niyad
niyad's JournalBefore the Stopping Starts (menopause)
Before the Stopping Starts (menopause)
PUBLISHED 3/2/2024 by Lizzie Roberts
Things will get weirder and weirder before your period stops—something every woman should know before the stopping starts.
(suteishi / Getty Images)
Maybe it was around the time your mother took up flamenco dancing. She might have cut off her hair and dyed it purple, or started dressing like Stevie Nicks. Maybe she divorced your father or came out, embarked on a serious relationship with yoga or ceramics. Whatever she was up to, it was clear something was going on. But no one was going to talk about it—at least not in public. You might have overheard a whisper: the Change. The Change sounded like one of those black-and-white horror movies. I had to make the wire coat hanger antenna touch the windowsill for Channel 50’s Creature Feature to come in. Soon a monster would appear in the doorway with yellow fangs, brittle claws and wiry hair, asking if I wanted to join her for a performance of her friend Deborah’s avant-garde marching band.
My grandmother thought she was dying when she got her first period. We were watching The Thorn Birds on TV, shoulder to shoulder in bed, when she told me that she had been away at boarding school and no one had told her a thing. I knew it wasn’t fatal, but menstruation was still tinged with shame in the 1980s, when I was in middle school. Ads for ‘sanitary protection’ featured blue liquid poured from beakers. With clandestine glances, we checked one another for spots on our pants, passing tampons and pads with elaborate handshakes. We used the euphemisms “on the rag” or “time of the month.” But whatever our mothers were going through—if we had perceived it at all—was unmentionable.
While periods are out in the open now, The Change is still a monster hiding in the dark, creeping up on many women silently. I didn’t think I was going to die, but for a while, I thought I was losing my mind. Perhaps the invitation to Deborah’s avant-garde marching band was my mother’s way of trying to tell me something back then. I was too busy singing along with “Like a Virgin” to listen. And unless it happens to them, the whole business is still a bad joke to most people, like the women ‘of a certain age’ frantically fanning themselves in sitcoms. I had imbibed the misogynist notion that The Change makes women become “difficult,” but all I really knew about menopause before I hit 40 was that hormones and hot flashes were involved.
. . .
If you’re not one of those unicorns, you might supplement your supplements by demanding action from your gynecologist. There will be patches and gels, pills, and yes, more herbal tea. Eventually you will get used to the weirdness and make it your own, just as you did with your period, because there was no other choice. Then something else will happen. You will begin to notice a large chunk of the world, nearly invisible until now: an army of cool, older women, the ones who have emerged on the other side and flourished. In their eyes you will catch a glimpse of the person you want to become. You will do away with pretense then, giving up whatever is keeping you from beginning to live the rest of your life. And this is where the flamenco dancing might come in.
https://msmagazine.com/2024/03/02/menopause-perimenopause-period-stops-older-women-aging/
Out of Touch on Menopause: Experts Respond to The Lancet's 'Over-Medicalization' Claims
(JFC, Lancet, what the hell happened to you??)
Out of Touch on Menopause: Experts Respond to The Lancet’s ‘Over-Medicalization’ Claims
PUBLISHED 4/15/2024 by Dr. Mary Claire Haver
Women entering the menopausal transition deserve up-to-date science that reflects their lived experience.
Ninety percent of women were never educated about menopause, and over 73 percent do not treat their symptoms because they do not know that they can. (Sergey Mironov / Getty Images)
Menopause is gaining attention in the media and highest levels of government, including the White House—but we still have a long way to go to ensure women get the support they need. A recent series issued by a respected journal, The Lancet, proves this point. The Lancet series claims to promote an “empowerment model for managing menopause.” To us—more than 250 obstetrician-gynecologists, family medicine physicians, cardiologists, internists, urologists, medical oncologists, psychiatrists, orthopedic surgeons, nurse practitioners and licensed therapists—this was an unexpected and welcome opportunity. Our daily work focuses on these same goals. Despite the encouraging headline, the series was awash with misstatements that do not reflect the lived experience of women in this stage of life or our clinical experience in treating them. In several cases, The Lancet authors relied on outdated data to make their case.
Among our rebuttals:
“Most women navigate menopause without the need for medical treatments.”
The more accurate statement would be that most women navigate menopause without being given the option of medical treatments.
Ninety percent of women were never educated about menopause.
Over 73 percent do not treat their symptoms because they do not know that they can.
In the United States, only 7 percent of OB-GYN, internal medicine and family medicine residents felt competent in treating a menopausal woman, although many admitted it was important.
