Category Archives: Women

UK asylum system retraumatises women fleeing sexual abuse, says report

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Women have had to share bedrooms with unrelated men and some have faced further sexual violence, charities say

The UK asylum system is retraumatising women and girls who have fled rape and sexual abuse and putting them at risk of further harm, leading charities have said.

Sexual violence and abuse is often a major driver for women to leave their country of origin, as well as a common experience on their journey to the UK, but when they get here they are failed, according to Rape Crisis England and Wales (RCEW) and Imkaan.

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Iran claims German-Iranian dissident died before he could be executed

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Top Iranian officials previously referred to an execution when reacting to Jamshid Sharmahd’s death on 28 October

Iran has claimed that an Iranian-German duel national who had been sentenced to death died last week before his execution could be carried out.

“Jamshid Sharmahd was sentenced to death, his execution was imminent, but he died before it could be carried out,” the judiciary spokesman Asghar Jahangir told reporters without elaborating. It is understood Tehran claims he suffered a stroke.

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Iran arrests woman who stripped in protest at ‘abusive’ dress code policing

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Amnesty International calls on authorities to release student, who reportedly had a violent confrontation with Basij paramilitaries

Amnesty International has called on authorities in Iran to “immediately and unconditionally” release a female student who was arrested after stripping to her underwear in what the organisation described as a public protest against harassment relating to the country’s strict dress code.

The incident took place after the woman, who has not been identified, reportedly had a confrontation with members of the Basij paramilitary force who ripped her headscarf and tore at her clothes inside Tehran’s prestigious Islamic Azad University.

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Thousands of women rally nationwide for abortion rights and feminist causes

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Demonstrators from Texas to Connecticut and Washington DC carried signs and chanted: ‘We won’t go back!’

Thousands of women rallied Saturday in the nation’s capital and elsewhere in support of abortion rights and other feminist causes ahead of Tuesday’s election.

Demonstrators carried posters and signs through city streets, chanting slogans such as: “We won’t go back!” Some men joined with them. Speakers urged people to vote in the election – not only for president but also on down-ballot issues such as abortion-rights amendments that are going before voters in various states.

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UK schools boost maternity pay to stem exodus of female teachers in their 30s

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Sector faces ‘catastrophic loss’ as more than 9,000 thirtysomething women leave state education in a year

Schools across England are ramping up maternity pay and offering flexible working in a bid to stem the exodus of thousands of women in their 30s from teaching.

In Wednesday’s budget, Rachel Reeves confirmed she would fund the recruiting of 6,500 new teachers by pressing ahead with imposing VAT on private school fees. Yet heads and charities are warning that with more than 9,000 women aged between 30 and 39 having left state education last year, the government will not fix the teacher shortage unless it also acts to stop experienced women leaving.

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Stormy Daniels honored at witches’ ceremony in Salem, Massachusetts

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Organizers award embattled actor and magic practitioner, under belief she has fallen victim to modern-day witch hunt

Practicing witches from around the world gathered in Salem by the hundreds on Thursday night to honor Stormy Daniels at their annual “magic circle” ceremony recognizing loved ones who have died.

Daniels – the adult film actor who allegedly had an affair with Donald Trump and was at the center of his May criminal trial that led to the former president’s conviction on 34 felonies – was chosen to be honored in the Halloween ceremony as the organizers believe that she has been the victim of a modern-day witch hunt.

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Therapy-speak and 80s hairstyles: will Harris’s Brené Brown sit-down swing white female voters?

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The Democrat’s cozy chat with the vulnerability expert was largely apolitical – which could play well with a key demographic

In the quest to win over white female voters – 53% of whom showed up for Donald Trump in 2020 – Kamala Harris made her case on a podcast hosted by one of their beloved avatars, the vulnerability researcher Brené Brown. The episode, released on Monday, was a mostly fluffy discussion about leadership, trauma and the notion of voting as agency in an uncontrollable news cycle.

