Culture & Identity

Sexism still permeates culture through the pervasiveness of gender stereotypes as well as misogynistic, negative and violent imagery in mass media. Perceptions of identity and gender roles are influenced, reflected and reinforced through myths, narratives and stories. Cultural cues about appropriate gender roles can have a negative and harmful impact by, for example, defining strength and rationalism as ”masculine” and submissiveness and emotionalism as ”feminine.” NCRW and its members are promoting awareness through research and critical analysis that uncover the tensions and assumptions involved in identity and gender roles.

Survey: One-third of married Japanese women are victims of domestic abuse

Teaser:

The Bellingham Herald reports on a Japanese Cabinet Office survey that finds that 32.9 percent of married or previously married women in Japan have experienced domestic abuse.

Editorial:

From The Bellingham Herald:

A recent Cabinet Office survey in Japan shows that 32.9 percent of married women or women who have been married in the past have experienced domestic abuse, such as physical harm or psychological harassment.

According to the survey, 41.4 percent of domestic abuse victims did not tell anyone about the situation. In many cases, they meekly accepted the abuse out of consideration for their children or economic concerns, the survey said. The percentage of women who have experienced domestic abuse has remained constant with the two previous surveys conducted in 2005 and 2008. The survey, which was released Friday, is conducted every three years.

When asked about the details of their experience, 25.9 percent of victims said they were punched, kicked or shoved by their husbands and 6.2 percent were assaulted repeatedly. Multiple answers were allowed.

[...]

Source:

The Bellingham Herald

URL:

http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2012/05/02/2505458/survey-one-third-of-married-japanese.html

Date:

May 2, 2012

Affiliate:

Associated Issues & Expertise:

Monthly State Update: Major Developments in 2012

Submitted by asklar on Wed, 04/25/2012 - 11:04am

This monthly update provides information on legislation, as well as relevant executive branch actions and judicial decisions in states across the country. For each of the topics, the number of states in which legislation has been introduced is given, as are the names of the states in which subsequent action has been taken. Detailed summaries are provided for legislation that has been passed by at least one house of a legislature and for major court decisions; actions for the current month are in bold.

Abortion
Adolescents
Contraception & Prevention
Pregnancy & Birth
Refusal Clauses
Reproductive Health and Environmental Hazards

URL:

http://www.guttmacher.org/statecenter/updates/index.html

Black Women, Sexual Assault and the Art of Resistance

Teaser:

Brooke Axtell examines the implications of the statistic that 60 percent of Black girls have experienced sexual abuse before the age of 18.

Editorial:

From Forbes:

According to an ongoing study conducted by Black Women’s Blueprint, sixty percent of Black girls have experienced sexual abuse before the age of 18. More than 300 Black women nationwide participated in the research project. A similar study conducted by The Black Women’s Health Imperative seven years ago found the rate of sexual assault was approximately 40%.

The pervasive nature of this trauma could translate into an increased risk for Black women and girls to experience depression, PTSD and addiction, common symptoms experienced by many survivors of rape.

The Department of Justice estimates that for every white woman that reports her rape, at least 5 white women do not report theirs; and yet, for every African-American woman that reports her rape, at least 15 African-American women do not report theirs.

There are many reasons why Black women may choose not to report incidences of sexual assault. Survivors of all races often fear that they will not be believed or will be blamed for their attack, but Black women face unique challenges.

[...]

Source:

Forbes

URL:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/shenegotiates/2012/04/25/black-women-sexual-assault-and-the-art-of-resistance/

Date:

April 25, 2012

Affiliate:

Associated Issues & Expertise:

An Upside to the 'War on Women'?

Teaser:

Karin Kamp asks "Is there an upside to the so-called 'war on women'? Could it be mobilizing a new generation of women leaders?" She interviews some prominent women representing the interests of other women to find out.

Editorial:

From the Huffington Post:

Women's issues have been all over the media lately, and not for all the right reasons. Birth control, abortion rights, the Rush Limbaugh Sandra Fluke 'slut' comment controversy, Hilary Rosen's comments on Ann Romney never working a day in her life -- it's really enough to make your head spin. (At least we have one more woman on Forbes' list of billionaires, thanks to Spanx inventorSara Blakely, which had The Story Exchange staff cheering.)

I overheard some young women talking about these issues on the train the other day and that got me thinking... Is there an upside to the so-called "war on women"? Could it be mobilizing a new generation of women leaders? I decided to contact some prominent women representing the interests of other women to find out. Here's what they told me.

[...]

Source:

Huffington Post

URL:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/karin-kamp/war-on-women_b_1446322.html

Date:

April 25, 2012

Affiliate:

Associated Issues & Expertise:

Expert Profile

Location:

United States

40° 42' 51.6708" N, 74° 0' 21.5028" W

See map: Google Maps

As Member Center Relations Liaison, Kadija Ferryman coordinates the activities pertaining to NCRW’s over 100 Member Centers. At the Council she builds relationships with existing members, conducts outreach with potential centers, connects Member Centers to research opportunities within the Council and beyond, and works on special projects such as the annual Member Center Awards and Annual Conference. She worked for six years as a public policy researcher at the Urban Institute in Washington, D.C. where she conducted in-depth research on public housing transformation in cities across the country. She is a graduate of Yale University and is currently pursuing a PhD in Anthropology at the New School where she completed her Master’s degree.

