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5/13/2013 - NJ Governor Vetos Early Voting Bill

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R) vetoed a bill on Thursday that would have created 14 days of in-person early voting in New Jersey.

Governor Christie argued that the bill was too expensive and that the current early voting system in New Jersey is satisfactory. Currently residents may request, complete, and return a "vote-by-mail" ballot 45 days before election day by either sending it through the postal service or by completing it in person. Under the legislature-approved bill, up to seven polling locations in each county would be designated where residents could vote in person using traditional ballot machines.

In his veto, Christie wrote [PDF], "Taxpayers should not have to foot a more than $25 million bill to pay for a hasty, counterproductive, and less reliable system, especially when New Jersey's current early voting process is reliable and cost effective." MSNBC points out that in order to pay for this new system, the New Jersey budget of $32.9 billion would only have had to increase by less than one tenth of one percent. In addition, ThinkProgress states that vote-by-mail ballots are less likely to be counted and twice as likely to be rejected by election officials than in-person ballots.

State Senator Nia Gill (D), who sponsored the bill, told reporters "The governor now joins other Republican governors who have sought to stifle the vote and limit access to the polls... Once again he is catering to his national base at the expense of New Jersey residents."

5/13/2013 - Fast Food Worker Strikes Spread Across the Country

On Friday, hundreds of fast food workers in Detroit walked off the job in a one day strike to raise the minimum wage. The Detroit protest comes after similar protests in St. Louis, Chicago, and New York.

An estimated 400 workers at 60 different restaurants in Detroit walked off their jobs to join protests calling for a livable wage and the right to unionize, making it the largest fast food strike in history. Currently fast food workers in Detroit make the minimum wage of $7.40 an hour. Protesters demanded that the minimum wage be raised to $15.00 an hour. Multiple locations in the city were shut down as a result. Reportedly one McDonald's called in workers to replace the strikers, but the replacements then joined the strike as well.

McDonald's worker Keith Bullard told the Huffington Post, "This morning, I walked off my job at McDonald's. I'm a 29-year-old husband and a father of two. My wife can't work because of health problems-and the $7.50 an hour I make at McDonald's just isn't enough to cover my family's basic needs." In a statement to the Huffington Post Pastor Charles Williams II, a leader in the protest, said "Can anybody really feed children and take care of a family on the current minimum wage of $7.40 an hour? If we truly want to stimulate the economy then we must stimulate the wages of those who collectively have the buying power to strengthen the economy. It's simple. I support the workers today because, raising their wage, raises our economy."

Michigan is the first "right-to-work" state that has seen a strike by fast food workers. Detroit is also under emergency management by Governor Rick Snyder's administration, meaning that emergency managers have the ability to overrule local authorities on any financial matter. This has resulted in civil service employees being laid off, local industries being privatized and union wages being slashed. Protests have spread from New York in early April to Chicago, central Pennsylvania, and St. Louis in addition to Detroit.

5/10/2013 - Minnesota State House Approves Same-Sex Marriage

Yesterday, the Minnesota state House approved a law that would legalize same-sex marriage in the state by a vote of 75 to 59. The bill is expected to be voted on by the Senate on Monday and could be signed by the governor as early as Tuesday.

Representative Tim Faust (D FL-District 11B) spoke about the vote "Ninety-nine-point-nine percent of the time, the people that are opposed to gay marriage, at some point in their discussion, they always say, 'My Bible says.' The question that keeps going through my mind over and over again is, do we as a society have the right to impose our religious beliefs on somebody else?"

"If you support equality today, I think you'll be proud of it for the rest of your life," Representative Joe Mullery (DLF-District 59A) said to his colleagues before voting in favor of the bill.

If the bill is approved by the Senate, Minnesota will be the 12th state in addition to the District of Columbia that allows same-sex marriage. Earlier this week Delaware approved a bill legalizing same-sex marriage, and the week before Rhode Island also approved same-sex marriage.

5/10/2013 - Farmworkers Fired For Fleeing California Wildfire

Last week, more than a dozen farmworkers at the Crisalida Farm's strawberry fields in California were fired when they left the field to take refuge from the smoke and ash from a nearby wildfire.

Workers said on May 2 ashes were falling on them and they were having difficulty breathing from the smoke from a wildfire 11 miles to the north. They were warned by the foreman that if they left because of the conditions, they would no longer have a job. Fifteen workers decided to leave because of the deplorable conditions. When they returned to work the next day, they discovered they had been fired.