Brown, a University of Houston professor and bestselling author who has spent two decades studying social sciences, became an overnight celebrity after giving a 2010 Ted Talk called “the power of vulnerability”. One could argue the talk, which birthed Brown’s Oprah-approved speaking empire, also spawned our culture’s current obsession with therapy-speak.

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Stevie Nicks says Fleetwood Mac would have been ‘done’ without 1977 abortion

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Legendary singer-songwriter tells Rolling Stone new song was inspired by battle to reinstate federal abortion rights

Stevie Nicks thrust herself into the ongoing fight for access to abortion in the US because she had “been there, done that”, the legendary singer-songwriter says in a new interview.

“I tell a good story,” Nicks remarked in an interview conducted by CBS News Sunday Morning, a clip of which was circulated by the network in advance.“So maybe I should try to do something.

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Women’s Equality party founders urge members to call time after 10 years

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Exclusive: WE to vote after leaders conclude model no longer works although its ‘mission is as urgent as ever’

• Why we’ve made the difficult decision to back a motion to close WE

The leader and co-founders of the Women’s Equality party (WE) will recommend that members vote to close it down at a special meeting called for next month.

Financial challenges and a changed political and media landscape mean that, after a decade of activism, the party is no longer the most effective way to campaign for women’s rights, said its leader, Mandu Reid.

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Australians must keep up the fight for abortion rights, Jacinta Allan warns

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Exclusive: Conservative forces pose ‘genuine threats to the protections women have fought for and won’, Victoria’s premier says

Jacinta Allan is warning that the battle for abortion rights must continue as conservative forces pose “real and genuine threats to the protections women have fought for and won” amid “frightening” debate in South Australia and Queensland.

Victoria’s Labor premier made her strongest comments to date on abortion in an interview with Guardian Australia, just days before Queenslanders go to the polls in an election that has become dominated by the issue.

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Top female footballers urge Fifa to end deal with Saudi ‘nightmare sponsor’

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Letter to governing body accuses Saudis of using sports to ‘distract from the regime’s brutal human rights reputation’

More than 100 professional female footballers have signed a letter calling on Fifa to end its sponsorship deal with the state-owned Saudi Arabian oil company, Aramco, accusing Saudi authorities of “brutal human rights violations”.

A four-year deal signed in April will see Aramco, which is 98.5% state-owned, sponsor major tournaments including the men’s World Cup in 2026 and the Women’s World Cup in 2027.

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New cervical cancer treatment regime ‘cuts risk of dying from disease by 40%’

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Process tested in patients over 10-year period involves short course of chemotherapy before chemoradiation

Doctors are hailing a “remarkable” new treatment regime for cervical cancer that reduces the risk of dying by 40%, in the biggest advance against the disease in 25 years.

Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women globally, with about 660,000 new cases and 350,000 deaths every year, according to the World Health Organization. In the UK, there are about 3,200 cases and 800 deaths each year.

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Lilly Ledbetter, equal pay champion who inspired Fair Pay Act, dies aged 86

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Ledbetter sued employer Goodyear in 1998 after finding out she was paid $6,500 less than lowest-paid male supervisor

Lilly Ledbetter, an equal pay advocate whose lawsuit against her employer inspired the Fair Pay Act of 2009, died Saturday in Alabama at age 86.

Ledbetter died of respiratory failure, according to a statement from her family provided to the Alabama news organization Al.com.

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Thousands rally at Christian nationalist event in DC to ‘turn hearts back to God’

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Jenny Donnelly, leader of anti-trans Don’t Mess With Our Kids, bills first pre-election event as rallying call for mothers

Tens of thousands of Christians poured onto the National Mall on Saturday to atone, pray and take a stand for America – which, in their view, has been poisoned by secularism and must be ruled instead by a Christian god.

Summoned to Washington DC by the multilevel marketing professional-turned-Christian “apostle” Jenny Donnelly and the anti-LGBTQ+ celebrity pastor Lou Engle, they streamed onto the lawn holding blue and pink banners emblazoned with the hashtag #DontMessWithOurKids – a nod to the myth that children are being indoctrinated into adopting gay and transgender identities.