Location

New York, NY

United States

40° 42' 51.6708" N, 74° 0' 21.5028" W

See map: Google Maps

Associated Issues & Expertise:

Rising to the Top?

Submitted by asklar on Thu, 04/19/2012 - 10:52am

Asia Society and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy deliver “Rising to the Top?”, a study that highlights the current socio-economic landscape for women in China and the region. The report discusses gender gap issues and presents policy recommendations to ease gender inequality.

URL:

http://sites.asiasociety.org/womenleaders/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Rising-to-the-Top.pdf

A cover-up in the beautiful game

Teaser:

The Globe and Mail article discusses the International Football Association Board's unanimous recommendation to rescind the hijab ban first introduced by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association in 2007.

Editorial:

From The Globe and Mail:

This rule had resulted in the banning of individual female players in FIFA-sanctioned games – including the forfeit of an Olympic qualifying match by the Iranian women’s team. Some (the Quebec Soccer Federation, for instance) used the FIFA edict as a pretext to ban the hijab from the soccer field for non-FIFA events.

The ban reversal followed intense lobbying by Jordan’s Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, a FIFA vice-president, who sought to allay safety concerns by working with Cindy van den Bremen, a Dutch designer of sports-safe hijabs, for a dozen years. Montrealer Elham Seyed Javad (who created a hijab for female martial arts athletes in 2008) has also submitted a design for consideration by FIFA. Muslim women, for whom soccer is a passion, welcomed the IFAB decision. After all, the “beautiful game” is the most universal of sports, encompassing cultures and nations.

Those who fought to have FIFA include hijab-clad players should also lobby Saudi Arabia to allow women to be part of its Olympic national team. Last week, the Saudis confirmed their opposition to sending Saudi women to the London Games. This, despite the Olympic Charter: “Any form of discrimination with regard to a country or a person on grounds of race, religion, politics, sex or otherwise is incompatible with belonging to the Olympic Movement.”

[...]

Source:

The Globe and Mail

URL:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/opinions/opinion/a-cover-up-in-the-beautiful-game/article2400352/?utm_medium=Feeds%3A%20RSS%2FAtom&utm_source=Home&utm_content=2400352

Date:

April 18, 2012

Affiliate:

Associated Issues & Expertise:

Rogge hopes Saudis will send women to London

Teaser:

Sports Illustrated reports that the International Olympic Committee is stilltalking to Saudi Arabia about sending women to the London Games, despite a report that the conservative Muslim country's national Olympic committee resists the idea.

Editorial:

From Sports Illustrated:

IOC President Jacques Rogge also said at a news conference on Sunday that the head of Syria's Olympic committee has been invited to the summer games, but that it will be up to Britain to decide whether to admit him.

Rogge's comments came 10 days after a Saudi newspaper reported that national Olympic committee President Prince Nawaf does "not approve" of sending female athletes.

"We're still discussing [this] with our colleague on the Saudi national Olympic committee. This is an ongoing discussion, but it is a bit too soon to come to conclusions," Rogge said.

Saudi Arabia is one of three countries that have never included women on their Olympic teams, along with Qatar and Brunei. The IOC has been hopeful that all three would send female representatives to London, marking the first time for every competing nation.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said last month that officials of the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad who are on a European Union travel-ban list would be blocked from attending the July 27-Aug. 12 London games.

[...]

Source:

Sports Illustrated

URL:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/olympics/04/16/rogge-saudi-women.ap/index.html

Date:

April 16, 2012

Affiliate:

Associated Issues & Expertise:

Keeping Score When It Counts

Submitted by asklar on Sun, 04/08/2012 - 11:52pm

The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport, at the University of Central Florida releases its “Keeping Score When It Counts" series periodically. It documents comprehensive analysis of statistics involving the graduation rates of Division I collegiate athletic teams in selected sports.

In 2012, the study of graduation rates for teams in the women’s college basketball championship tournament found higher numbers than those in the men’s event and a smaller disparity between white and black players.

URL:

http://www.tidesport.org/ncaagraduationrates.html

Women and Social Media in 2012

Submitted by asklar on Sun, 04/08/2012 - 11:46pm

BlogHer has been conducting studies about women and their social media habits for the past five consecutive years. Each year we look at emerging media platforms and measure the purpose, trust and influence levels for blogs and other social media channels.

Methodology:

The 2012 study was fielded across BlogHer's network (37+ million unique visitors) and 3,000 blogs. For the sake of comparison, the survey was also fielded to a total U.S. online general population on a panel provided by Vision Critical. There were a total of 2,071 women included in the combined BlogHer and U.S. samples.

URL:

http://www.blogher.com/women-and-social-media-2012

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NCRW is a network of leading university and community based research, policy, and advocacy centers with a growing global reach dedicated to advancing rights and opportunities for women and girls. We also have a Corporate Circle comprised of senior diversity professionals from leading U.S. and global member companies and a Presidents Circle of college and university leaders who share our commitment. NCRW harnesses the collective power of its network to provide knowledge, analysis, and thought leadership on issues ranging from reducing women’s poverty to building a critical mass of women’s leadership across sectors.

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