During the menopausal transition, women should “challenge self-critical beliefs, which can … make [hot] flushes worse.”
This tone-deaf suggestion perpetuates the “it’s all in her head” narrative that has been used for decades to dismiss women who present with physical symptoms in the clinical setting. The fact is that hot flushes (flashes), like heart palpitations, are a vasomotor symptom of menopause—a biologic change with known causality due to declining levels of estrogen, disruptions in hypothalamus activity trigger blood vessel dilation and cause a sensation of heat to spread from the chest towards the extremities. These symptoms result from disruptions in the body’s thermoregulatory system and are not psychological in nature.
. . . . .
“Over-medicalization of menopause can lead to disempowerment and over-treatment.”
. . ...
The painful reality for many patients is that clinicians repeatedly fail to recognize their symptoms of menopause that extend beyond the classic vasomotor symptom of hot flashes. These include inflammatory conditions, cardiac and neurological issues, sexual dysfunction, and sleep and mood disorders. Women frequently find themselves referred to numerous specialists to address the multitude of symptoms associated with menopause, with each symptom being tackled individually; clinicians unable to connect the dots, akin to playing a game of whack-a-mole with symptoms.
How is this reality not the ultimate in over-medicalization? If and when doctors do engage their patients in discussions of menopausal hormone therapy—a proven treatment to both allay and prevent many of these conditions—many of them overemphasize the risks and downplay the benefits of hormone-based treatment. And in the series, alternative pharmaceuticals, such as anticholinergics, SSRIs, statin therapy, pain medications, osteoporosis drugs, neurokinin receptor agonists are painted as all benefit and little risk. Patients then are left with a cabinet full of prescription medications, costly medical bills and negligible relief. This is the true over-medicalization of menopause, just not in the way the authors of The Lancet series suggest. We will continue to prioritize patient empowerment, based on up-to-date science and further work to elevate standards of care for women entering the menopausal transition. They deserve nothing less.
https://msmagazine.com/2024/04/15/menopause-treatment-the-lancet/
'The Women Are Talking!' Up Close and Personal With Women World Leaders at the 2024 Reykjavk Global Forum
‘The Women Are Talking!’ Up Close and Personal With Women World Leaders at the 2024 Reykjavík Global Forum
PUBLISHED 12/27/2024 by Katie Usalis
Usalis speaks on a panel at Reykjavík Global Forum in November, joined by Rep. Leger Fernandez, Ruby Coleman and Cynthia Richie Terrell. (Courtesy of the Reykjavík Global Forum)
Every November, political and community leaders from around the world bundle up and head to Reykjavík, Iceland, for the annual Reykjavík Global Forum on women’s representation and leadership—a beautifully curated, invitation-only opportunity to discuss our world’s most pressing issues, from a woman’s perspective. This year, I not only had the opportunity to attend but also to sit down for a private conversation with three absolute legends: Mary Robinson, president of Ireland (1990-1997), Dr. Michelle Harrison, CEO of Verian and the Reykjavik Index for Leadership, and Sen. Donna Dasko (Canada). Pull up a chair and join me to hear what these powerhouse women leaders have to say.
Usalis and Robinson in conversation in November. (Courtesy of the Reykjavík Global Forum, via Instagram)
Katie Usalis: Good morning! Thank you all so much for your time. I loved what Halla Tómasdóttir, president of Iceland, had to say this morning in her fireside chat with you, Mary. She said, “We need more men who dare to lead like women.” How do you believe women lead differently?
President Mary Robinson: I’m generalizing, but men can tend to be more hierarchical, very interested in strong power, interested in staying in power. … Women tend to be less hierarchical, more discussing how to reach a practical solution. They are very keen that the leadership will make a difference for others, and there’s more of a sense of servant leadership and not necessarily staying long in office. For example, I didn’t stay a second term because I felt I opened up the office, I’d created much more relevance to the presidency and then handed it over to somebody else to build on.
. . .
Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, Cynthia Richie Terrell, Diana Hwang and Ruby Coleman at the president of Iceland’s residence.
Usalis: For my last question, I’d love to close by asking each of you to share something you’d like to say to Ms. readers and feminists in the United States?
. . . .
Dasko: I would say don’t give up, don’t look back. Look forward. There are many ways to make a difference in your communities, in politics, in the private sector, the public sector. There are many ways to make a difference, and I think American institutions are strong. I honestly don’t think that one person can derail an entire country that is built on really solidly democratic institutions like free media, the rule of law, an independent judiciary and strong community organizations. I believe that the country is going to move ahead, though it may be a rocky road.
