The Assault on Womens Sexual and Reproductive Rights

[femmeInterrupted]

WTF

"I agree with Rep. Todd, I think that it will truly limit abortions that are done in Alabama, and I'm pleased with that," said Rep. Terri Collins, R-Decatur.


http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/20...womens-rights/

http://blog.al.com/wire/2013/02/hous...-safety_b.html

[femmeInterrupted]

Some more not so happy tidbits:

Currently, there are at least 8 states who are trying to pass these theocracy dictatorship bills.
These bills are the single greatest threat to Roe v. Wade.
These bills are metaphoric nuclear strikes against Women's Rights.
Please help stop this.
Protests, marches, petitions, and political contacting to focus as much of their efforts on this specific front in opposing the War Against Women.



http://exposingreligionblog.tumblr.com/post/18058117012


Hospital in North Dakota Says Abortion Care So Safe It Does Not Meet Criteria for Admitting Privileges - See more at:

http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/20...ng-privileges/

[Kobi]

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas (Reuters) - Arkansas joined seven other U.S. states on Thursday in banning most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy as the Republican-controlled state Senate voted to override a veto of the legislation by Democratic Governor Mike Beebe.

Senators voted 19 to 14 on party lines to override Beebe's veto, following a 53 to 28 vote by the Republican-controlled state House on Wednesday. In Arkansas, lawmakers can override a veto by a simple majority vote.

The law provides exceptions only in cases of rape, incest or to save a mother's life. It does not include an exemption for any lethal fetal disorders.

Late-term abortions remain relatively rare. Most of the recent state laws banning most abortions after 20 weeks are based on controversial medical research suggesting that a fetus feels pain starting at 20 weeks of gestation.

Arkansas senators also voted 26 to 8 on Thursday to approve a ban on most abortions once a fetal heartbeat can be detected by a standard ultrasound, or about 12 weeks of pregnancy.

The bill, which now goes to Beebe, includes exceptions for rape, incest, the life of the mother and fetal conditions. Doctors who violate the prohibition would have their licenses revoked by the state Medical Board.

The chief executive of Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, Jill June, said the so-called "heartbeat" bill would be the most stringent restriction on abortion in the country.

"It's disheartening that our lawmakers are knowingly passing an unconstitutional abortion ban for the sake of politics," June said of the Senate's votes on Thursday.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/arkansas-ho...023203257.html

[femmeInterrupted]

http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/20...asound-debate/

[DMW]

Dear Friend,

There's an urgent new threat to birth control coverage, and all of us have to speak out right away before it gets any traction.

This time, 11 prominent right-wing members of Congress have filed a legal brief in support of Hobby Lobby--the major craft retail chain that is suing the Obama Administration over the requirement that health insurers cover birth control.1 Hobby Lobby's conservative CEO and these members of Congress apparently don't think women can make their own health care decisions--that somehow a woman's boss at work should be the one telling her what to do.

In the past year, conservatives have tried to gut birth control coverage time and time again.2 Even after getting walloped by the women's vote at the ballot box in November, they kept trying.3 But they've failed every time, so now they're trying a new route—the courts. And this strategy might just be the scariest they've tried yet because if they win, it will set an incredibly bad precedent for women's health care and reproductive choice.4 Imagine: a legal decision that says your boss gets to make decisions about your health care, not you. That's scary.

That's why we've partnered with our friends at EMILY's List to send them a message: just stop. Birth control is a personal, medical decision, and it's not up to politicians or employers to dictate how women use it. Republicans need to stop trying to block women's access. If UltraViolet members and EMILY's List members speak out together, they'll hear us loud and clear.

