Understanding the deception of crisis pregnancy centers
Did you know that in many states, taxpayer dollars are funding anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs)? When I first discovered that North Carolina was funding CPCs rather than having that funding go toward public health, I really couldn’t believe it. Let’s use my home state of North Carolina as a case study to learn more.
In June, the North Carolina Senate finally approved a long-awaited two-year state budget. Buried within the details is funding for a network of crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) run by virulent anti-abortion groups. The Human Coalition, a national organization whose website reads,
“The Human Coalition is…
Have women finally had enough of the absurd ways they are portrayed by Hollywood?
Have women finally had enough of the absurd ways in which they are portrayed by Hollywood that the revenge story will become the new plotline of our time? It’s hard to say, but after watching the first few episodes of Kevin Can F*** Himself and Promising Young Woman earlier this year, the revenge genre is breaking new ground and definitely challenging worn-out narratives. By allowing the female characters to acknowledge their anger and claim some power, the creators are establishing a new approach to writing for female characters.
In Kevin Can F*** Himself (created by Valerie Armstrong), we meet Allison…
How personal experiences shape lawmaking.
We all relate to situations that we have experienced more strongly than those we have not. If you have never had chronic pain or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), then it is probably difficult for you to imagine what that would feel like. But that does not mean that you cannot have empathy for the person who is having that experience. And for politicians who represent vast constituencies, empathy is an important character trait. However, we seem to have a major empathy problem in many of our legislatures when it comes to enacting laws that help people who are truly suffering.
Child care is economic infrastructure
The state of the child care industry in the United States remains dire both for parents, children, and providers. Parents face both affordability issues and child care deserts. Child care centers face significant staffing issues due to low pay. The pandemic squeezed the industry almost out of existence, and it was only able to withstand the pressure through the government dollars extended through the CARES Act and the American Rescue Plan. But the pandemic exposed the unsustainability of the business model without significant investment from the government.
Lack of access to child care
A look at the democratizing effect for the habitually marginalized
While we are all experiencing “Zoom fatigue” and looking forward to meeting in person again, it is time to evaluate the role that virtual meetings will have going forward. Many were surprised at how easily they could transition to the virtual workspace while others found it to be a mine pit of problems and exhaustion. And of course, not everyone has the technical setup or space for virtual meetings to be permanent going forward.
I recently had a lengthy discussion with a group of professional women around this topic, and we found that overall, the benefits of virtual meetings outweighed…
What do you think of when you hear the phrase “women’s health”?
For most people, their minds immediately jump to reproductive health. But women are more than just their reproductive organs and deserve medical care that recognizes their entire bodies. Understanding some of the reasons that women receive inferior healthcare can lead us to solutions. We are just beginning, but there is hope on the horizon.
Over the past five years, attention to women’s health outcomes has increased. Several fabulous books like Maya Dusenbery’s Doing Harm: The Truth About How Bad Medicine and Lazy Science Leave Women Dismissed, Misdiagnosed and…
Naomi Osaka’s attempt to protect her mental health needs more advocates.
Naomi Osaka’s attempt to protect her mental health by skipping press conferences following her matches at the French Open allows a much-needed conversation about the role of the post-game press conference across sports. Osaka is not the first athlete to skip a press conference and most likely will not be the last. But because her reason for skipping involved mental illness, the leaders of the Grand Slam tournaments made a grave error in threatening to eject her from the tournament rather than fine her. If Osaka had had a physical injury that made it impossible for her to hold press…
Originally published as part of the Chaise Lounge newsletter at https://chaiselounge.substack.com.
In 2019, there were over 1 million miscarriages in the United States. Yet, you have most likely not heard this statistic because the subject is typically considered taboo to discuss. That such a pervasive health issue goes unmentioned tells us that there is much work to do to demystify miscarriage.
Some women are willing to share their stories and as they do so help to bring some normalcy to the idea of talking about their experiences. Last year both Meghan Markle and Chrissy Teigen shared their stories of having…
And what not to say
I have wanted to write about the damage that the silence around miscarriage causes for a long time. But I was not sure how to reach out to women who have had miscarriages in an empathetic way. I could write an article full of facts (and yes, they matter, too), but what I really wanted was to talk to someone who had been through the experience and could speak to it honestly. But the stigma and silence around miscarriage prevented me from doing so.
Then, on Mother’s day, I saw this beautiful post from my former teaching friend on Facebook.
Over the past two weeks, as I take my dog on her daily walk, I have noticed a big change in how other people on the neighborhood trail are behaving. We are smiling at each other, making eye contact, and trading our “good mornings” with good cheer. Of course, this is because we are no longer masked with the exception of a few folks. During the pandemic, we all took great care to stay as far away from one another as possible on the trail, avoided eye contact, and certainly did not utter a word to one another. I am…
