Newsbriefs

Rep. Maloney Ends Federal NRA Funding


Thanks to the leadership of Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (DNY), the House recently eliminated a $2.5 million allocation which had previously funded the National Rifle Association (NRA)-affiliated Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP). The 92 year old program funneled funding through the Department of Defense to the NRA to support an annual marksmanship tournament, ammunition giveaways, and discounts on guns.

A successful amendment to the Department of Defense Authorization Bill ended Maloney's three year battle to cut the NRA's national budget funding. Under this amendment, the CMP will become a private non-profit corporation, funded by private contributions, under the oversight of the U.S. Olympic Committee.

Women Lose in the Media


Women are dropping off the front pages of the nation's major newspapers, according to Women, Men and Media, an Alexandria, Virginia-based nonprofit group that examines diversity in news coverage.

References to women on the front pages of 20 major newspapers slid from 25% in 1994 to 19% in 1995. Frontpage photos of women dropped from 39% in 1994 to 33% in 1995.

Junior Bridge, a former National Organization for Women press secretary, conducted the study for Women, Men and Media which is co-chaired by Bett7y Ftiedan and Nancy Woodhull and is primarily funded by The Freedom Forum.

FMF Intern Wins in Oregon


A former Feminist Majority Foundation intern is now the student government president at the University of Oregon, controlling a $5 million budget.

Jennifer Williamson, who worked with the Feminist Majority Foundation's Rock for Choice project last summer, ran for student government on a platform of protecting and expanding student financial aid. She had previously been the student government's federal lobbyist.

As president, Williamson plans to continue putting a priority on financial aid, and to make sure liberal groups like Students for Choice receive funding, which is threatened by conservative students.

Threat to Tailhook Award Defeated

A Nevada bill that would have nullified the $5.2 million jury award to former Navy pilot Paula Coughfin for the attack she suffered at the 1991 Tailhook convention has beip amended so as not to hurt Coughlin's a@ard, thanks to Nevada women's groups.

Coughlin was awarded the damages from the Las Vegas Hilton, where the convention took place, because the jury agreed the hotel's lax security contributed to her sexual assault by Navy and Marines officers.

Senate Bill 474 would have prevented hotels from bearing liability for damages for injuries to patrons due to lack of security. The original bill would have applied to all cases in which a final judgement has not been reached, but the amended version eliminated this retroactive provision. Coughlin's case is on appeal.

Clinton Administration Challenges
"Separate But Equal"



The Clinton Administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the Fourth Circuit ruling that the Virginia Military Institute may remain all-male if it creates a "leadership program" for women at a nearby college.

The Virginia Military Institute and the Citadel in South Carolina are the only two state-funded colleges in the United States that are all-male. The Citadel, whose all-male status is being challenged in court by Shannon Faulkner, is also considering setting up a separate "leadership" program for women at a women's college. Both schools argue that their "adversative method" of education, which involves physical and psychological pressure, would suffer if women were enrolled.

Fortunately, the U.S. Justice Department argues that separate cannot be equal in state-supported education.

D.C. Corrections Employees Win Harassment Suit


Five women and one man, employees of the District of Columbia Department of Corrections who were sexually harassed and retaliated against, were recently awarded $1.4 million by a jury. The jury also found there was a pattern of sexual harassment at the agency.

The women testified about years and decades of sexual harassment, including being called derogatory names, being grabbed and kissed, and being pressured for dates. When employees complained about the harassment they were assigned undesirable work or written up on disciplinary charges. The one man in the case said he was retaliated against for helping women file sexual harassment complaints.

The new director of the Department of Corrections, Margaret Moore, has said she is committed to "positive change" in the workplace.


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Copyright 1995, The Feminist Majority Foundation and New Media Publishing Inc.