Hobby Lobby is a major crafts retailer in the United States and employs thousands of women across 14 states.5 US companies can't flout the law just because they don't like it. Big corporations and small businesses are run by all sorts of people in our country, many religious, many not. Allowing company management to impose their beliefs on employees is just plain un-American.
If the court sides with them and finds that an employer can choose which type of birth control is available to their employees, it would set a dangerous precedent for other cases and give extremists another opening to attack women's rights and access to health care.6
And now, 11 prominent members of Congress have given this lawsuit greater credibility and asked the courts to set a dangerous precedent for all women. But we know that politicians care about their next election more than virtually anything else, and if we can show them this is a loser with women voters, we can get them to drop their attacks on birth control--and stop them from gaining traction. The more of us that speak out, the louder our voices will be. UltraViolet and EMILY's List members together will hold these politicians accountable make sure they know that if they mess with women, we will fight back and we will win. Please join us in this important campaign.
Sign the petition.
Thanks for speaking out.
Nita, Shaunna, Kat, and Karin, the UltraViolet team


http://act.weareultraviolet.org/sign...KZT88&rd=1&t=3


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/0...n_2759780.html


http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2013/0...care-loophole/


Sickening. But viagra is covered by health care and now...the "low T".

[Kobi]

Arkansas has passed the most restrictive abortion law in the United States – a near-ban on the procedure from the 12th week of pregnancy onward.

The state has vetoed the Democratic Governor twice in the last week over two separate bills on abortion. The first one banned most abortions starting in the 20th week of pregnancy. That bill took effect immediately after the final override vote, whereas the 12-week ban would not take effect until this summer.

Abortion rights proponents have already said they will sue to block the 12-week ban from taking effect.

So far, other recent attempts to similarly restrict abortion in other states have fallen short. A so-called fetal pain law banning abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy was struck down on Wednesday night by a federal judge in Idaho.

The law was based on disputed beliefs held by some physicians and others that the foetus is able to feel pain at 20 weeks and therefore deserves protection from abortions.

In Mississippi, voters rejected a so-called "personhood amendment" at the polls. In Ohio, a similar measure was defeated in the legislature, but they represent a growing trend in conservative states to chip away at abortion rights under the US Supreme Court's landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that legalised abortion until a foetus could viably survive outside the womb. A foetus is generally considered viable at 22 to 24 weeks.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...law-in-US.html

[AmazonWoman1]

There once was an idiot named Nicolae Ceaușescu who ran Romania for a time & had the genius idea to force pregnancies to term.This was covered somewhat in a movie called 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days.There were some serious consequences to this ill advised idea.These same unwanted children rose up to overthrow his regime & murder him.If you force women to be unwilling parents it may lead to a high rate of personality disordered people like sociopaths & psychotics.These same people may prove to be your undoing at a later time.So the more ignorant they get the bigger the eventual backlash may be.The pendulum tends to swing back in response to outright bigotry & hatred so we all can hope people start firing these politicians in droves.I know my incumbent of like 20 years just got fired*S*



The movie is available on Netflix streaming

[femmeInterrupted]

Politicians abuse negative stereotypes about those who seek abortion to push their anti-choice legislation

[femmeInterrupted]

http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/20...re-bad-people/

[Kobi]

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — As oil-rich North Dakota moves toward outlawing most abortions, it's in a better position than most states for what could be a long and costly court battle over its restrictions.

Lawmakers on Friday sent the Republican governor two anti-abortion bills, one banning the procedure as early as six weeks into a pregnancy and another prohibiting women from having the procedure because a fetus has a genetic defect, such as Down syndrome. They would be the most restrictive abortion laws in the U.S

Abortion-rights activists have promised a legal battle over the measures if they become law. But supporters of the bills say their goal is to challenge the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion up until a fetus is considered viable, usually at 22 to 24 weeks

Gov. Jack Dalrymple hasn't said anything to indicate he would veto the measures, and the bills have enough support in each chamber for the Republican-controlled Legislature to override him. The Senate overwhelmingly approved the bills Friday, and the House passed them last month. The votes were largely on party lines, with Republicans supporting the measures and Democrats opposing them.

The state's only abortion clinic is in Fargo, and abortion-rights advocates say the measures are meant to shut it down. They urged Dalrymple to veto the bills.

The American Civil Liberties Union called the measures "extreme" and noted that many women don't realize they are pregnant until after six weeks.

Outside of Fargo, the nearest abortion clinics are four hours to the south in Sioux Falls, S.D., and four hours to the southeast in Minneapolis.