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Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi calls for peace in Middle East from Iran jail

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Activist’s treatment at Evin prison has become even more severe since she was awarded prize last year

The jailed Nobel peace prize laureate Narges Mohammadi has marked the first anniversary of her award with a call for peace in the Middle East from Tehran’s notorious Evin prison.

The Iranian human rights activist said in comments to Italy’s Corriere della Sera: “Today, the dark shadow of war once again hangs over our beloved country. I hate war.

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Women’s health being neglected worldwide, says Melinda French Gates

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Exclusive: Billionaire launches $250m fund to address problem as she warns of growth of ‘maternity care deserts’

Women’s health is being neglected worldwide with “maternity care deserts” more common, millions denied abortions and maternal death rates surging, Melinda French Gates has warned as she launches a $250m (£190m) fund to improve women’s physical and mental health globally.

Despite advances in medicine, women experience “unacceptable” inequities across all aspects of their health, spend more years living with ill health and still face barriers to accessing basic care. Women in rich and poor nations are affected and more than 700 are dying in childbirth each day, French Gates said.

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‘Fear of missing out’ keeping girls and young women online despite sexism

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Almost half of girls aged 11 to 21 in Girlguiding survey say sexism and misogyny makes them feel less safe

Girls and young women are seeing more unwanted sexual images and suffering more cyberstalking online, but still don’t want to take a break from social media because of a fear of missing out, a survey for Girlguiding has found.

“Fomo” is keeping more than half of 11- to 21-year-olds on apps such as TikTok, Snapchat and WhatsApp despite nearly one in five saying they have been being stalked online and more than a third saying they are seeing sexual images they didn’t wish to see, the survey of more than 2,000 girls and young women found.

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Royal Navy chief apologises for ‘intolerable’ misogyny in Submarine Service

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Ben Key confirms several personnel have been sacked, demoted or disciplined as a result of investigations

The head of the Royal Navy has issued an unreserved apology for “intolerable” misogyny in the Submarine Service, after a series of investigations across the navy exposed sexual harassment, bullying and assault of women within its ranks.

First Sea Lord Adm Sir Ben Key said he was “truly sorry” to the women who had suffered “misogyny, bullying and other unacceptable behaviours” while serving their country. “We must be better than this and do better than we have,” he said.

Senior figures forced juniors to tell them ‘shagging dits’, or personal sexual stories.

“Sniffing”, the practice of following the few women around, was “rife”, with women seen as “legitimate targets”.

“At least” one report of rape.

Those in command forced juniors to show them “sports photos”, compromising pictures of their partners, before allowing them to leave the room.

Women’s underwear going missing.

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Dutch feminists campaign for national monument to ‘witches’

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Thousands have been raised for site to commemorate victims of Satanic panic in 15th to 17th centuries

Three feminist campaigners in the Netherlands want to reclaim the insult “witch” and recognise the innocent victims of Dutch witch-hunts from the 15th to the 17th centuries with a national monument.

Susan Smit, Bregje Hofstede and Manja Bedner, the chair and board members of the National Witches Monument foundation, have raised €35,000 (£29,000) for an official site of memory for about 70,000 people who died during a Satanic panic that swept Europe and the Americas.

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Oztix co-founder apologises for saying ‘pent up’ men ‘don’t need distraction’ of women’s clothing choices at work

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Brian ‘Smash’ Chladil made the coments while speaking at the Australian Women in Music Awards conference on Tuesday

The co-founder of Oztix has apologised for saying women’s clothing at work can be a “distraction” to “pent-up” male colleagues who are away from their wives, while speaking at a conference for women in the music industry.

Brian “Smash” Chladil made the comments as part of the all-male “Brothers for the Sisterhood” panel at the Australian Women in Music Awards (AWMA) conference in Brisbane held on Tuesday of this week.

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