Usalis: Thank you all so much for joining me and for all the ways you inspire us every day.
TheRepresentWomen team is grateful to be engaging with the Reykjavík Global community. Beyond this opportunity to sit down with Mary, Michelle and Donna, we also hosted women members of Congress at this year’s Forum who participated in a rich panel discussion, co-hosted by Running Start, on Solutions to Advance Women’s Representation and Leadership. We were thrilled to be able to bring U.S. women leaders to the table, as we hope to deepen the connections among American lawmakers and thought leaders with global advocates for women’s leadership. It is clear that now, more than ever, we all must join hands, hearts and minds to learn how to strengthen democracy and build women’s political power the world over.
https://msmagazine.com/2024/12/27/women-reykjavik-global-forum-mary-robinson-michelle-harrison-donna-dasko/
'Protect us alive, not dead': how women are starting to be heard on femicide in Ivory Coast
‘Protect us alive, not dead’: how women are starting to be heard on femicide in Ivory Coast
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/dec/20/ivorian-women-girls-femicide-ivory-coast-march-grand-bassam#img-1
March against murder and sexual violence in Grand-Bassam echoes first public demonstration by women in the country, which took place in 1949
Sadia Mandjo in Grand-Bassam and Eromo Egbejule in Abidjan
Fri 20 Dec 2024 08.00 EST
Last modified on Fri 20 Dec 2024 08.02 EST
With their chants ringing through the streets, nearly 200 women and girls march through the Ivory Coast town of Grand-Bassam. It is early December, and the march is the culmination of 16 days of activism to denounce femicide in the west African country.
The demonstrators, aged between 14 and 75, are dressed in orange and armed with slogans expressing their pain. “Tired of being killed, tired of being raped,” one woman chants in French. “Protect us alive, not dead,” yells another. Many are schoolgirls from the Girls’ Training and Education Institute (IFEF) of Grand-Bassam, marching for the first time against gender-based violence. They all have anecdotes about how it has affected them and those around them. Sarah Rokiata, 16, became aware of the issue after a friend told her that someone in the village had “operated on her for her wellbeing”. Later, Rokiata learned that was code for female genital mutilation. “We are the women and girls of tomorrow,” she says. “We have to fight against rape, we have to fight against femicide, we have to fight against excision.”
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/dec/20/ivorian-women-girls-femicide-ivory-coast-march-grand-bassam#img-2
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/dec/20/ivorian-women-girls-femicide-ivory-coast-march-grand-bassam#img-3
Women march against sexual violence in Grand-Bassam, Ivory Coast, 10 December 2024. Photograph: Tora San Traoré/The Guardian
The march in Grand-Bassam, the colonial-era capital of Ivory Coast, echoes the first public demonstration by women – in 1949 – when more than 2,000 marched to free their husbands imprisoned by French colonial authorities. Meganne Boho, the president of the Ivorian League for Women’s Rights, says: “Contrary to what school textbooks say, those women didn’t just march for their husbands, they marched for themselves, for their freedom. And 75 years later, we’re retracing their steps to pay tribute to these warriors.” Sylvie Kassi, 52, is at the head of the procession. “I hear about violence on the radio, I hear about forced marriages on the TV, but this is the first time I’ve seen women get together and take to the streets to say stop to violence,” she says. “I’m proud to be part of it.” During the days leading up to the march, activities across the country included women’s forums with discussions and theatre and a caravan crisscrossing the country to raise awareness of gender-based violence in schools and among the wider public.
. . .
In Ivory Coast, a survey by the nonprofit Citizens for the Promotion and Defence of the Rights of Children, Women and Minorities (CPDEFM), found that more than 416 femicides took place across six of Abidjan’s 13 communes between 2019 and 2020. Several horrific cases made the headlines this year: a 19-year-old stabbed to death, allegedly by her partner after he accused her of stealing; a soldier who shot his wife and then killed himself in April. “It is complex to carry out studies to obtain statistics on femicide, but it is not impossible because … the culture of silence is gradually receding,” says Marie-Michelle Nda, director of CPDEFM. “But we need financial resources, logistical resources [and] the government must support us in this fight.” In 2021, the Ivorian government adopted measures to protect victims of domestic violence, rape and sexual violence in general, including establishing emergency protection orders. It also ended the requirement for a victim to supply medical certificates, and introduced training for gendarmes and police officers on gender-based violence. In September, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ranked Ivory Coast as the leading African country in the fight to end discrimination against women.