The workers were not part of a union, but reached out to the United Farm Workers (UFW) for help. UFW negotiated with the upper management of Crisalida Farms on behalf of the workers, citing the union rule "No worker shall work under conditions where they feel his life or health is in danger." As a result of the negotiations, all 15 workers have been offered their positions back. So far only one worker has accepted the offer while the others have found work elsewhere.

5/9/2013 - Working Families Flexibility Act Passes House, Threatens Over Time Pay

A bill that would remove over time pay and replace it with "comp" time passed the House yesterday in a vote along party lines of 223 to 204.

The Working Families Flexibility Act, dubbed the "More Work, Less Pay Act" by Democrats, would replace overtime pay at the hour-and-a-half rate with comp time that workers would use at a later time at the employer's discretion. Supporters of the Act argue that this will allow working women and care-givers the ability to control their schedules and get more time off. However, critics and labor activists contend that it empowers employers to demand their employees work extra hours over the standard 40 hour work week without any consequences for the employer and at the expense of the worker. The bill also gives workers the right to sue if an employer intimidates them into accepting comp time instead of overtime pay, but denies the ability to seek remedies from the Department of Labor. It also does not provide [PDF] the department of Labor with any funds to enforce the act.

Ellie Smeal, President of the Feminist Majority, said, "The Republican Working Families Flexibility Act is a fraud and anything but working family friendly. The act simply works to kill overtime pay and allow flex time only to meet the employer's needs."

The White House issued a statement saying, "This legislation undermines the existing right to hard-earned overtime pay, on which many working families rely to make ends meet, while misrepresenting itself as a workplace flexibility measure that gives power to employees over their own schedules."

In a joint op-ed in the Huffington Post, Representative Gwen Moore (D-WI) and President of the AFL-CIO Arlene Holt Baker said, "For many working families, taking home less pay at the end of the day means less money to cover rent, education costs, medical bills and other living expenses. The 'choice' to take unpaid time off is not a choice at all... At a time when workers are already working harder for less, those who rely on overtime to make ends meet could face even more financial challenges. The kind of support that working families are looking for would be available by strengthening their ability to collectively bargain on the job for higher wages, safer workplaces, better health care and paid time off options. Working families deserve better than H.R. 1406."

5/9/2013 - North Carolina Legislature To Consider 'Abortion Risk' Bill

The North Carolina Senate Health Committee passed a bill yesterday that would require that students are told that having an abortion is a significant risk factor for later pre-term births. The measure now heads to the floor of the state Senate.

Senate Bill 132 [PDF] requires that seventh grade students be taught that abortion is one of the significant risk factors that could cause a woman to have pre-mature deliveries later in life as part of the state's sex ed program. Much of the debate surrounding the bill centers around the validity of scientific studies that suggest a connection. UNC School of Medicine Clinical Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology Dr. David Grimes questioned the committee, "The World Health Organization, the CDC, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Academy of Pediatricians and the American Public Health Association all have uniformly concluded that abortion does not cause prematurity. How did they all get it wrong?"

Senator Gladys Robinson (D-Guilford) proposed an amendment that would remove the provision about abortion. "The information is out there," she said. "We can use whatever we want to justify why we want to do these things, but I think that we need to make sure the teachers teach what they are able to teach and educated to teach, and not go into other areas that they are not professionally educated to do." The chairman Senator Ralph Hise (R-Spruce Pine) declared that the amendment failed after a voice vote. In a final voice vote on the bill, Senator Hise declared that the measure passed and did not call for a hand vote requested by Democrats, citing time constraints.

This comes the day after the North Carolina House of Representatives rejected a bill that would require minors to get parental consent for STI treatment, including HIV/AIDS care, and pregnancy care, including abortion, prenatal care, or even in clinic pregnancy testing. This bill was referred back to committee for revisions.

5/8/2013 - Arkansas Asks Federal Judge to Dismiss Abortion Ban Challenge

On Tuesday, the state of Arkansas asked a federal judge to dismiss a court case that challenges the state's abortion ban after 12 weeks.

