Guess who’s back? That’s right!
Feminist Wins has been on hiatus, but we’re excited to be back and celebrating feminist successes, landmark moments, and important (and necessary!) shifts in culture. Wrap up your week with some wins:
#BringBackOurGirls: four years later
In April 2014, more than 200 girls were kidnapped from a school in Nigeria, spawning the hashtag #BringBackOurGirls. Four years has passed and now over 100 of these girls are now free – and living on campus at a Nigerian university, where they are continuing their studies and sharing their stories with the world.
More than 100 former schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram are now free, in their 20s and living on a university campus. The New York Times spoke to dozens of them. https://t.co/1jnTHz8tpC
— New York Times World (@nytimesworld) April 12, 2018
Congress says #MeToo
Four out of 10 female congressional staffers believe that sexual harassment is a problem on Capitol Hill, according to a 2016 CQ Roll Call survey. Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto reflects on the recent letter that Senate women sent to the chamber’s leadership demanding that it confront sexual harassment in Congress. She writes:
Creating workplaces that are safe and free of harassment and discrimination should start in the halls of Congress, and my colleagues and I will not stop fighting for the protections that all victims deserve.
All 22 women senators have come together to demand action on reforming the Congressional Accountability Act.
Paul Ryan announces retirement from Congress
House Speaker Paul Ryan announced on Wednesday that he would not be seeking re-election, retiring from Congress after this year’s midterm elections. As a Representative from Wisconsin and Speaker of the House, Ryan has proven himself as an actively vocal opponent of abortion and reproductive freedom, antagonist of worker’s rights and champion for the nation’s most wealthy, and adversary of affordable, accessible healthcare. Needless to say, he will not be missed.
Women behind the women running
As we all know, the surge of women running for office in the aftermath of the 2016 election is at an all-time high. Now we’re getting a behind-the-scenes look at the women behind the women – the women campaign managers who work tirelessly to propel these candidates into office. Read more about the unbelievable young women who are running campaigns and changing politics here.
#PayMeToo
Last week, a group of British politicians banded together to launch #PayMeToo, a digital campaign created to advise women on how to confront gender-based pay disparities in their own workplaces. The campaign has a website which offers support to women in the workplace and allows women in the U.K. to view gender pay gap data for their places of employment. And whether you’re in the U.K. or not, the tips for taking on the pay gap in your own workplace are helpful!
Love this from @missgloriadesign ! #paymetoo #feminism
A post shared by Stella Creasy (@stellacreasy) on Apr 3, 2018 at 12:31pm PDT