North Dakota is one of several states with Republican-controlled Legislatures and GOP governors that is looking at abortion restrictions. Arkansas passed a 12-week ban earlier this month that prohibits most abortions when a fetal heartbeat can be detected using an abdominal ultrasound. That ban is scheduled to take effect 90 days after the Arkansas Legislature adjourns.

A fetal heartbeat can generally be detected earlier in a pregnancy using a vaginal ultrasound, but Arkansas lawmakers balked at requiring women seeking abortions to have the more invasive imaging technique.

North Dakota's measure doesn't specify how a fetal heartbeat would be detected. Doctors performing an abortion after a heartbeat is detected could face a felony charge punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine. Women having an abortion would not face charges.

The genetic abnormalities bill also bans abortion based on gender selection. Pennsylvania, Arizona and Oklahoma already have such laws, according to the Guttmacher Institute, which tracks abortion restrictions across the U.S. North Dakota would be the first state to ban abortions based on a genetic defect, according to the institute.

Sen. Margaret Sitte, a Republican from Bismarck, said the bill is meant to ban the destruction of life based on "an arbitrary society standard of being good enough." Some test results pointing to abnormalities are incorrect, she said, and doctors can perform surgeries even before a baby is born to correct some genetic conditions.

http://news.yahoo.com/north-dakota-f...070224321.html

[femmeInterrupted]

http://www.politico.com/story/2013/0...aws-88966.html

[Kobi]

The Kansas House of Representatives has taken the next step in passing HB 2253, a massive 70-page omnibus bill that codifies anti-choice lies and talking points and financially and politically isolates reproductive health clinics, abortion providers, and their volunteers in the state. The bill represents the state legislature’s latest attempt to pass a multipurpose, anti-choice platform, which includes modifying the state tax code, defunding Planned Parenthood, and socially ostracizing abortion providers and their colleagues. Unlike last year’s version, this year’s version of the bill appears likely to pass both chambers of the legislature.

Proposed by State Rep. Lance Kinzer (R-Olathe), the omnibus bill presents anti-choice lies as science and revamps the state’s tax code to eliminate “taxpayer funding of abortion,” despite the protests of individuals in the medical community who consider the legislation politically motivated propaganda. Leading the charge against the bill at a recent hearing was State Rep. Barbara Bollier (R-Mission Hills), a former medical professional who tried to negate the bad science in the bill with amendments addressing claims that a fetus feels pain at 22 weeks and that abortion causes breast cancer. Meanwhile, Kinzer testified that there are “conflicting” studies about abortion causing breast cancer, and “where there is doubt or conflicting studies, the Legislature has the authority to decide what information should be distributed by law,” according to the Topeka Capital Journal. If upheld, this would set a chilling precedent, essentially dividing the country into states where science is respected and states where anti-choice “science” rules.

The house also opposed an amendment to a ban on abortions after 22 weeks. When asked to consider allowing exceptions to the state’s blanket 22-week abortion ban—loopholes that would allow a rape or incest survivor to obtain a safe abortion without leaving the state—lawmakers said absolutely not. A Kansas City Star editorial called the rejection of the amendment “a shocking lack of empathy for women.” The editorial goes on to say, “In testimony to the triumph of zealotry, the house voted 92-31 for the abortion restrictions. We hope the Senate will show some compassion for young women facing the anguish of an unwanted, late-term pregnancy.”

“Representative Lance Kinzer and Governor Brownback have reached a new low with the passage and certain signature of House Bill 2253,” Elise Higgins, state co-coordinator for Kansas NOW told RH Reality Check via email. “This 70-page bill has 40 provisions, ranging from restrictions on who can work in schools and 12 new taxes on abortion to a lie connecting abortion to breast cancer. HB 2253 would be harmful on its own, but on top of 20 other abortion regulations in Kansas, it’s devastating. Worst of all is the Kansas house’s overwhelming rejection of an amendment that would have exempted pregnancies resulting from rape and incest from anti-abortion statutes. Kansas government is without compassion or common sense, and women and their families will suffer for it.”