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/dec/20/ivorian-women-girls-femicide-ivory-coast-march-grand-bassam#img-4
A crowd holding banners and placards written with slogans against rape, sexual violence and femicide
Several generations of women marched together as part of the 16 days of activism. Photograph: Tora San Traoré/The Guardian
But many women say there is still a lot to do, including recognising femicide. “In Ivorian law, the term ‘femicide’ does not exist,” says lawyer and activist Ferela Soro, general secretary of the Organisation for Feminist Reflection and Action. “In order to impose harsher penalties, we are advocating for femicide to be recognised in the penal code on an equal level with infanticide or patricide.” For the young women joining the march, it is an opportunity to fight for their right to be safe. “We are vulnerable,” says Rokiata, surrounded by her friends who nod in agreement. “We deserve to be protected so that we don’t die tomorrow.”
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/dec/20/ivorian-women-girls-femicide-ivory-coast-march-grand-bassam
'Broken': Domestic violence impacts women, children in Gaza (trigger warning)
‘Broken’: Domestic violence impacts women, children in Gaza (trigger warning)
As Israel continues its relentless bombardment of Gaza, cases of domestic violence have rocketed. Experts fear women and children will never recover.
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Palestinian women comfort each other at a funeral for adults and children killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, in Deir el-Balah, May 31, 2024 [Abdel Kareem Hana/AP]
By Ruwaida Amer
Published On 25 Dec 202425 Dec 2024
Khan Younis, Gaza – The face of Samar Ahmed, 37, shows clear signs of exhaustion. It is not just because she has five children, nor that they have been displaced several times since the start of Israel’s brutal war on Gaza 14 months ago and are now living in cramped, cold conditions in a makeshift tent in the al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis. Samar is also a victim of domestic violence and has no way to escape her abuser in the cramped conditions of this camp.Two days ago, her husband beat her around the face leaving her with a swollen cheek and a blood spot in her eye. Her eldest daughter clung to her all night following that attack, which happened in front of the children. Samar does not want to break up her family – they have already been forced to move from Gaza City, to the Shati camp in Rafah and now to Khan Younis – and the children are young. Her eldest, Laila, is just 15. She also has 12-year-old Zain, 10-year-old Dana, Lana, seven, and Adi, five, to think about.
On the day that Al Jazeera visits her, she is trying to keep her two younger girls occupied with schoolwork. Sitting together in the small tent, which is made from rags, the three have spread out some notebooks around them. Little Dana is huddled up close to her mother, seemingly wanting to give her support. Her younger sister is crying from hunger and Samar seems at a loss as to how to help them both. As a displaced family, the loss of privacy has added a whole new layer of pressure. “I lost my privacy as a woman and a wife in this place. I don’t want to say that my life was perfect before the war, but I was able to express what was inside me in conversation with my husband. I could scream without anyone hearing me,” Samar says. “I could control my children more in my home. Here, I live in the street and the cover of concealment has been removed from my life.”
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Palestinian women and children sit in a makeshift tent next to the rubble of a house in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on October 7, 2024 [Mohammed Salem/Reuters]
. . . .
Gaza displacement
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Women who have been displaced multiple times are living under intense pressure in extremely difficult circumstances [File: Enas Rami/AP]
‘The war did this to us’
Later on, Samar’s husband, Karim Badwan, 42, sits beside his daughters, crammed inside the small tent they are living in. He is despairing. “This is not a life. I can’t comprehend what I’m living. I’m trying to adapt to these difficult circumstances, but I cannot. I’ve turned from a practical and professional man into a man who gets so angry all the time.” Karim says he is deeply ashamed that he has hit his wife on several occasions since the war began.“I hope the war ends before my wife’s energy runs out and she leaves me,” he says. “My wife is a good woman, so she tolerates what I say.” A tear rolls down Samar’s bruised face as she listens.
. . .
Gaza displaced
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Palestinian women and children who fled their homes due to Israeli attacks, shelter in a tent camp in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, on December 24, 2023 [Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters]
. . . .
Gaza displaced
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Palestinian women and children queue for bread in Deir el-Balah, Gaza Strip, November 28, 2024 [Abdel Kareem Hana/AP]
. . . .
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Women and children stand nearby while people bury the bodies of Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks at a mass grave in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on March 7, 2024 [Mohammed Salem/Reuters]
. . .
Nevin al-Barbari, 35, a psychologist, says it is impossible to give children in Gaza the support they need in these conditions.
