Exciting times

Amy Gates — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 01:16:12 -0500

I totally agree. This is the first election where I've felt like I really care about the candidates and the issues and I know it's the same for some friends of mine as well. Maybe it's because we are all moms now and we feel that we have more at stake than just our own futures, but whatever the reason, it's good to be involved. These are exciting times.

Amy
Crunchy Domestic Goddess
BlogHers Act contributing editor

you and me both

Amy Gates — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 01:13:49 -0500

Thanks, Suzanne. And re: Michelle Obama, you and me both!!

Amy
Crunchy Domestic Goddess
BlogHers Act contributing editor

These are great!

PunditMom — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 15:11:42 -0500

Thanks for all these links and comments (and of course for mentioning the Hillary Clinton live blog!)

It's wonderful to see so many women engaged in politics right now, now matter what their diverse views are!

PunditMom, Politics & News Contributing Editor

great round up of topics!

Suzanne Reisman — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 14:36:18 -0500

Thanks for the great round up of topics that fall under the "women's issues" rubric. I'm very much hoping to see Michelle Obama in the White House next year. I think she'll do great things on many of the issues that I care about.

Suzanne Reisman, Contributing Editor - Feminism & Gender
Campaign for Unshaved Snatch (CUSS) & Other Rants

Women's issues, rights and equality

Amy Gates — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 11:50:38 -0500

With the Democratic National Convention in full swing and Women's Equality Day, marking the 88th anniversary of women gaining the right to vote, celebrated on Aug. 26, women's issues have been a hot topic lately.

Kristin at Candy Sandwich received a work email Tuesday "from the Assistant Administrator of Diversity or something like that" announcing Women's Equality Day. She notes, "For the record, I'm not sure I feel all that equal but that's another story, for another time. I definitely don't feel any more equal today than yesterday or last week." Kristin goes on to wonder, even though she received an email "from the Assistant Administrator of Diversity or something like that," just how Women's Equality Day was supposed to be celebrated at her work.

In some of the buildings around here, we barely have bathrooms but as the current president proclaimed yesterday, in declaring the day, "I call upon the people of the United States to celebrate the achievements of women and observe this day with appropriate programs and activities."

Bring on the appropriate programs and activities.

What were the "appropriate programs and activities?" Did you attend any? Do you know of any that took place?

Barbara from Looking 2 Live commented on Kristin's post and remarked, "I always hate these 'special' days because they point out the fact that equality still doesn't exist! For the life of me, I don't see why there ever needed to be inequality. Maybe some day we will rise above things like gender and race. Not yet, however."

Ashley at Let Me Entertain You is concerned about women's rights and wrote yesterday about a proposed regulation by the Department of Health and Human Services "that could seriously undermine access to basic reproductive health services, including birth control and abortion." In her post, she links to the ACLU where you have until Sept. 20 to publicly comment against the proposal by filling out a form.

I intend to do that just as soon as I finish this post and I encourage you, if women's rights are important to you, to do that same.

Over at The Fashionable Bambino is a post about the Holistic Moms Network who is concerned that "Women's Rights to Natural Childbirth Are Rapidly Disappearing." HMN will be organizing a bunch of events around Labor Day to raise awareness a woman's right to choose where and how she gives birth.

HMN is throwing its support behind Birth on Labor Day or BOLD - a global arts-based movement founded in 2006 by playwright Karen Brody. BOLD aims to inspire communities to create maternity friendly childbirth choices for mothers through presentations of Brody’s play “Birth.” The play tells the birth stories of eight women and paints an alarming picture of how low-risk, educated mothers are giving birth today. Over 100 performances of the play are happening in cities across America in September (see www.boldaction.org). Proceeds from the play are donated to local organizations that provide mother-friendly maternity care, in line with the Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative.

You may well know that I'm a big advocate for women's right to choose where and how they give birth and I am always glad to read of others joining in the fight to preserve that right.

At RH Reality Check, Allison Stevens is keeping a close eye on the Democratic National Convention and asks, "Will Michelle Obama be women's rights activists best friend in the White House since Eleanor Roosevelt?"

As I reported in Women's eNews, Obama says her top concern is issues facing women in the workplace -- that is, pay discrimination and difficulties women have balancing the demands of work and family.

I agree that it would be wonderful to have a first lady championing for women's rights.

Over at The Political Voices of Women, guest blogger Deb Della Piana from Turn Left asks women to Use Your Brains, Don't Vote for McCain.

John McCain is no friend to women. ... What really matters is the position of the presidential candidate. Casting your vote for McCain rather than Obama, out of some twisted sense of loyalty to Hillary Clinton, makes absolutely no sense. For the record, Hillary Clinton feels that way too. If, however, you want to set women’s rights back a few decades then pappy McCain is your man and the Republican party is your ticket.

Speaking of Hillary Clinton, Pundit Mom live-blogged HRC's powerful speech on Tuesday and there are over 50 comments from BlogHers with their reactions to it.

All of this goes to show that even though Tuesday was "Women's Equality Day," and we should definitely be thankful to all the women who came before us and made great strides to get us where we are today, we still have a long way to go until we will be truly equal.

Contributing editor Amy Gates blogs about green living, attachment parenting, activism and photography at Crunchy Domestic Goddess.

BlogHer - Women's issues, rights and equality - Comments

Exciting times

you and me both

These are great!

great round up of topics!

Women's issues, rights and equality