- See more at: http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/20....OS0JanI1.dpuf

[Kobi]

[Kobi]

The main stream media seems to be in a bit of a tizzy over Susan B. Anthony List (and Ken Cuccinelli for Governor fan) president Marjorie Dannenfelser comparing abortion to slavery during a recent CPAC speech. “[T]here’s a point when you become culpable in the killing of other people, because of what the government is making you do. And that is one of those tipping point moments. It happened in slavery when slaves had to be returned to their masters. When we… when our hands are bloodied by this, it becomes a whole ‘nother thing,” Dannenfelser said, according to progressive blog Blue Virginia, leading the Washington Post to later report on the incident, then the Richmond Times Dispatch to run its own story with tape of Cuccinelli using similar terms himself at an event last June.

Maybe this language is somehow new to those who don’t pay much attention to the abortion issue. For those who do spend any time listening, this is rhetoric we’ve heard over and over again. We’ve heard the repeated claims that just like the zygote, the slave was once not considered a person either. We’ve been told that somehow controlling what happens inside our own bodies is akin to “owning” a human being as property. We’ve had charts like these pasted to our facebook pages. We’ve seen the “abortion abolitionists” touting their merchandize and drop cards, or been emailed or tweeted at by the person swearing he or she is the next “William Wilberforce” prepared to bring about true equality—at least, for the fertilized eggs and embryos.

This idea that forcing women and girls to remain pregnant and give birth against their will is somehow analogous to freeing slaves from bondage may be news to you, but we’ve been hearing all about it for years. So, welcome to our world, mainstream media and every day people. Yes, those anti-choice activists are just as extreme as we’ve been telling you they are.

- See more at: http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/20....CVIa4UWC.dpuf

-------


Really? Is Marjorie Dannenfelser unaware that women were once deemed the property of males and on par of goats and pigs? Is she aware of the atrocities we were subjected to as pieces of property? Does she have a clue about the history and current statics on rape, domestic violence, and the ritualistic mutilating and killing of women?

The lack of logic in these asinine arguments make me freakin nuts.

[Kobi]

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Gov. Jack Dalrymple signed legislation Tuesday that that would make North Dakota the nation's most restrictive state on abortion rights, banning the procedure if a fetal heartbeat can be detected — something that can happen as early as six weeks into a pregnancy.

The Republican governor also signed into law another measure that would makes North Dakota the first to ban abortions based on genetic defects such as Down syndrome, and a measure that requires a doctor who performs abortions to be a physician with hospital-admitting privileges.

The measures, which would take effect Aug. 1, are fueled in part by an attempt to close the state's sole abortion clinic in Fargo. Dalrymple, in a statement, said the so-called fetal heartbeat bill is a direct challenge to the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion up until a fetus is considered viable, usually at 22 to 24 weeks.

"Although the likelihood of this measure surviving a court challenge remains in question, this bill is nevertheless a legitimate attempt by a state legislature to discover the boundaries of Roe v. Wade," Dalrymple said. "Because the U.S. Supreme Court has allowed state restrictions on the performing of abortions and because the Supreme Court has never considered this precise restriction ... the constitutionality of this measure is an open question."

Abortion-rights advocates have promised a legal fight that they say will be long, costly and unwinnable for the state.

Dalrymple's statement said the Legislature "should appropriate dollars for a litigation fund" before the session ends in early May.

Arkansas passed a 12-week ban earlier this month that prohibits most abortions when a fetal heartbeat can be detected using an abdominal ultrasound. That ban is scheduled to take effect 90 days after the Arkansas Legislature adjourns.

A fetal heartbeat can generally be detected earlier in a pregnancy using a vaginal ultrasound, but Arkansas lawmakers balked at requiring women seeking abortions to have the more invasive imaging technique.

North Dakota's legislation doesn't specify how a fetal heartbeat would be detected. Doctors performing an abortion after a heartbeat is detected could face a felony charge punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine. Women having an abortion would not face charges.

The legislation to ban abortions based on genetic defects also would ban abortion based on gender selection. The Guttmacher Institute, which tracks abortion laws throughout the country, says Pennsylvania, Arizona and Oklahoma also have laws outlawing abortion based on gender selection.