“Unfortunately, what children are experiencing during the war cannot be described. They need very long psychological support sessions. Hundreds of thousands of children have lost their homes, lost a family member, and many of them have lost their entire family.” Being forced to live in difficult – and sometimes violent – family circumstances has made life immeasurably worse for many.
“There is very clear and widespread family violence among the displaced in particular … Children’s psychological and behavioural states have been affected very negatively. Some children have become very violent and hit other children violently.”
. . .
It will be a long road to recovery for these children, al-Barbari says. “There are no schools to occupy them. Children are forced to bear great responsibilities, filling water and waiting in long lines for food aid. There are no recreational areas for them. “There are so many stories that we do not know about, that these children are living every day.”
Read more: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/12/25/i-am-broken-the-women-enduring-domestic-violence-amid-israel-war-on-gaza#ixzz8vjxEQkMA
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/12/25/i-am-broken-the-women-enduring-domestic-violence-amid-israel-war-on-gaza
Ms. Magazine's Top Feminists of 2024
(please read on for the amazing women who are being recognized)
Ms. Magazine’s Top Feminists of 2024
PUBLISHED 12/28/2024 by Ms. Editors
From top athletes, to community activists, to badass lawmakers, here are our 25 picks for the top U.S. feminists of 2024, and two of thttps://msmagazine.com/2024/12/28/ms-magazine-top-feminists-2024/he best things they did or said. (Scroll to the bottom for our feminists in memoriam.)
Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks at the 2024 Tribal Nations Summit at the Interior Department on Dec. 9, 2024. (Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images)
As the 49th U.S. vice president, Kamala Harris made history as the first woman, the first Black American and the first South Asian American to fill the position. Her 2024 presidential campaign marked significant gains for women in politics, amplifying hope that women will one day hold the highest political office in the U.S.
In March, VP Harris visited a Minnesota abortion clinic during her “Fight for Reproductive Freedoms” tour, making her the first U.S. sitting president or vice president to visit an abortion provider.
“I will often say that when we fight, we win. But here’s the thing: Sometimes the fight takes a while. That doesn’t mean we won’t win.”
—Harris in her concession speech, emphasizing the promise of America after a 107-day campaign that challenged traditional norms of political leadership.
The 27 women who sued the state of Texas for its abortion ban in Zurawski v. Texas
Samantha Casiano during a press conference outside the Travis County Courthouse on July 19, 2023, in Austin, Texas. She is one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed by the Center for Reproductive Rights on behalf of Texas women denied abortions despite serious pregnancy complications. (Suzanne Cordeiro / AFP via Getty Images)
Represented by the Center for Reproductive Rights, 27 women sued the state of Texas, asking for the state to clarify “medical emergency” exceptions under its abortion ban. The Texas Supreme Court ruled in this case on May 31, 2024, refusing to clarify the exceptions to the state’s abortion bans. Still, it was a ground-breaking lawsuit and the first brought on behalf of women denied abortions since the fall of Roe.
“The people in the building behind me have the power to fix this, yet they’ve done nothing. … So it’s not just for me, and for our Willow, that I stand here before you today—it’s for every pregnant person, and for everyone who knows and loves a pregnant person.”
—Amanda Zurawski, the named plaintiff in the suit
. . . .
https://msmagazine.com/2024/12/28/ms-magazine-top-feminists-2024/
Flying Free: Wicked's Feminist Message
(lengthy, most informative read)
Flying Free: Wicked’s Feminist Message
PUBLISHED 12/5/2024 by Janell Hobson
In times that require moral clarity, we have to look to different skies and different lenses to find a new kind of heroism.
A still from the movie Wicked, starring Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba.Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba in Wicked. (Universal Pictures)
Most moviegoers who went to the box-office hit Wicked can pinpoint the moment in the show-stopping tune “Defying Gravity” that sent chills down their spine. Once Cynthia Erivo, in her career-defining role as Elphaba, famed Wicked Witch of the West, belts out, “It’s meeeeeee!”—which introduces the bridge to the song—her vocals combined with the movie’s special effects have quite literally lifted us to a higher plane: sonically, visually, even spiritually. Basking in her newfound powers to “defy gravity” when she uses her magic to fly on her broomstick, Elphaba triumphantly declares: “And if I’m flying solo, at least I’m flying free … And nobody in all of Oz / no wizard that there is or was / is ever gonna bring meeeee down!”
