K. Sujata

We are all fast-approaching that very special day in May when we take time to honor the women who have brought us into this life. As we prepare for Mother's Day this year, busy with our brunch reservations and floral orders, I'd like to take a moment to discuss what...

A month of sexual assault awareness is good, but what women really need is year-round action.

If you are reading this, chances are you know that April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. You are probably also mindful of the startling statistics: rape harms one in...

This is 2012. Without a doubt, the women's movement has already come a long way. One hundred years ago, women were not permitted to vote, were largely excluded from higher education, and had very limited access to reproductive health care. Since that time, the Supreme Court has established a woman's...

Illinois Governor Quinn's proposed 2013 budget plan, what he calls his "most difficult" budget yet, focuses on the big-dollar-sign issues of Medicaid, state pensions and corporate tax loopholes.

While I applaud the governor's proposed increases to MAP grants for low-income students, early childhood education and veterans programs, all...

Even though football season is officially over, women's health is still being kicked around like a political football.

A much discussed and debated item in the news last week was that the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation would deny grants to hundreds of high-quality women's health programs. Komen...

Happy New Year! That means it's time to consider your resolutions for 2012. In that tradition, I have suggestions to enhance common resolutions and make them more woman-positive.

1. Lose weight. Health and fitness top the list of common resolutions, but for women that's often combined with...

The winter holidays are the high season of charitable giving -- as is evident by all the requests you're probably receiving from your alma mater, your place of worship and the causes you care most about. Today I ask you to give thought to the following question: Why do women...

The days are getting shorter, but the future looks bright for women and girls. This year Chicago-area organizations have made impressive breakthroughs on seemingly intractable issues. As Thanksgiving nears, let's take time to be thankful for the progress we've made in 2011.

I'm thankful for young women's health and dignity....

The World Bank's latest World Development Report on Gender Equity and Development argues strongly that investing in women and girls is smart economics. I agree. The report says that women make up half the population and 40 percent of the world's workforce but hold just one...

I frequently write about women and girls in the Chicago area -- the barriers they face and their solutions to improve their lives and communities. Some of those same issues are reflected in the disparities rampant in Hollywood.

For example, take activist and actress America Ferrera (who's speaking at...

Back-to-school chatter is already building in Chicago. Whether it's the length of the school year, Mayor Emanuel's children attending private school or the state's huge cuts to education, debates are as hot as the summer temperatures (which, as the Chicago Sun-Times reports, is having its own debilitating effect...

Dear Mayor Emanuel:

In February of this year I called upon Chicago's next mayor to invest in women and girls and described key steps that could be taken to make our city a a thriving community. Yesterday's news that you plan to institute...

School's out for summer, an exciting time for girls and young women to celebrate a bit of freedom and enjoy childhood. In the midst of this time off, thanks to progress made by tenacious advocates, girls can engage in many activities -- previously open only to boys -- that will...

Recent headlines abound with news about women taking on more leadership roles, from Bothaina Kamel as the first woman candidate for president in Egypt, to the eight women on Mayor Rahm Emanuel's 11-member senior staff. Earlier this month the New York Times announced that

It's once again that time of year when we honor mothers -- a day set aside to give back to women who work hard year-round. To truly honor motherhood and the pivotal role that women play in our communities, we must do more than buy a box of chocolates. In...

As you've probably seen in the news, last week a sensationalist anti-choice campaign came to Chicago. Three identical billboards near 58th and State say, "Every 21 minutes, our next possible leader is aborted," next to a photo of President Obama.

Spokespeople for Life Always, the group behind the billboards,...

When I look at the proposed Illinois and federal budgets, I can't help but see how many of the cuts will have a disproportionate impact on women and girls.

The White House report Women in America: Indicators of Social and Economic Well-Being condenses what women's advocates have been...

At Chicago Foundation for Women, we invest in women and girls--and so should the City of Chicago. When women are safe, healthy and financially secure, they lead strong families and thriving communities. That's why, as the new mayor sets his or her agenda, the 1.6 million women and girls in...