Attorneys for the state of Arkansas filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the ACLU and the Center for Reproductive Rights on behalf of two abortion providers in Little Rock, Arkansas. In the motion, Arkansas argues that the measure "regulates certain pre-viability abortions without placing a substantial obstacle in the path of a woman seeking a pre-viability abortion." The attorneys go on to state that the law furthers "the state's legitimate interests in protecting the life and health of the pregnant woman, protecting the life of the fetus that may become a child and protecting the ethics and integrity of the medical profession."

The lawsuit, Edwards v. Beck, was filed on April 16 and argues that doctors who violate the 12 week ban will lose their medical license and as a result are forced to turn away women in need of abortion care. The lawsuit also goes on to argue that the measure denies "patients their constitutionally-guaranteed right to decide to end a pre-viability pregnancy."

In March, the Arkansas state legislature voted to override Governor Beebe's veto of the Human Heartbeat Protection Act, which bans abortion after a heartbeat can be detected with a standard ultrasound (usually 12 weeks). While the bill does include exemptions for rape, incest, severe fetal abnormality, and to save the life of the mother, the bill is still one of the strictest abortion bans in the United States.

5/8/2013 - Sexual Assault in the Military Rose by 35% in Two Years

Yesterday the Department of Defense issued an annual report that showed that sexual assault in the military rose by 35% from 2010 to 2012.

The report found that 26,000 members of the military experienced "unwanted sexual contact" in 2012 when answering an anonymous survey - a rate of approximately 70 assaults a day. That number is almost 7,000 instances higher than in 2010. In addition the report found only 3,374 reports of sexual assault were filed, according to the Pentagon. Of those cases filed, fewer than one in 10 ended with a court-martial conviction of sexual assault. In the majority of cases, the alleged attacker faced small administrative punishments or the case was dismissed.

The report has garnered outrage from many political leaders. President Obama told reporters, "The bottom line is, I have no tolerance for this... If we find out somebody's engaging in this stuff, they've got to be held accountable, prosecuted, stripped of their positions, court-martialed, fired, dishonorably discharged - period." Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a statement "If we needed any more evidence that the military justice system needs to change to hold sexual predators accountable and protect survivors of assault, this report has provided it. These crimes are a dark stain on our armed forces that poison morale and readiness, and that must be confronted." Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) told the Huffington Post "When our best and our brightest put on a uniform and join the United States Armed Forces, they do so with the understanding that they will sacrifice much in the name of defending our country and its people... However, it's unconscionable to think that entertaining unwanted sexual contact from within the ranks is now part of that equation."

The Department of Defense report comes one day after news broke that the chief of the Air Force's branch on sexual assault prevention and response was arrested on charges of sexual battery over the weekend. According to the Arlington Police Department, Lieutenant Colonel Jeffery Krusinski groped a woman in a parking lot early Sunday morning. She fought him off when he attempted to grab her again and immediately alerted the police. An anonymous spokesperson for the Air Force confirmed that Krusinski had been dismissed from his post in response to the allegations.

5/8/2013 - Delaware Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage

Yesterday, the Delaware state legislature voted to legalize same-sex marriage and the bill was signed into law by the governor moments afterwards.

The bill passed in the state House two weeks ago on a vote of 23 to 18. It was approved by the Senate yesterday on a vote of 12 to 9. Governor Jack Markell (D) signed the bill into law on the stairs of the main lobby of Legislative Hall minutes after it was approved by the Senate. Markell told activists and reporters, "It's a great day in Delaware... I am signing this bill now because I do not intend to make any of you wait one moment longer." Same-sex couples will be able to officially get married starting July 1st.

The vote comes less than a week after Rhode Island became the tenth state to legalize same-sex marriage. In a vote of 56 to 15, the Rhode Island state House approved changes in a bill approved by the state Senate. That evening Governor Lincoln Chafee (I) signed the bill into law.

5/7/2013 - Air Force Sexual Assault Unit Chief Charged with Sexual Battery

The chief of the Air Force's branch on sexual assault prevention and response was arrested over the weekend on charges of sexual battery.

According to the Arlington Police Department, Lieutenant Colonel Jeffery Krusinski groped a woman in a parking lot early Sunday morning. She fought him off when he attempted to grab her again and immediately alerted the police. The police department confirmed that he is being held under $5,000 bail. An anonymous spokesperson for the Air Force confirmed that Krusinski had been dismissed from his post in response to the allegations.