The Republican-led North Dakota Legislature has endorsed a spate of anti-abortion Legislation this year. North Dakota lawmakers moved last week to outlaw abortion in the state by passing a resolution defining life as starting at conception, essentially banning abortion in the state. The measure is likely to come before voters in November 2014.

Representatives also endorsed another anti-abortion bills last week that is awaiting Dalrymple's signature. It would ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy based on the disputed premise that fetuses feel pain at that point.

Dalrymple said the measure requiring abortion doctors to have hospital-admitting privileges also likely will be challenged in court.

"Nevertheless, it is a legitimate and new question for the courts regarding a precise restriction on doctors who perform abortions," he said.

[always2late]

[femmeInterrupted]

Originally Posted by always2late

The Frustration of this can't be described. Having worked with police and even other mainstream service providers, it's truly shocking how this attitude of victim blaming and misogyny/judgement, and the pervasive myths about sexual violence still play out on the every day-- thanks for sharing this-- will share with some colleagues of mine.

Fuck the patriarchy.

[Kobi]

KANSAS CITY, Kansas (Reuters) - Kansas is set to enact one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the nation which defines life as beginning "at fertilization" and imposes a host of new regulations.

The Kansas House of Representatives passed the bill 90-30 on Friday night, a few hours after the Senate backed it on a 28-10 vote. Strongly anti-abortion Republican Governor Sam Brownback is expected to sign it into law. Republicans hold strong majorities in both houses.

In addition to the provision specifying when life begins, the bill prevents employees of abortion clinics from providing sex education in schools, bans tax credits for abortion services and requires clinics to give details to women about fetal development and abortion health risks. It also bans abortions based solely on the gender of the fetus.

The Kansas bill comes on the heels of anti-abortion measures passing in states across the country, including one in Arkansas banning abortions in the 12th week of pregnancy and a law in North Dakota that sets the limit at six weeks.

The Kansas language stating that life begins "at fertilization" is modeled on a 1989 ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court, said Kathy Ostrowski, legislative director of Kansans for Life, anti-abortion group.

Ostrowski said the language protects the rights of the unborn in probate and other legal matters.

If the bill is signed into law, Kansas will become the eighth state declaring that life begins at fertilization, said Elizabeth Nash, state issues manager of the pro-choice Guttmacher Institute, which researches abortion-related laws nationwide.

While it would not supplant Kansas law banning most abortions after the 22nd week of pregnancy, it does set the state up to more swiftly outlaw all abortions should the U.S. Supreme Court revisit its 1973 ruling making abortion legal, Nash said.

"It's a statement of intent and it's a pretty strong statement," Nash said. "Should the U.S. Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade or should the court come to some different conclusion, the state legislature would be ready, willing and able to ban abortions."

States that already have such language are Missouri, Kentucky, Arkansas, Illinois, Louisiana, North Dakota and Ohio, Nash said.

The Kansas bill prohibits use of public funds, tax preferences or tax credits for abortion services. It prevents state-provided public health-care services from being used in any manner to carry out abortions, according to a summary.

Taking away tax benefits would amount to 12 tax increases for abortion providers, women and their families, said Elise Higgins, Kansas coordinator for the National Organization for Women. Even abortions to save a mother's life would not be a deductible cost, she said.

Higgins also criticized the bill's requirement that women be told of possible connection between abortion and later risk of breast cancer. "It's an obvious intrusion into the doctor-patient relationship by making them get this inaccurate information," Higgins said.

Ostrowski said the bill merely requires that patients be referred to online and other material about abortion and breast cancer. It does not steer them to misinformation, she said.

The bill bars school districts from letting abortion providers offer, sponsor or furnish course materials or instruction on human sexuality or on sexually transmitted diseases. Higgins said that creates an unfair stigma for employees of abortion providers.

Another portion of the new law would prevent women from deciding on an abortion solely because of the gender of the fetus. It is unclear how many women terminate pregnancies for that reason.

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/kansas-sena...014146445.html

-----------------------


....bangs head on desk....