This anthem resonated so strongly, my movie audience applauded at the end, and “Defying Gravity” is currently rising on the pop music charts, standing at number 1 on U.S. iTunes. Adapted from the Broadway musical, which debuted in 2003, and based on the 1995 novel by Gregory Maguire, Wicked—which is the first of two parts—became the highest grossing movie musical when it premiered and broke records for the highest second weekend box office. Co-starring Erivo and pop singer Ariana Grande, the film came just in time to kick off the holiday season and to provide escapism from a contentious and politically divisive presidential election that concluded earlier in the month. Perhaps it is precisely against this political backdrop why Wicked has become so popular. There are many parallels to our own universe: the rise of fascism in Oz; the vilification of a powerful woman (whose laugh some incidentally described as a “cackle”) concerned about the well-being of the most marginalized among us; a media enabling propaganda to villainize said powerful woman and prop up an empty shell of a man specializing in elaborate cons; and the failure of solidarity between women. (More on this later.) Maguire had intended his novel (subtitled The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West) as a political allegory of the dangers of a fascist ruler. (The Wizard of Oz in his story banned talking animals from speaking and turned them into a common enemy against which the citizens of Oz can unite.) The Broadway musical toned down much of this allegory, with the exception of a few zingers against President George W. Bush’s unpopular war in Iraq that year. Indeed, the original children’s story, The Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum (1900) is often considered both an economic and sociopolitical allegory of American life during the late 19th century, with its allusions to changing values of the nation’s monetary currency and midwestern livelihoods.
. . .
The hatred of the witch found a corollary in hatred of women—powerful women specifically.
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Margaret Hamilton as the green-skinned Wicked Witch in The Wizard of Oz from 1939.Margaret Hamilton in The Wizard of Oz. (Warner Bros. Pictures)
. . . .
Indeed, between the 14th and 17th centuries, witches—who were accused of Satanic worship and harnessing supernatural powers through pacts with the devil—were routinely burned at the stake throughout Europe. The majority of those accused were women (somewhere between 75 to 85 percent of the victims). Women targeted as witches presented a threat to their society in one form or another: as property owners or widows, unmarried or queer women, or outspoken wives and adulteresses. The hatred of the witch found a corollary in hatred of women—powerful women specifically. It is no wonder the “witch” became a subversive symbol for many a feminist and has even inspired modern-day reclamations of the wicca religion. While the character of the Wicked Witch of the West continues in the long tradition of vilifying powerful women, Maguire’s novel sought to rewrite her story, giving this demonized figure a name—Elphaba (based on the initials of L. Frank Baum)—and a moral compass.
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Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande as Elphaba and Galinda in Wicked.Erivo and Grande in Wicked. (Universal Pictures)
. . . .
Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth performing a scene from Wicked on stage during the 2004 Tony Awards. Idina Menzel (left) and Kristin Chenoweth of Wicked perform on stage during the Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall on June 6, 2004, in New York City. (Frank Micelotta / Getty Images)
. . .
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Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Melissa Bode as Nessarose in Wicked.Melissa Bode as Nessarose with Erivo in Wicked. (Universal Pictures)
. . . .
L. Frank Baum had an interesting relationship to women’s power, which is why the hero of The Wizard of Oz is depicted through a young girl like Dorothy, while she encounters equally powerful women with witch-like powers. His mother-in-law, Matilda Joslyn Gage, was a famed suffragist and radical feminist who had a direct influence on his own views on women’s suffrage. However, Baum was also anti-indigenous and believed in the manifest destiny settler colonialism that displaced Native Americans—which echoes in Dorothy’s house literally displacing and killing Elphaba’s sister Nessarose, the Wicked Witch of the East. As such, these witches “occupy spaces of Otherness,” to cite Alissa Burger’s The Wizard of Oz as American Myth (2012). However, it is in that otherness and her willingness to “fly solo, fly free” that enables Elphaba’s real transcendence beyond a morally bankrupt system.
Part 1 ends with Elphaba’s ostracism from Oz, but the cinematic pan of her ascension in the sky looks less like tragedy and more like triumph. In times that require moral clarity, a perpetual outsider coming to self-actualization, freed from systems of power because she’s found her own, highlights that we have to look to different skies and different lenses to find a new kind of heroism.
https://msmagazine.com/2024/12/05/wicked-review-feminist-witch-jewish-black-women/
The Path to Certifying the ERA Lies With Congress--Not the Archivist
The Path to Certifying the ERA Lies With Congress—Not the Archivist
Madelyn Amos | December 17, 2024
In a statement released on December 17th, the Archivist of the United States, Dr. Colleen Shogan, and the Deputy Archivist, William J. Bosanko, clarified their position on the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and the constitutional process for ratifying amendments. The press release highlighted their legal responsibilities and the current limitations preventing the ERA from being certified as part of the U.S. Constitution.“As Archivist and Deputy Archivist of the United States, it is our responsibility to uphold the integrity of the constitutional amendment process and ensure that changes to the Constitution are carried out in accordance with the law,” Shogan and Bosanko said. “At this time, the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) cannot be certified as part of the Constitution due to established legal, judicial, and procedural decisions.”