Representative Jackie Speier (D-CA), who recently reintroduced the Sexual Assault Training Oversight and Prevention Act (STOP Act) to address sexual assault in the military, told the Stars and Stripes that the news made her physically ill. She questioned, "How many more reasons do we need to take cases of rape and sexual assault out of the chain of command?"

The Air Force has come under particular scrutiny after a Lieutenant General overturned a sexual assault conviction by jury of an Air Force service member. The Air Force fighter pilot was convicted in November for aggravated sexual assault by a jury of four colonels and a lieutenant colonel. He was dismissed from the Air Force and sentenced to one year in prison. Lieutenant General Craig Franklin overturned the jury conviction using "convening authority" - an absolute power of a single military supervisor to dismiss a jury decision as granted by Article 60 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ).

5/7/2013 - Minnesota Judges Dismiss Anti-Abortion Funding Lawsuit

Last week, a Minnesota judge dismissed a lawsuit that attempted to end state insurance coverage for abortion. The lawsuit, brought against the state by a conservative anti-abortion legal group on behalf of "taxpayers", alleged that the Department of Human Services was using tax-payer money to fund abortions for women on state assistance when the procedures were not medically necessary and without the authority to do so.

Second District Court Judge Kathleen R. Gearin dismissed the case with prejudice on Thursday. In her opinion, Gearin cited a 1995 case Doe v. Gomez, which determined that if Minnesota funded pregnancy-related care, it would be unconstitutional to not fund therapeutic abortions (when there is a medical reason to terminate the pregnancy, or if it is the result of rape or incest). She also restated the guarantee to right to privacy as stated in Doe v. Gomez: "the difficult decision to obtain a therapeutic abortion will not be made by the government, but will be left to the woman and her doctor." Since the case was dismissed with prejudice, it cannot be filed again.

5/6/2013 - Rhode Island Becomes Tenth State to Legalize Same-Sex Marriage

On Thursday, Rhode Island became the tenth state to legalize same-sex marriage. In a vote of 56 to 15, the Rhode Island state House approved changes in a bill approved by the state Senate. That evening Governor Lincoln Chafee (I) signed the bill into law.

Governor Chafee, who has been pushing for marriage equality since he was elected Governor position in 2010, wrote an op-ed in the New York Times explaining why he supported the bill. He said:

"A historic realignment is happening all around us, as Americans from all walks of life realize that this is the right thing to do. It is occurring both inside and outside of politics, through conversations at the office and over kitchen tables, and at different speeds in different parts of the country. But once the people have spoken, politics should do its part to make the change efficient and constructive... I have been heartened in recent months to see members of my old party coming around on marriage equality... That reflects sound political judgment, and some values that are at least as Republican as they are Democratic, including a belief in marriage as an institution and a desire to keep government out of our personal lives."

Rhode Island's decision on marriage equality has triggered outrage from some of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Archibishop Salvatore Cordileone from San Francisco wrote a statement calling marriage equality a "serious injustice." He said, "Therefore, regardless of what law is enacted, marriage remains the union of one man and one woman - by the very design of nature, it cannot be otherwise."

Nine other states as well as the District of Columbia have legalized same-sex marriage. The Delaware state Senate is scheduled to consider a bill that would legalize same sex marriage in the state on Tuesday.

5/6/2013 - Florida Legislature Rejects Medicaid Expansion, Adjourns Without Vote

The Florida state legislature adjourned on Friday without a vote on Medicaid expansion that would extend healthcare to 1 million Floridians.

The Florida state Senate and House were unable to resolve their differences on two proposals that would extend Medicaid coverage. One version, passed by the state House, would use $237 million in state funds to expand Medicaid to approximately 115,000 Floridians and would reject funding from the federal government. The second would accept $50 billion of federal funding to provide Medicaid to 1.1 million Floridians, and has support from both the Obama administration and Republican Governor Rick Scott. However, without a decision reached on either bill before the end of the session, Florida will not see any Medicaid expansion in 2014.

Democrats in the state are calling for a special session in order to come to a decision on the plans. It is unsure if the Republicans, which hold a majority in the legislature, will allow that to happen. Governor Scott could also force lawmakers to have a special session.

Florida has one of the highest rates on uninsured residents, with an average of one in five people without insurance.

