Watch TV news coverage. Read news stories in your morning paper. The War on Women is a war on reproductive rights. The evidence is clear.
Since January 2010, there have been over 400 bills introduced in the U.S. Congress and states attacking our reproductive rights.
GOP presidential candidates are signing "Personhood" pledges and vowing to eliminate Planned Parenthood -- an organization that provides millions of low-income women primary healthcare.
Talk show hosts like Rush Limbaugh and their enablers on cable news suggest (wink, wink, nod, nod) that birth control is only used by promiscuous women.
To repeat: the War on Women is a war on reproductive rights. But sometimes the evidence only reveals a fraction of the truth.
Reproductive rights are merely the tip of an ominous iceberg -- one that promises to inflict so much more damage to women.
The Violence Against Women Act has been reauthorized by a bipartisan vote in every congressional session since 1994... until now. GOP members of the House and several in the Senate refuse to support VAWA because of provisions that cover lesbians and Native Americans. Apparently, they don't bruise or bleed the way the rest of us do.
The Paycheck Fairness Act, blocked by a filibuster in the Senate, would end inequities in work compensation.., Women's work is not only "never done" -- it will never be equally compensated by this Congress.
GOP presidential candidates want to eliminate Medicaid and turn it into state block grants. Who pays the price? Poor women and children. But after all, they're not "job creators," lobbyists, or major corporate donors.
The 2013 GOP turns Medicare into a "coupon program" -- raising health insurance costs for seniors and the disabled and serving as a boon to private insurance companies. Women, on average, live 5-10 years longer than men. Do the math on which gender will pay the lioness' share of this fraudulent scam.
Several states have passed or are considering legislation to abolish or sharply limit public employees' collective bargaining rights (affecting wages, benefits and working conditions). Again -- there's obviously a trend here -- women comprise the majority of government workers at all levels.
State budget cuts in health, K-12 and higher education will disproportionately impact women -- the main recipients of public health programs, a majority of our teachers and an expanding majority of students enrolled in our colleges and universities. Of course, the ladies look so much more attractive when they're barefoot, pregnant and uneducated.
And yes... this is 2012!
Our media have either largely ignored or basically accepted these actions, reporting them as if it were commonplace to deny women their basic rights and freedoms.
Mothers and grandmothers are angry to find they are fighting the battle over reproductive rights again.
Our daughters wonder what happened to the post-feminist society in which they thought they were living.
Grandfathers, fathers, husbands and boyfriends are outraged that a powerful minority in our country would treat their daughters, wives and mothers as if they were second-class citizens.
The rights women have fought to win, maintain and eventually come to expect to have all our lives are being threatened and eliminated.
Enough is enough!
UniteWomen.org -- a dynamic new grassroots women's organization -- is mobilizing to end this pervasive war on women. We are a beautifully intergenerational wave of the women's movement that envisions a better future for our children and grandchildren.
UniteWomen.org's first action calls for nationwide protests, marches and rallies on Saturday, April 28 in cities and states across the country to let elected officials and private interests know we will no longer remain silent in the face of these assaults.
Our April 28 events are the beginning of our mission, working side-by-side with other organizations that share our vision of equality for all women.
Our Goals:
Mariska Hargitay: Violence Against Women Act Helps Restore Lives
The fundamental human rights to bodily autonomy/bodily integrity is the sine qua non of ALL human rights that we understand to be inalienable. Human rights are not something to be negotiated or voted away. That is why I am standing shoulder to shoulder with ALL women across my own state, and across the nation on 4/28. Women, ALL women are under attack — be they Republican, Democrat, Independent, or Green; be they upper-middle class or dirt poor from the bowels of the permanent underclass; be they white, black or brown.
If there are any women who feel that they cannot come to a rally or speak at a rally due to personality conflicts and disagreements with organizers, I understand that. But do NOT, I repeat DO NOT, attack other women who are fighting for women's basic human rights in the ways they best know how — especially in this climate where Congressmen don't even think ANY of us are human beings and have PUBLICLY compared us to farm livestock.
She suffered from severe depression and had a very sad life.
She had very few choices in life.
It has been brought to our attention that speakers and organizations have been approached by individuals misrepresenting themselves as part of the National team. These individuals are giving misleading information regarding our Organization as a whole as well as our upcoming April 28th events.
In the interest of open communication and full disclosure UniteWomen.org makes the following official statement:
UniteWomen.org does not require payment or donations from any individual or organization in order to speak at our events.
As explicitly stated in our Mission Statement, UniteWomen.org is proud to be a nonpartisan organization. We oppose anti-women legislation and statements whether that legislation is introduced or voted on by a Republican, Democrat or Independent.
We request if any individual representing the Organization of UniteWomen.org stating anything contrary to the above, please notify us immediately with their name, a description and contact information to karen@unitewomen.org.
domestic violence. If you are a woman, why are you NOT angry? Silence = acceptance.
Michael Merline, UniteWomen.org, national committee.