The statement refers to legal opinions from the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) within the U.S. Department of Justice. In both 2020 and 2022, the OLC affirmed that the ratification deadline for the ERA, originally set by Congress in 1972, remains valid and enforceable. The legal counsel concluded that extending or removing the deadline requires action by Congress or the courts, not the National Archives. “Court decisions at both the District and Circuit levels have affirmed that the ratification deadlines established by Congress for the ERA are valid,” the statement continued. “Therefore, the Archivist of the United States cannot legally publish the Equal Rights Amendment” as the 28th amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This position is aligned with the stance taken by former National Archivist David Ferriero.
. . . .
A joint resolution was introduced in January 2023 in both the House and the Senate by Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) and Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) to remove the arbitrary deadline for ratification and recognize the amendment as part of the Constitution. The same language is used in both the House and Senate resolution:
“Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, that notwithstanding any time limit contained in House Joint Resolution 208, 92d Congress, as agreed to in the Senate on March 22, 1972, the article of amendment proposed to the States in that joint resolution is valid to all intents and purposes as part of the United States Constitution having been ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the several States.”
Currently, all Democrats and only two Republicans in the House have signed on as co-sponsors of this bill.
. . .
Rep. Pressley also introduced H. Res 1483 in September 2024, which removes the deadline for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. H. Res 1483 is currently stuck in the Rules Committee, however, passing a discharge petition would move the bill immediately to the floor for a vote. Ultimately, the path to certifying the ERA as part of the U.S. Constitution lies with Congress. We must urge our Representatives and Senators to stand up for equality once and for all.
https://feminist.org/news/national-archivist-releases-new-statement-on-equal-rights-amendment-certification-process/
The Path to Certifying the ERA Lies With Congress--Not the Archivist
The Path to Certifying the ERA Lies With Congress—Not the Archivist
Madelyn Amos | December 17, 2024
In a statement released on December 17th, the Archivist of the United States, Dr. Colleen Shogan, and the Deputy Archivist, William J. Bosanko, clarified their position on the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and the constitutional process for ratifying amendments. The press release highlighted their legal responsibilities and the current limitations preventing the ERA from being certified as part of the U.S. Constitution.“As Archivist and Deputy Archivist of the United States, it is our responsibility to uphold the integrity of the constitutional amendment process and ensure that changes to the Constitution are carried out in accordance with the law,” Shogan and Bosanko said. “At this time, the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) cannot be certified as part of the Constitution due to established legal, judicial, and procedural decisions.”
The statement refers to legal opinions from the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) within the U.S. Department of Justice. In both 2020 and 2022, the OLC affirmed that the ratification deadline for the ERA, originally set by Congress in 1972, remains valid and enforceable. The legal counsel concluded that extending or removing the deadline requires action by Congress or the courts, not the National Archives. “Court decisions at both the District and Circuit levels have affirmed that the ratification deadlines established by Congress for the ERA are valid,” the statement continued. “Therefore, the Archivist of the United States cannot legally publish the Equal Rights Amendment” as the 28th amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This position is aligned with the stance taken by former National Archivist David Ferriero.
. . . .
A joint resolution was introduced in January 2023 in both the House and the Senate by Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) and Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) to remove the arbitrary deadline for ratification and recognize the amendment as part of the Constitution. The same language is used in both the House and Senate resolution:
“Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, that notwithstanding any time limit contained in House Joint Resolution 208, 92d Congress, as agreed to in the Senate on March 22, 1972, the article of amendment proposed to the States in that joint resolution is valid to all intents and purposes as part of the United States Constitution having been ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the several States.”
Currently, all Democrats and only two Republicans in the House have signed on as co-sponsors of this bill.
. . .