5/3/2013 - Colorado Legislature Passes Voter Expansion Bill

Yesterday, the Colorado state legislature approved a bill that will expand voter rights in the state. The bill would provide every voter a mail-in ballot, allow same-day voter registration, create a statewide voter database, and replace assigned precincts with general "voter centers."

The bill which passed in the state Senate with a vote of 20 to 15 and in the state House with a vote 36 to 26, received no votes from Republican lawmakers in either chamber. The bill, called the "Voter Access and Modernized Elections Act," was drafted with help from the bi-partisan Colorado County Clerk Association, which supports it. The Conservatives argued that the bill would allow voter fraud, and a ploy to get more Democratic votes. Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler (R) called the bill a "partisan power play."

State Senator Angela Giron (D-Pueblo) argued in the Senate, "It's a technical bill that was written by the county clerks...They're the ones who know, and they're the ones who are going to be held accountable every day when people come in to register and vote in county elections. I trust that."

Now, the bill will go back to the House to approve minor changes made by the Senate. If the changes are approved, the bill will be sent to Governor John Hickenlooper.

5/3/2013 - Florida Teenager Arrested Over 'Science Experiment'

A 16 year old student in Bartow, Florida was arrested under felony charges earlier this week after a science experiment caused smoke and a loud noise on school property.

Kiera Wilmot* mixed toilet bowl cleaner and aluminum foil in an 8oz plastic bottle for a science experiment after hearing it would produce non-toxic smoke from a friend. The reaction caused the top to pop off and smoke to come out of the bottle. No one was injured and no property was damaged. When questioned by the principal and teacher, Wilmot responded that it was a science experiment, but after it was determined that the teacher had not known of her experiment, the police were called. Wilmot was charged with felony possession/discharge of a firearm and discharging a destructive device. She will be charged as an adult. Wilmot was also expelled from school and will have to complete her high school degree through an expulsion program.

Principal Ron Pritchard told reporters that he believed she was simply doing an experiment. "She made a bad choice. Honestly, I don't think she meant to ever hurt anyone. She wanted to see what would happen and was shocked by what it did. Her mother is shocked, too... She is a good kid. She has never been in trouble before. Ever... She told us everything and was very honest," he continued. "She didn't run or try to hide the truth. We had a long conversation with her." A statement released by the Polk County School district said "Anytime a student makes a bad choice it is disappointing to us. Unfortunately, the incident that occurred at Bartow High School yesterday was a serious breach of conduct. In order to maintain a safe and orderly learning environment, we simply must uphold our code of conduct rules."

Kathleen Nolan, Princeton lecturer and author of Police in the Hallways: Discipline in an Urban High School told reporters "This young woman faces expulsion, felony charges and a criminal record because of what appears to be misguided curiosity. These zero-tolerance laws have put into place a mindlessness where individuals no longer think through these kind of situations and use their discretion."

*Though the student in question is only 16, her name was used since she will be tried as an adult.

5/2/2013 - Linda Dorcena Forry Wins Boston Democratic Primary

Linda Dorcena Forry won the Democratic primary for the open Massachusetts state Senate seat. She is the first Haitian-American to win a Massachusetts state primary, and will be running for a seat traditionally held by Irish-American men.

"I'm so grateful to the many, many members of the community, the folks who came out and supported the campaign working in every community, in South Boston, Dorchester, Mattapan, Hyde Park," Forry said, after her victory. "I look forward to working hard to win the support of the people who might not have been with me before. I'm going to work hard to get them on my side, asking for their support and their vote."

Forry won by a margin of 378 votes after incorrect ballots were sent to polls in South Boston. These ballots did not list the candidates for the state Senate primary. According to the Boston Election Commission, the problem was corrected by 7:30am. However there was concern that the error would prompt a challenge from Forry's rival opponent, Nick Collins.

Both Forry and Collins were state representatives prior to the primary. Forry represented the 12th Suffolk District and Collins represented the 1st Suffolk district.

5/2/2013 - Feminists Critical of Decision to Appeal Plan B Ruling

Late Wednesday night, the Obama Administration filed an appeal in the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals challenging a federal judge's decision that emergency contraception must be made available over the counter with no age restrictions. According to the New York Times, the Department of Justice will argue that Judge Edward Korman, who issued the ruling, did not have the authority to order the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to take a specific action and should have sent the case back to the FDA to decide what to do.

