Category: Women’s Rights

Women surfers push beyond equal pay—even if it means letting men into the water, too

By Laurel Rosenhall / CALmatters / March 21, 2019

Women surfers scored a big win in California last year when an obscure government commission decided it would only lease a public beach to the Mavericks global surf competition if men and women were awarded the same amount of prize money. Experts said the precedent could compel equal pay at marathons, bike races, skateboard contests—any athletic events on public land. …

Now a push to go further is opening a broader debate over how to advance equality for women in male-dominated sports—and whether all-female competitions should be open to men.

March 8th is International Women’s Day.

The OB Rag staff has been celebrating it since the 1970s. The OB Rag cover – Early March, 1975 – published here – commemorates International Woman’s Day. The cover shows a crowd of women activists from Ocean Beach on the OB Pier.

The cover was later formatted as a poster for a display at the OB Library of OB Rags during the 1990s by Bob Edwards, a former OB Ragster of the seventies.

For the third year in a row, thousands of San Diegans rallied and marched for women’s rights on Saturday, January 19.

The massive crowd – estimated by police at 20,000 – gathered at the front of the County Administration Building, listened to speeches and music beginning around 10 a.m. and near noon, the throng moved to Pacific Highway on the now-familiar march route for downtown demonstrations.

And although half the size of the first Women’s March the day after Trump was inaugurated in 2017, and not quite as large as last year’s, this year’s crowd was decidedly younger – with many youthful women participating. This reporter spoke to half a dozen participants who all observed a younger crowd.

From the Women’s March San Diego website:

The third annual Women’s March will take place on Saturday, January 19th, 2019. Join us in San Diego to bring #TruthToPower!

Saturday, January 19, 2019
10:00 AM 2:00 PM
Waterfront Park (West Side)

Our marchers make a difference.

By Beau Grosscup

President Donald Trump says “it’s a scary time for young men in America,” meaning young (and by definition any) men should be very afraid of being falsely accused of sexual assault/rape.

Yet, according to many studies (Stanford University, BBC News among them) just two percent of rape and sexual assault charges are proven to be false. President Trump (and many others) would have us believe that false charges are the rule rather than the exception.

Fortunately, the #MeToo movement and many other sexual assault victims support organizations are here to correct the record.

By Jill Richardson / OtherWords

When we discuss sexual assault, we often talk about women. What should women do to stay safe?

When I was in school, girls were even trained in women’s self-defense. I don’t know what the boys did during those time periods. Study hall?

Ask any woman what she does to prevent sexual assault and she’ll have an answer. She uses the buddy system when walking at night, or she carries pepper spray, or she doesn’t leave her drink unattended when she’s out, and so on.

Today I watched it all. The entire proceedings. From the very opening statement of Dr Christine Blasey Ford to the last question tossed to Judge Brett Kavanaugh, I was riveted to the television during today’s hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee. So was the rest of the country. This was a moment for the country – this hearing. And the hearing was not just about whether Kavanaugh sexually assaulted Dr Ford, but it was about his credibility and whether he’s fit to serve on the Supreme Court.

I wanted to write something different. So, I thought – let me make this article appealing to men. Let me describe what happened as if it was a football game.

We now know something about Christine Blasey Ford, the Palo Alto University professor, who has accused Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh of attempted rape. Kavanaugh has vehemently denied the allegations, and has even denied being at the party – despite Ford not being specific about the party itself.

Republicans say both Ford and Kavanaugh will testify in a re-opening of the Judiciary Committee’s hearing on next Monday, Sept. 23, although Prof. Ford has not confirmed this. Democratic leaders are demanding the FBI investigate the allegations prior to any hearing.

Meanwhile, here is the transcript of the letter Prof. Ford sent to Senator Dianne Feinstein

By Annie Lane / San Diego Free Press

In a reassuring victory for assault victims everywhere, convicted rapist Brock Turner lost his appeal for another trial recently after his attorney, Eric S. Multhaup, argued that his client only sought to have “outercourse” with the former Stanford student he is convicted of assaulting — not intercourse.

For anyone wondering what that means, you’re not alone. The three-panel judges were at a loss as well.

“I absolutely don’t understand what you are talking about,” Justice Franklin D. Elia told Multhaup on August 8, according to Mercury News.

“What happened was tantamount to blackmail, with the U.S. holding the world hostage and trying to overturn nearly 40 years of consensus on the best way to protect infant and young child health.”

By Julia Conley / Common Dreams

International delegates to the United Nation’s World Health Assembly looked on at the group’s recent meeting, as U.S. representatives appeared to put the interests of the $70 billion baby food industry ahead of those of parents and children—and pressured other countries to do the same.

The New York Times reported Sunday that American officials, led by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, attempted to strongarm Ecuadorean delegates out of introducing a resolution to encourage and support breastfeeding and urge governments to restrict misleading marketing claims about baby formula.

UPDATED WITH MORE PHOTOS
Here are more photos from Saturday’s San Diego Women’s March – most from OB Rag staffer Bob Edwards. There’s a bunch of really funny signs.

From Website:

On January 20th we will march again, this time for our voices and votes to be heard!