Feminist Events Calendar

November:
- 25th: International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women

December:
-1st: World AIDS Day
- 6th-10th: EC Week of Action
-10th: International Human Rights Day

January:
-22nd: 32nd Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

February:
-14th: V-day

March:
-13th-15th: National Collegiate Global Women's and Human Rights Conference

Contact Us!

Call us toll free at either the East coast office (1-866-444-FMLA) or the West coast office (1-866-471-FMLA) . You can also email us at campusteam@feminist.org. We are always happy to hear from you and answer any questions or concerns!

What do you think?

This is your E-zine, and we are always updating and changing to fit your needs, so please let us know what you think of our new format! Email campusteam@feminist.org with any suggestions, ideas, or comments.

EC Week of Action
The next step for FMF's Campus Program is our Emergancy Contraception over-the-counter campaign. According the Kaiser Family Foundation, only 1 in 5 women in the US know that Emergancy Contraceptive pills are only effective if taken within 3-5 days following unprotected intercourse. We must empower every woman on every campus by educating them on Emergency Contraception. Join us Dec. 6th-10th in an EC Week of Action.

World AIDS Day
In 2004, World AIDS Day will focus on reducing the vulnerability of women and girls to HIV/AIDS.

Know the facts, and know the truth about AIDS. December 1st is a day to inform, to educate, and to act. Check out our World AIDS Day factsheet to find out more information and get ideas for taking action on your campus for this important day.

International Human Rights Day
International Human Rights Day started in 1997 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

This continues to be an important day to recognize, as egregious inequalities still exist throughout the world. These inequalities disproportionately affect women and girls.

Find out more about why this day is so important and what you can do to educate your campus!

End of Semester Briefings
It's hard to believe, but the end of the semester is almost here!
Remember to schedule a time in the coming weeks before you leave for Winter Vacation to talk to your Campus Organizer for half an hour about the past semester.

This end-of-semester review is invaluable to the FMF Campus Team in our constant efforts to improve our program and make sure that we are meeting your needs. Also let us know if you have graduated or plan on graduating this term so that we can update you and move you into our alumni system.

To schedule an appointment with your Campus Organizer call one of our offices toll free: 1-866-444-FMLA (East Coast), 1-866-471-FMLA (West Coast) or email campusteam@feminist.org.

New Feminist ecards
Send your friends and family one of our new ecards for World AIDS Day, International Human Rights Day, or EC Week of Action. Send a Feminist ecard today!

Pictures from your GOHV campaigns
Check out pictures from the 2004 Get Out Her Vote campaign, and submit your own pictures, event descriptions, and success stories to campusteam@feminist.org.

University of Florida
"Wear your voice out!" University of Florida FMF affiliate group FACE (Feminist Activists Creating Equality) made stencils and had people create their own unique shirts urging students to vote. Over 300 people made shirts over the course of 2 days and wore them on Election Day. This is a great idea for any important event or day! Your FMLA could create a "Wear your voice out" campaign for any of these important events/days in the coming months: the EC Week of Action, World AIDS Day, International Human Rights Day, or the Anniversary of Roe v. Wade.

New FMLAs!
We would like to welcome Slippery Rock University (PA), and the University of Florida to the Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance community!

Study: Women Far From Pay Equity; Wage Gap Wider in Southern States
November 19, 2004--According to a study recently released by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR), women are still generations away from reaching full equality with men in the United States. The study, The Status of Women in the States, was released last Tuesday and rates the progress of women in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. The report ranks the states according to 30 factors such as pay, education, health care, political participation, and mortality. The highest ranking states for women were Vermont, Connecticut, Minnesota, and Washington. The worst states for women were determined to be Mississippi, South Carolina, Kentucky, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas. More

FDA Increases Warning on Mifepristone; Drug Still Considered Extremely Safe
November 17--The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on Monday that Mifepristone's label will be changed to acknowledge that there are risks associated with any abortion, and that physicians prescribing the drug should instruct their patients to contact them if they experience excessive bleeding or bacterial infection. The FDA maintains that these adverse affects could occur "following any termination of pregnancy," including miscarriage, surgical abortion, or medical abortion, the San Francisco Gate reports. More

North Carolina Public Radio Station Bars Ad with the Phrase "Reproductive Rights"
November 17--A North Carolina public radio station refused to run an underwriting announcement as it was submitted by Ipas, an international women's rights and health organization, because it contained the phrase "reproductive rights." More

More Feminist News

Poland's Restrictive Abortion Laws Criticized by UN Committee
November 18, 2004--The United Nations Human Rights Committee recently criticized Poland's strict abortion laws. According to Kaisernetwork, Poland's laws "puts women's lives at risk by encouraging them to seek illegal abortions, sometimes from untrained practitioners." Women on Waves, the Dutch organization that traveled to Portugal last year to bring attention to the nation's punitive abortion policies, estimates that 200,000 illegal abortions are conducted in Poland every year. More

Despite Attacks and Threats, Iraqi Women Push For Rights
November 16--Iraqi women continue to be targets of Islamic extremism. According to the Washington Times, women have been threatened and in some cases killed for working outside of the home and for refusing to cover themselves with the black abaya. Heather Coyne of the United States Institute of Peace reports that she knows of cases where female leaders were abducted from their homes and others threatened with death for wearing Western clothing. More

More Global Feminist News

2nd Annual Global Rights Celebration of International Human Rights Day
This day of celebration will be held on December 10, 2004 from 11:30am to 2:00pm at the Capital Hilton in Washington, DC. Look for your invitation in the mail and come be part of the excitement!