Rep. Pressley also introduced H. Res 1483 in September 2024, which removes the deadline for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. H. Res 1483 is currently stuck in the Rules Committee, however, passing a discharge petition would move the bill immediately to the floor for a vote. Ultimately, the path to certifying the ERA as part of the U.S. Constitution lies with Congress. We must urge our Representatives and Senators to stand up for equality once and for all.
https://feminist.org/news/national-archivist-releases-new-statement-on-equal-rights-amendment-certification-process/
'When Power Curdles Into Violence': Escaping the Tradwife Lifestyle
‘When Power Curdles Into Violence’: Escaping the Tradwife Lifestyle
PUBLISHED 12/23/2024 by Dr. Samra Zafar
As someone forced into a life I never chose, I am appalled that women, who are more empowered than ever, are choosing a life without choice—putting themselves in a prison of their own making.
Activists demonstrate against child marriages in Baghdad, Iraq, on July 28, 2024, amid parliamentary discussion over a proposed amendment that would increase underage marriage in the deeply patriarchal society. (Ahmad Al-Rubaye / AFP via Getty Images)
Brides shouldn’t be thinking about homework just before their wedding day. But when I entered into an arranged marriage with a 28-year-old stranger, I was still just a 17-year-old girl who loved her private British school and her books and cricket. As such, I found myself thinking about a recent creative writing assignment: I’d written a story about a young woman who wore jewelry in the shapes of snakes. I wrote that they suddenly came to life and they slithered up to her throat, strangling her. That story would be a grim foreshadowing for the next 12 years of my life.
Shortly after our ceremony in the Middle East, my new husband and I moved to a suburb in Canada. I was excited about the North American education that he had promised me—maybe, I thought, I could even become a doctor. But everything changed when I became unexpectedly pregnant. I couldn’t go to school anymore, and over time, in nefarious and subtle ways, I lost more and more of my freedoms: I couldn’t leave the house, have my own money or own a cellphone. When I voiced concerns about my marriage, I was told it was a woman’s destiny, the will of our god. Slowly, my dreams were poisoned, and I was consumed by the belief that if I didn’t serve my husband—ironing his shirts, making his lunch, doing the dishes—I would be a failure as a wife and mother. It didn’t take long for his browbeating to become physical beatings. He would grab my wrist and shove me; he’d slap me; he’d pull me by my hair and spit in my face. Once, he punched a hole in the wall next to my head and told me, “Next time, it’s going to be you.” On another occasion, he picked up a knife and vowed to kill me, then himself. At one point, I took a razor blade into the shower and thought about cutting myself, stopping only when I heard my baby cry. And through all this, I became certain that somehow, my unhappiness was my fault. So trust me when I say that I know what it’s like to live as if women don’t have rights. In my marriage—my “family”—I was effectively stripped of my freedoms.
Imagine my surprise, then, when I learned about the social media phenomenon of “tradwives”: influencers in pretty dresses, cheerfully handing over their rights to serve their husbands. These women romanticize a golden era of America’s past that never even really existed: an imaginary time where the husband was the breadwinner and provider, and the wife was the obedient homemaker and childbearer … as is natural, as God apparently intended. As someone who was forced into a life I never chose, I am appalled that women, who are more empowered than ever, are effectively choosing a life without choice—putting themselves in a prison of their own making. Their support—as well as the support of men who fetishize the so-called “traditions” that promise to make America “great” “again”—also helped return Donald Trump to the White House. Both the president-elect and his VP JD Vance have branded themselves as champions of “family values”—a catch-all justification based on the toxic premise that a woman’s place is in the house.
Samra Zafar’s memoir, A Good Wife: Escaping the Life I Never Chose, shares her journey of escaping an abusive child marriage to pursue her education. (Courtesy of Zafar)
. . . .
I’ve lived in the world these people want. You don’t want it. But I can also tell you that Fuentes is wrong when he says it’s forever. When you’re trapped in that world, stripped of your rights, it can feel like you’re being swallowed whole by despair. But you find a way. I studied in my room every night to complete my high school education. After I had my second daughter, I got an undergraduate degree, then a master’s degree in economics, graduating at the top of my class, and worked at one of Canada’s biggest banks for years. Then, inspired to help others on their own healing journeys and informed through my own experiences, I switched tracks completely to pursue my childhood dream of being a doctor at one of the world’s best medical schools.Today, through my psychiatry work, I know we don’t truly move on from trauma, we move with it—and that our capacity to heal is even greater and more powerful than the worst things that happen to us. Women understand this better than most, because we are always moving forward. The last thing we want is to be dragged back to the past and re-litigate the battles we’ve already fought and won. I’ve fought hard in my own life to make sure I could make my own choices, and so my daughters could do the same. The point is choosing—it is like breathing. We must not let that be choked out by those who would take us back.
https://msmagazine.com/2024/12/23/tradwife-child-marriage-women-equality-education/
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