I don’t have a specific intro today! This week is typical: Lots of sexism, occasional good news, no let-up for the holidays. Please note that your humble diarist must stay with Mom for supper and bedtime rituals, so will be by later tonight.
News by Topic
Violence:
From KIND (Kids in Need of Defense) about how COVID-19 has increased gender-based violence in Central America, with potential for increasing numbers of refugees. This link is to the Executive Summary, where there is much more information: https://supportkind.org/...
While underreporting of violence remains a problem, and official statistics can be unreliable, the high rate of early pregnancies among girls suggests a disturbing increase in sexual violence against children. For example, in El Salvador pregnancies in girls aged 10-14 increased 79 percent between April and June of 2020, compared to the same period in 2019. During the pandemic, gangs have increased their control over the communities where they operate, leaving children and women even more vulnerable to gang-based violence.
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Many U.S. foreign assistance programs aimed at addressing the root causes of migration have not included sufficient focus on gender or gender-based violence, and those that do lack capacity and geographic coverage
Clik here to view.
After nearly a decade of effort by Gillibrand to pass this bill, a supermajority of senators signed on as cosponsors this year, and its provisions were added to an earlier version of the NDAA. Then, last week, in closed-door negotiations over the NDAA’s final text, leaders of the Senate and House Armed Services Committees— Sen. Jack Reed (D-Rhode Island), Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Oklahoma), Rep. Adam Smith (D-Washington), and Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Alabama) —kneecapped the reforms. The version the Senate is expected to approve tomorrow takes the decision over whether or not to prosecute sexual assault away from commanders, but they’ll still play a major role in trials, including selecting potential jurors, says Christensen. And rather than applying to all felony-level crimes, the settled-on bill only covers certain ones—sexual assault, kidnapping, and murder among them—creating a separate class of crimes subject to special rules, which, according to Gillibrand, could further stigmatize women in the military.
Three men held in deaths of 2 women left at LA-area hospitals:
The women were dumped at the hospitals last month after reportedly last being seen attending a warehouse party.
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Detectives believe both women were given drugs and overdosed at a residence in Los Angeles, the police statement said.
From The Conversation: Mourning after mass shootings isn’t enough – a sociologist argues that society’s messages about masculinity need to change
This argument isn’t about condemning white men, or any men. Instead, I suggest that a public health crisis exists in which men suffer from undiagnosed depression and a lack of social connection, which are embedded in toxic masculinity. It’s about eliminating a cultural contaminant that provides terrible options for men to fall back on in tough times when they need to be able to treat their pain.
(author Darcie Vandegrift is a researcher, consultant, & lecturing professor at Drake University. Vandegrift’s research is in the area of youth studies, organizational change, and youth empowerment. Her research examines how youth navigate emergent political, educational, economic and social landscapes, and how policy makers can support them. She is currently researching how cities can better support youth and young adults. Her recent publications explore the public health and equity implications of connecting teens to the outdoors, Latin American youth politics and how U.S. students consider multiculturalism and internationalization. She works with communities to reflect on data and shape policy with community insights at www.vandegrifthuting.com.)
Abortion
In the never-ending attack on reproductive rights: Justices asked to let Arizona enforce ban on some abortions:
Arizona asked the Supreme Court Tuesday to allow enforcement of a ban on abortions performed solely because of Down syndrome and other genetic abnormalities.
The request from the state's Republican attorney general, Mark Brnovich, comes as the high court is weighing rolling back abortion rights nationwide and in the immediate aftermath of a decision keeping in place Texas' ban on abortion after about six weeks, while allowing some challenges to the law to continue.
This was from 4 days ago, I don’t see any updates since.
Work
A couple of items relating to toxic work environments:
Alibaba fires woman who claimed sexual assault
Of all people, Time chose that a-hole Musk for "Man of the Year"??? (Grrrrrr...):
Six Women Sue Tesla for Alleged Sexual Harassment:
A day after Elon Musk was named Time Magazine’s person of the year, six women filed lawsuits against Tesla in Alameda Superior Court, alleging constant sexual harassment at its plant in Fremont and other California facilities—including requests for sexual favors, inappropriate touching, and threats.