For up-to-date information on speakers and honored guests visit www.globalrights.org or call the Development Office at 202-822-4600 ext. 11

World AIDS Day
AIDS is a women's issue. Since the beginning of the epidemic in the USA, 152,060 women have been diagnosed with AIDS. For these women, heterosexual contact was the most common route of HIV transmission (source: http://www.avert.org). By the end of 2003, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), 19.2 million women were living with HIV/AIDS worldwide, accounting for approximately 50 percent of the 40 million adults living with HIV/AIDS (source: http://www.niaid.nih.gov). AIDS is the leading cause of death for African American women ages 25-34.

Gender inequality fuels the AIDS epidemic worldwide. Women across the globe do not have the same rights as men to determine when, how, and with whom they have sex. As a result, women and girls are becoming infected with HIV at a faster rate than men and boys. Take Action!

EC Week of Action
Take action now! Start planning activities for EC Week of Action:

• Write a letter to the FDA in support of providing Emergency Contraception over-the-counter.
• Write an article for your campus paper on why EC is important
• Put up EC informational flyers all over campus.
• Make banners and signs to hang up all over campus
• Have a bucket drive, instead of getting donations, pass out EC information cards.
• Coordinate an evening program or activity with a residential advisor. Make sure the program emphasizes the importance of ensuring women access to EC.

For more information about what you can do during EC Week of Action contact the Campus Team. Make it easy, plan your activities before you leave for Thanksgiving Break!

International Human Rights Day
This day is an opportunity to celebrate the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights sets forth human rights and fundamental freedoms for people all over the world, and has a specific impact on the lives of women, by holding their countries accountable for their treatment.

This is an important day to bring attention to global women's rights. Women comprise 70% of the worlds poor, and discrimination against women and girls is an important basic cause of malnutrition. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, if it is upheld, would work to reverse these issues and help create equality for women. Take Action!

The Women's Issues Caucus at the University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS) teams up with other student organizations for World AIDS Day.

During lunchtime on Dec.1st, student groups will have information tables regarding HIV/AIDS. The Women's Issues Caucus (WIC) is teaming up with the local Planned Parenthood to pass out condoms and remind young women that they are at risk for HIV/AIDS. For 30 minutes, we will use a bullhorn every seven seconds to announce another person has died of AIDS and other statistics. Free testing has been secured by WIC through the S.A.R.A. Center of Springfield, Illinois. Several other health departments are also participating with a special booth regarding women and AIDS in Botswana.

That evening, students will be able to see "Philadelphia" starring Academy-award winners Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington. WIC is sponsoring the pre-movie speaker, who will discuss AIDS in the U.S. and worldwide. All events are free!

Latinas Organizing for Leadership and Advocacy (LOLA) Training--January 14-16, 2005, in Chicago, IL

The National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health (NLIRH) is dedicated to building a cadre of Latina leaders to further the movement for reproductive justice. We seek to strengthen the voices of Latinas, and enable Latinas to be recognized as a powerful constituency with the capacity to influence policies that directly impact our lives, our families and our communities. The LOLA Trainings are a step towards this goal, and we welcome activists from varying levels of social justice experience.

The next LOLA training will take place on January 14-16, 2005, in Chicago. This intensive two and a half day training will provide Latina/o activists with sessions on the history of the reproductive rights movement, community organizing models and specific skills building tools to prepare participants with the knowledge and resources for launching a campaign. After the training, LOLA graduates will continue to be part of NLIRH’s larger network of Latina advocates as well as become leaders on reproductive health issues in their communities.

To Apply: Please contact alex@latinainstitute.org to request an application. After we review your application, NLIRH staff will schedule a short interview with participants. It is a competitive process and we have a limited number of spots. If you are selected to be part of our second LOLA class, please be prepared to make a commitment for two and a half days of training. Deadline: 12/3/04

Please contact NLIRH with any questions – alex@latinainstitute.org, or call (212) 422-2556

Find a feminist internship or post-graduate job!

Job Search Tips:

• Join a progressive job search listserv so that you are constantly updated on new positions at organizations that interest you.

Each issue will now have new tips to help you succeed in finding a feminist internship or job. Have a great tip for this new section? Submit it to campusteam@feminist.org!