, Black Feminism: Black Women’s Activism and Development of Womanist/Feminist Consciousness in the Era Black Power.

This Conference is FREE and open to the public.

Register at:http://www.slc.edu/womens-history/conference/index.php

Traditionally scholarship on the Black Power era has characterized this time of renewed cultural and political nationalism and activism as an almost exclusively male domain.

This has begun to change. Not only … READ MORE

In hindsight, I don’t believe it was women who gained sexual freedom from the introduction of the birth control pill.

• The pill can wreak havoc on a woman’s body with side effects ranging from sexual dysfunction (ironic, no?) to frequent migraines to a heightened risk of breast cancer. It protects you from pregnancy but not STDs.
• The condom, which was available long before the pill, does not. It protects you from pregnancy and many STDs.

We already had the solution to women’s freedom … READ MORE

http://www.plannedparenthood.org/greater-iowa/events.htm

Not Ready for a Baby Yet?
Prevent pregnancy today…and for years to come!

Take part in our FREE Plan B, FREE IUD or Implanon, and FREE vasectomy offer!

• FREE Plan B (the morning-after pill)
• FREE IUD or Implanon (long-term, reversible birth ontrol)
• FREE Vasectomy (long-term, irreversible birth control)

Visit your local Planned Parenthood of Greater Iowa on MONDAY, DECEMBER 3 or call 1-877-811-PLAN (7526) for more information.

Stop by any Planned Parenthood of Greater Iowa clinic for ONE packet of FREE Plan B ONLY ON 12/3/07. You … READ MORE

CALL FOR PRESENTATIONS

The Department of State Health Services (DSHS) HIV/STD Program, in partnership with the Center for Health Training (CHT) and Workers Assistance Program (WAP), is conducting a call for presentations for the 16th Texas HIV/STD Conference, scheduled for May 18-22, 2008 at the Renaissance Austin Hotel in Austin, Texas. This event is designed for HIV/STD health professionals who serve Texans living with and affected by HIV and other STDs. Presentations should support the overall conference goal and objectives:

GOAL: … READ MORE

An estimated one million people are currently living with HIV in the United States, with approximately 40,000 new infections occurring each year. Half of all new infections in the United States occur in people 25 years of age or younger.

Please join us Saturday, December 1, 2007 to raise awareness about this growing epidemic. Hear the true life stories of HIV-positive teens from Metrolina AIDS Youth Speaker’s Bureau.

READ MORE

I recently read an article in Self magazine entitled “Is Your Doctor Playing Judge?”. The article, in short, is about the challenges and discrimination women are facing when it comes to their health care and specifically in terms of their reproductive health. On the page facing the main title and article is a flow chart of sorts with the following entries:

• DENIED: Emergency Room Contraception–Lore Boyer, 35, and Tara Harnish, 21, both of whom had been raped and who … READ MORE