The announcement comes a day after the FDA approved new guidelines for the sale of emergency contraception, commonly known as Plan B, as part of an application by the pharmaceutical company Teva Women's Health. Under the approved guidelines, anyone purchasing Plan B must have proof of age, either a driver's license, passport, or birth certificate. The package will also be changed to include the statement "not for sale to those under 15 years of age *proof of age required* not for sale where age cannot be verified," and will include a security tag to prevent theft or sale without proper ID. Anyone who cannot prove their age will be denied the medication.

Nancy Northrup, president of the Center for Reproductive Rights which filed the legal case against the FDA, issued a statement saying, "We are deeply disappointed that just days after President Obama proclaimed his commitment to women's reproductive rights, his administration has decided once again to deprive women of their right to obtain emergency contraception without unjustified and burdensome restrictions."

Her statements were echoed by many organizations in the reproductive rights movement. Terry O'Neill, president of the National Organization for Women, told reporters "The prevention of unwanted pregnancy, particularly in adolescents, should not be obstructed by politicians... President Obama should practice what he preaches." Ilyse Hogue of NARAL Pro-Choice America said in a statement, "Unfortunately, today's appeal reminds us that sometimes our leaders are out of step with the reality women face every day. We can only assume that HHS is signaling that they are satisfied with the status quo. That's simply unacceptable." Eleanor Smeal, president of the Feminist Majority Foundation, said "The decision to appeal and continue to put unnecessary, and for too many difficult, obstacles for obtaining Plan B flies in the face of medical and scientific evidence. We argue that IDs suppress the vote, this ID regulation blocks access to a desperately needed health care product and could even cost young girls and women their lives."

Many others were also outraged over the new guidelines. Jessica González-Rojas, executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice, said "Immigrant women and aspiring citizens of all ages have been hit particularly hard, since they are less likely to have government-issued identification... It's disappointing that the FDA decided to undermine the recent court victory for immigrant women and young Latinas by introducing more unnecessary obstacles to emergency contraception, which is safe and necessary."

Cythina Pearson, Executive Director of the National Women's Health Network, told Feminist Majority Foundation, "I'm disappointed that our government is still not treating women with the respect we deserve... A federal judge ordered the administration to drop the politics and do the right thing - remove the age limit on EC... But women will still have to show ID to the cashier. That's just plain unfair - and it will create a barrier for many women of all ages, who don't have government-issued ID."

"This is a disappointing step by the Administration because it still doesn't lift the barriers to access of emergency contraception to all who need it," Dr. Susan Wood, former FDA Assistant Commissioner for Women's Health, told Feminist Majority Foundation. "This action once again disregards the medical and scientific evidence, and leaves barriers to women who will still have to produce an ID to purchase Plan B. Unfortunately this means that this will go back to the courts to resolve the issue."

5/2/2013 - Feminists Critical of Decision to Appeal Plan B Ruling

5/1/2013 - Signature Drive for 2015 Mississippi Personhood Begins

Last week, Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood approved the language for a 2015 ballot measure that would amend the Mississippi state constitution to define life as beginning at conception. Now, supporters must collect 107,216 valid signatures of Mississippi voters to add it to the Mississippi ballot in 2015.

Initiative Measure No. 41, originally approved by the state legislature on March 5, would ask Mississippi voters "Should the Mississippi Constitution be amended to state that the right to life as a person begins at conception?" If approved, it would add the following amendment to the Mississippi Constitution: "The right to life begins at conception. All human beings at every stage of development are unique, created in the image of God, and shall enjoy the inalienable right to life as persons under law."

Already, opposition to Initiative Measure 41 is growing. A petition and Facebook group called "No Means NO: Mississippians United Against Personhood" was started to raise awareness about the renewed Personhood drive and to gather signatures against Measure 41.

In 2011 Mississippi voters defeated a similar Personhood Amendment. Women's rights supporters successfully defeated the dangerous Initiative 26, a state constitutional personhood amendment that would have given full rights to fertilized eggs, 58% to 42% with 96 percent of precincts reporting. If passed, Initiative 26, which proposed to give constitutional rights to a fertilized egg, would have banned emergency contraception, birth control pills, and IUDs as well as all abortions, even in cases of rape, incest, or to save the life of the woman or girl. The Personhood Amendment would have even gone so far as to eliminate medical choices for women, including some cancer treatments, in vitro fertilization, and could allow the state to investigate and even prosecute a woman for a miscarriage. Initiative Measure No. 41, if approved by voters and signed into law, would also ban abortion in all cases, many forms of birth control, and other vital reproductive health services.