In the lawsuits, the women described using various methods to protect themselves from harassment, including wearing baggy clothes, skipping breaks, and asking to be moved away from harassers.
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The women described a set of shared experiences, in particular, a lack of action from Tesla when they reported harassers, threats, and unwanted transfers into new departments. Some of the women allege that the harassment led to anxiety and depression that has made it difficult to advance their careers.
New tech, same old men. Sigh.
Misogyny is a problem already in the "metaverse," among other notes and commentary from Guardian columnist Arwa Mahdawi.
https://www.theguardian.com/...
From The Conversation: The US doesn’t have enough faculty to train the next generation of nurses (by Rayna M. Letourneau, Assistant Professor of Nursing, University of South Florida, University of South Florida): One of the causes of too few physicians in the US is hitting the nursing field. The US has a growing demand for nurses. Yet nursing schools are turning away thousands of qualified candidates:
Despite a national nursing shortage in the United States, over 80,000 qualified applications were not accepted at U.S. nursing schools in 2020, according to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing.
This was due primarily to a shortage of nursing professors and a limited number of clinical placements where nursing students get practical job training. Additional constraints include a shortage of experienced practitioners to provide supervision during clinical training, insufficient classroom space and inadequate financial resources.
Religion
From The Conversation: Southern Baptist women found ways to lead outside the denomination (author Susan M. Shaw Professor of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Oregon State University)
Southern Baptists have a long history of conflict over women’s leadership in the denomination. But women have found ways to lead, even as their roles have become ever more circumscribed.
I have been researching Southern Baptist women since the mid-1990s. In 1997, with my co-researcher, Tisa Lewis, I interviewed 29 of the 36 women who were enrolled in the Ph.D. programs from 1982 to 1992 at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, where Tisa and I were both students during the 1980s. I returned to this group in 2016 with another researcher, Kryn Freehling-Burton, to re-interview 17 of these women.
We found that many women had left the denomination for successful leadership roles in other churches, denominations, educational institutions and organizations…
Women breaking through to top roles in Black Churches
In Hinduism, women are creating spaces for their own leadership.
Mormon women's influence expands despite priesthood ban. -- How partnership looks in Mormon marriages shifting slowly.
Women seek diverse paths to leadership in Islam
In Buddhism, women blaze a path but strive for gender equity. -- -- Buddhist nuns and female scholars gain new ground in a tradition that began with ordination of Buddha’s foster mother.
Barred from priesthood, some Catholic women find other roles.
More Orthodox women are ordained but advance remains uneven compared to Conservative and Reform Judaism -- Orthodox women's leadership continues to grow and it's not only about rabbis.
Amid tension in the Southern Baptist Convention, women find ways to lead where they can in being irreplaceable.
Torture (Kidding. Sorta.)
Corsets coming back into fashion?
Here's another article on the same subject, https://graziadaily.co.uk/… Corsets can make it difficult to breathe!
Isn't the push-up bra enough?
Medicine
Medscape More evidence some psychiatric meds up breast cancer risk [in women aged 18-64 followed 4 or 5 years]
New research provides more evidence that antipsychotics that raise prolactin levels are tied to a significantly increased risk for breast cancer [compared with anticonvulsants and/or lithium.]
The relative risk for breast cancer was 62% higher in women who took category 1 antipsychotic medications associated with high prolactin levels. These include haloperidol (Haldol), paliperidone (Invega), and risperidone (Risperdal). Additionally, the risk was 54% higher in those taking category 2 antipsychotics that have mid-range effects on prolactin. These include iloperidone (Fanapt), lurasidone (Latuda), and olanzapine (Zyprexa).
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"We don't want to alarm patients taking antipsychotic drugs for life-threatening mental health problems, but we also think it is [very much!] time for doctors to track prolactin levels and vigilantly monitor their patients who are being treated with antipsychotics".
International
Dec. 14 was Martyred Intellectuals Day in Bangladesh,
https://nationaltoday.com/...
Less is known about the women who were martyred intellectuals, but there is a desire for more information regarding this history,
https://www.thedailystar.net/...