[femmeInterrupted]

This is infuriating. Victim blaming bullshit.

http://samuel-warde.com/2012/11/amer...tim-is-blamed/


"We have heard a lot this year about the so-called “War On Women”. Conservatives on the one hand want to say there is no war, liberals strongly state the opposite.

Personally, I find it incredible that anyone c0uld deny such a war exists with all the recent legislation regarding women’s reproductive healthcare services, comments by bloviating ignoramuses such as Rush Limbaugh, Richard Mourdock and Todd Akins. Hell there is even a website now showing how many days it has been since a Republican mentioned “rape” while campaigning.

The official Republican National Committee Platform presents the harshest take on women’s issues in decades and their candidate for president, Mitt Romney, refuses to say where he stands on women’s pay – even after repeated questions regarding the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.

In the midst of this misogynistic frenzy, one recent news items stands out from all the rest when last week in California, the Moraga School District, alleged that a 12 year old girl, who suffered prolonged sexual abuse spanning years at the hands of two middle school teachers was “careless,” “negligent” and “was herself responsible for the acts and damages of which she claims”.

Let’s think about this one for a minute. A school district, a branch of civic government is saying that a young girl – 12 to 13 years old – is herself responsible for prolonged acts of sexual abuse by 2 of its teachers?

And their response? What about their response?

They did for whatever idiotic reason feel compelled to issue a response, as if anything they could ever write or say could justify their intent.

In their statement they wrote: “We certainly empathize with Ms. Cunnane and did not intend to cause her further distress in filing our formal Answer to her Complaint. However, this is a significant case that could have serious consequences for our school district. She is demanding several million dollars in damages. As a result, at this point in the proceedings we have an obligation not to waive any potential legal lines of defense. … Ms. Cunnane and the media have seized on only one of the nine potential areas and over-exaggerated its importance.”

Now how in the hell does one “empathize” with what essentially amounts to the unprovoked rape of a child? [And for those of you fond of splitting hairs - I write unprovoked because there is no way anyone can reasonably state that a 12 year old child can provoke a sexual act.]

And what about the talk of serious consequences to the school district and millions of dollars in potential damages? What about the serious consequences to a 12 year old child, who as it turns out foolishly thought she was safe at school in the care of teachers? What about the damages to her spirit and body?

And with all due respect, what the hell is this talk about their claim the victim “seized on only one of the nine potential areas and over-exaggerated its importance”? WTF?!?

Are these people serious?

And what about the victim, Ms. Cunnane?

“It’s hard to see that I’m ‘seizing on’ something,” she told KTUV, “because this is my life.” She told the KTUV reporter that she felt the school district response tells rape victims everywhere that they are the ones to blame.

“It felt like I got punched in the stomach, and I stood up and thought about how young I was when I was 12 to 13 years old at the school,” said Cunnane. “For them to use words like ‘negligent’ and ‘responsible’ just broke my heart.”

As reported by the Oakland Tribune, the school district’s attorney stated that the language used in their response was “appropriate” and “necessary” for a civil case with significant ramifications and went on to note that “every potential defense” must be raised in such legal filings, “since failure to do so results in a waiver of the defense.”"It is imperative that all possible defenses be raised at this point in time. As more facts become known, the district will then reassess its defenses”.Ms. Cunnane’s attorney and noted youth law expert, Paul Llewellyn noted: “That (the) defendants would go so far as to blame a child victim of sexual abuse rather than admit or even examine their own wrongdoing is offensive and appalling”.

Again, as reported by the Oakland Tribune “Cunnane was sexually abused by two Moraga middle school teachers in the 1990s, one of them over a four-year period. She sued the district, retired Joaquin Moraga Intermediate School principal Bill Walters, retired assistant principal Paul Simonin and retired superintendent John Cooley in Contra Costa Superior Court, saying they repeatedly ignored allegations of abuse, allowing her and other students to be victimized. The lawsuit alleges negligence, fraudulent concealment, conspiracy to commit fraud and intentional infliction of emotional distress, and cites an investigation by this newspaper as revealing for the first time the district’s knowledge of the alleged abuse.