In addition, President Obama attacked Personhood efforts at the Planned Parenthood nation conference on Friday. The President called the 2011 Personhood Amendment in Mississippi "absurd" and "an assault on women's rights." He continued, "and that's why when the people of Mississippi were given a chance to vote on that initiative, they turned it down. And Mississippi is a conservative state."

5/1/2013 - Amid Massive Hunger Strike, Obama Renews Push to Close Guantanamo

President Obama announced his renewed desire to close the prison camp at Guantanamo Bay in a press conference yesterday. He said that the prison was created in an understandable reaction to the tragedy of 9/11, "but we are now over a decade out. We should be wiser. We should have more experience in how we prosecute terrorists." He would prefer that the inmates be moved to a high security prison on U.S. soil, which many in Congress oppose.

Obama continued, saying Guantanamo is costly and provocative in foreign relations: "Guantanamo is not necessary to keep America safe. It is expensive. It is inefficient. It hurts us in terms of our international standing. It lessens cooperation with our allies on counter-terrorism efforts. It is a recruitment tool for extremists. It needs to be closed." He will press Congress to lift its restriction on Pentagon intervention in Guantanamo.

The announcement came when a major hunger strike at Guantanamo that began in February escalated in recent weeks. The White House deployed a large medical team to Guantanamo to help administer life-saving nutrients to strikers. At least 100 of the 166 prisoners are now refusing food in hopes of altering the way guards treat inmates. Allegedly, guards mistreated copies of the Qu'ran belonging to some inmates several months ago. A small fraction of the inmates went on strike in February, and guards placed the participants in isolation. When participants resisted or became violent, guards fired rubber bullets. This prompted more of the prison population to refuse food in opposition of maltreatment. The Guardian argues that the strikers also cite the fact that almost half of the prisoners have been cleared for release but the government has not moved them from Guantanamo. The branch of the State Department which deals with resettlement of prisoners was shut down earlier this year, and no governmental organization has taken up the task.

The closure of Guantanamo was a stated goal in Obama's 2008 platform, but the prison was not mentioned in his second inauguration. Some military officials speculate that his silence on the issue in his second term may have contributed to unrest in the prison.

4/30/2013 - WA State Senate Staffer Says Gays Can Go "Grow Their Own Food"

A staff person for Washington state Senator Mike Hewitt (R-Walla Walla) recently told a Washington blogger that LGBT individuals can fend for themselves when they are denied services under a recently proposed bill.

Jay Castro, a reader of the Washington blog column Slog at The Stranger, called Senator Hewitt's office to ask about his sponsorship of SB 5927, which would allow people to refuse to provide services and discriminate against LGBT people because of "sincerely held religious beliefs." Castro asked an unidentified staffer, "What are rural gays supposed to do if the only gas station or grocery store for miles won't sell them gas and food?" Hewitt's staffer responded to Castro, "Well, gay people can just grow their own food" (emphasis added).

When Slog blogger Anna Minard attempted to call the office for clarification, she was hung up on three times by staffers before being told "It was a poor response to a question, that's really all I want to say about that. [Castro] caught me at a bad time; I'm not interested in answering hypotheticals. It was a combative call. Patience was lost, mistakes were made, and that's it." The spokesperson said that the staffer's comment was not representative of Hewitt's views on the proposal.

4/30/2013 - Florida Showdown Over Medicaid Expansion, ACA Funding

The Florida state legislature has a week to reconcile two different versions of a Medicaid expansion bill that could either provide coverage to 1.1 million Floridians, or to only 115,000. The debate over the two versions of the bill is over the question of whether or not Florida should accept funding from the federal government that is tied to the Affordable Care Act.

The conservative-controlled state House passed a bill on Friday that would use $237 million in state funds to expand Medicaid to approximately 115,000 Floridians and would reject funding from the federal government. Republican Florida state Representatives argue that the rejection of federal funds is to prevent deficit spending by the Obama Administration. Many fear that with this bill many low-income families would still not be able to afford healthcare. Under this plan, families would have a $25 monthly premium. Comparatively, Florida House members on the state insurance plan only have to pay $8 a month.