Say some of their names:
Bhaghirathi (of Pirojpur), Anjuman Ara (of Parbatipur, Dinajpur), Surlala Debi (of Dinajpur), Bhramor (of Saidpur, Nilphamari), Sufia Khatun (of Saidpur, Nilphamari), Hosne Akhtar (of Saidpur, Nilphamari), Sarojini Mallick (of Saidpur, Nilphamari), Baboni Rajgour (of Patrakhola, Moulvibazar), Lasimoon Kurmi (of Patrakhola, Moulvibazar), Rangama Kurmi (of Patrakhola, Moulvibazar), Salgi Kharia (of Patrakhola, Moulvibazar), Kanakprova Debi (of Patuakhali), Sonai Rani Samaddar (of Patuakhali), Bidhyasundari Das (of Patuakhali), Sabitri Rani Dutta (of Patuakhali) and Kiron Rani Saha (of Bhanga, Faridpur). These are just a few names among the hundreds of thousands of women martyrs.
India to raise legal marriage age for women [from 18 to 21], activists skeptical https://www.aljazeera.com/… Something to remember for every legal change:
“I welcome the decision. Now the responsibility of the government and political parties should be to start working on changing the mindset in society because it is not going to happen just by enacting a law,” Kumari told Al Jazeera.
Feminist iconS
Angela Merkel's feminist legacy, https://foreignpolicy.com/...: As Merkel’s 16-year tenure as German chancellor draws to an end, her legacy is stated to be somewhat ambiguous, given that she did not always champion every feminist issue.
I don’t normally promote the NY Post, which is quite right wingy, but I didn’t see this elsewhere and they did a pretty good job with it: Joe Biden accidentally calls Kamala Harris ‘president,’ nypost.com/… OK with me! I think she’d be highly competent. They also noted parts of Biden’s speech including:
“You can defeat hate, but you can’t eliminate it. It just slides back under a rock. And when given oxygen by political leaders, it comes out ugly and mean as it was before. We can’t give it any oxygen. We have to step on it. We have to respond to it. It’s not who we are,” Biden said.
“It’s a minority, but if the majority doesn’t speak up, it has a profound impact. That’s what we’ve seen the last few years. We cannot, we must not give hate any safe harbor.”
A tribute to bell hooks’ life and work bears repeating. From The Guardian:
https://www.theguardian.com/...
The author, professor and activist was born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky in 1952, and published more than 30 books in her lifetime, covering topics including race, feminism, capitalism and intersectionality.She adopted her maternal great-grandmother’s name as a pen name, since she so admired her, but used lowercase letters to distinguish herself from her family member. hooks’ first major work Ain’t I a Woman? was published in 1981, and became widely recognised as an important feminist text. It was named one of the twenty most influential women’s books in the last 20 years by Publishers Weekly in 1992.
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Since 2004, she taught at Berea College in Kentucky, a liberal arts college that offers free tuition.
I have been to Berea, KY. It’s unique!
Clik here to view.
Quickie Holiday Solution
When it comes to dealing with holidays (Christmas one week from today!), knowledge is power. Mom and I will be having dinner alone, the rest of local family having come down with Covid (they’re on the mend). Mom can’t chew and I can’t swallow very well, but roast beef is our traditional Christmas dinner. So here’s my solution (I’ve done this before, it’s tasty!):
Buy pre-sliced roast beef such as Hillshire Farms. Pour a carton of beef broth into a medium-large pan. Heat and add a splash of bourbon or wine or other alcohol or even apple juice for a sweet note. Add herbs and spices to taste. Simmer for alcohol to boil off and flavors to mix. When at optimal taste, add roast beef slices. Simmer until tender. Serve as roast beef au jus. Takes a total of about 15 minutes.
I thought some of you might also have chewing or swallowing problems but love beef on special occasions, and prefer to spend the holiday somewhere other than stuck in the kitchen, so thought you might like to know our cheat method!
As always, this column is a group effort! Many thanks for links and discussion to ramara, SandraLLAP, J Graham, mettle fatigue, Tara (tAsSW), and Clio2!