Former Joaquin Moraga P.E. teacher Julie Correa pleaded guilty to rape and sexual battery against Cunnane over a four-year period beginning in 1996, when Cunnane was an eighth-grader. Cunnane said Correa groomed her after she confided in her that Joaquin Moraga science teacher Daniel Witters had molested her. Witters committed suicide shortly after a group of girls came forward with allegations in 1996, and police stopped investigating him criminally after that.”

[femmeInterrupted]

I've been going through a massive feminist crisis lately. My own politics and a belief in non-violence is being tested, as I ponder the gendered nature of forgiveness. Instead, I am thinking about UNforgiveness and IRreconciliation.
I am starting to think about forms of resistance and what those may mean to our women's communities. I see tiny pockets of women globally, literally picking up sticks and resisting. And when I see how many of our girls and women are chewed up and crunched alive in the jaws of gender oppression, I feel less and less like 'nurturing' and 'teaching' and 'talking' and more and more like creating change through some serious ass kicking. Seriously.


http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/21/wo...r.html?hp&_r=0




NEW DELHI — Hundreds of demonstrators besieged New Delhi’s police headquarters on Saturday to protest the kidnapping, rape and torture of a 5-year-old girl last week.


The injured girl was moved Friday evening to New Delhi’s finest public hospital on a gurney covered with stuffed toys, and by Saturday she was alert and in stable condition, according to doctors there. She was being given fluids and intravenous antibiotics to fight a blood infection, the doctors said, and further operations will have to wait until the infection has abated.

Meanwhile, the police arrested a 22-year-old garment worker early Saturday morning in Bihar, said Rajan Bhagat, a Delhi police spokesman. The police identified the suspect as Manoj, who, like many Indians, uses only one name. He had recently married and was tracked down with the help of cellphone records in the town where his in-laws live, according to Indian news reports.

The suspect had an apartment in New Delhi in the same building as the girl, whom he is accused of abducting, raping and torturing last Sunday night. The Times of India reported that he told the police he fled his apartment shortly thereafter because he believed that the girl had died. The girl’s parents discovered her on Wednesday in the man’s apartment.

“This is the first time I have seen such barbarism,” R. K. Bansal, medical superintendent of Swami Dayanand Hospital, said Friday in a televised interview. “There were injuries on her lips, cheeks, arms and anus area. Her neck had bruise marks suggesting that attempts were made to strangle her.”

He said a bottle almost eight inches long and pieces of candle had been inserted “into her private parts.”

In December, a woman was gang-raped and tortured and her companion beaten in a case that shocked the nation and led to weeks of spontaneous protests by Indians demanding better security for women. That case led to changes in the country’s rape laws, but horrific sexual assaults continue to be reported around India with regularity. Whether women are less safe in India than in other emerging countries is uncertain, but rape and police competence have become burning political issues.

On Saturday, demonstrators sought to reawaken the outrage that convulsed India in December, but the day’s protests were far smaller and seemed less spontaneous.

Anger at the authorities began to build after the parents of the 5-year-old said that the police had failed to take their complaint seriously, failed to carry out an adequate search and then offered them 2,000 rupees — about $37 — if they would keep quiet about the case. Then on Friday, television news channels showed a large mustachioed police officer slapping a small female protester in the face.

The government’s concerns about the case ratcheted up so quickly on Friday night that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expressed regrets about the episode. And on Saturday, the president of the Indian National Congress Party, Sonia Gandhi — whose house was also the site of protests on Saturday — released a statement condemning the rape and saying that “action and not words are required to ensure that such incidents never happen again.”

Two police officers, including the lead investigator on the case and the one seen slapping the protester, were suspended. The lead investigator is being investigated after being accused of trying to bribe the child’s family to remain silent, said Mr. Bhagat, the police spokesman.

The quick arrest of the suspect may do little to calm the anger surrounding the case since fairly quick police work also led to the arrests of five suspects in the December rape case. Such rapid resolutions are not the norm in India, where highly politicized police forces and a backlogged and inefficient judiciary often mean that cases remain unresolved for years.

Hari Kumar contributed reporting.