On Monday, the state Senate amended the House bill to reinstate the acceptance of federal funding. Accepting federal funding for Medicaid has bipartisan support in the state Senate. The amended bill would accept $50 billion of federal funding to provide Medicaid to 1.1 million Floridians, and has support from both the Obama administration and Republican Governor Rick Scott. The Florida state Senate still has to vote to approve their amended bill.

If the amended bill passes in the Florida Senate, it is unlikely to have enough support to pass in the state House before the end of the 2012 - 2013 legislative session this week. This would mean that legislative efforts to expand Medicaid coverage in Florida would have to start over in the next legislative session.

4/29/2013 - Mary Thom, Former Ms. Magazine Executive Editor, Dies at 68

Mary Thom, one of the longest serving editors of Ms. Magazine, died in a motorcycle crash over the weekend. Thom was the Editor in Chief of the Women's Media Center.

Thom joined Ms. Magazine in 1972 as a researcher and stayed with the magazine for twenty years as executive editor. In 1992, Thom wrote Inside Ms.: 25 Years of the Magazine and the Feminist Movement, a history of the magazine. She also edited a compilation of letters sent to Ms. from 1972 to 1987.

The co-founders of the Women's Media Center, Jane Fonda, Gloria Steinem, and Robin Morgan, said in a statement "Ms. Magazine, the Women's Media Center, the women's movement and American journalism have suffered an enormous blow. Mary was and will always be our moral compass and steady heart."

"She was always there," said Eleanor Smeal, president of Feminist Majority Foundation and publisher of Ms. Magazine. "She was always there as a guiding hand to make sure that the spirit of feminism came through in everything in the writing at Ms. Magazine and later at Women's Media Center. She strengthened the writing of two generations of feminists. She will truly be missed."

4/29/2013 - Quinnipiac Will Keep Women's Volleyball in Title IX Settlement

Quinnipiac University has agreed to keep women's volley ball as a varsity sport, increase scholarships for female athletes and expand opportunities for women as part of a Title IX legal settlement.

The case against Quinnipiac began in 2009 when the university made an announcement that the school was cutting women's volleyball, men's golf, and men's outdoor track and changing competitive cheerleading to a varsity sport. The lawsuit, brought by ACLU, Pullman & Comley, and Sports Equity, claimed that Quinnipiac violated Title IX by failing to provide equal opportunity to women athletes to participate in varsity-level sports. One of the female coaches testified that the school takes names of male student athletes off team rosters and then reinstitutes them in order to make the school's Title IX reports appear to be in compliance with the law. In 2010, U.S. District Judge Stefan Underhill ruled in favor of the women athletes and required Quinnipiac to come into compliance.

Sandra Staub, legal director of the ACLU Foundation of Connecticut, said, "This litigation advanced the cause of equality for female collegiate athletes across the nation, and the settlement will bring tremendous benefits to female athletes at Quinnipiac University." David McQuire, an attorney with the ACLU Foundation of Connecticut, told reporters, "It's not just about the numbers, it's about the quality of benefits the teams receive... We believe Quinnipiac is committed to implementing this and coming up with a first-class non-discriminatory athletic program."

The settlement must still be approved by Judge Underhill.

4/26/2013 - DOJ Issues Guidelines for Medical Examinations of Sexual Assault Victims

New national guidelines on forensic medical examination in sexual assault cases were released by the Department of Justice this Wednesday. In addition to focusing on the victim's emotional and physical wellbeing during medical examinations, the guidelines also clearly state a recommendation that sexual assault victims are offered emergency contraception. In the case that the medical staff has moral objections, the patient must be informed where they can immediately obtain emergency contraception.

The last guidelines were issued in 2004 and were mostly focused on criminal prosecution. The new guidelines [PDF] prioritize the victim's emotional and physical needs over criminal prosecution. Bea Hanson, the director of the Justice Department's Office on Violence Against Women, cites this shift in priority as a means to help the victim and law enforcement better collaborate. "Research shows that once victims get support, they're more likely to cooperate with the criminal justice system," Hanson said.

A former investigator of sex crimes for the Phoenix Police Department, Sergeant Jim Markey, described the new guidelines as "long overdue." He explained, "What this does is this allows workers in the trenches, those victim advocates, those detectives and nurses, to go to the decision makers and leaders in their communities and say: 'You know what? Here are the standards. We need the resources to provide the minimum standards that are in this protocol.'"