Lenora Lapidus for WomensENews
Inter Press Service English News Wire
03-26-2004
NEW YORK, Mar. 26 (IPS/GIN) -- March is women's history month
and it gave women much to celebrate.
Since the 1970s, a hard-won set of federal and state laws have
banned sex discrimination in the workplace, in the nation's
classrooms and the housing sector.
Likewise, since the Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade in 1973,
the Constitution has guaranteed women the right to decide--free
from government interference whether to end a pregnancy.
These protections ensure that girls can aspire to build
independent lives for themselves and their families.
Despite the gains, women -- and in particular women of color -
- still earn far less than men for the same work. For every dollar
earned by a white man, white women earn 72 cents, while
African-American women earn 65 cents and Hispanic women earn 53
cents.
On April 25, at the March for Women's Lives in Washington, D.C.,
women will have the unique opportunity to collectively say to the
nation and the world: Women's equality depends on reproductive
freedom for all. Without meaningful access to contraception,
abortion, prenatal care and childbearing assistance--as well as
quality child care, secure housing and educational and economic
opportunities--equality for women will remain an empty promise for
too many.
The earning gap is only the beginning. Girls do not always have
access to the same educational, athletic and leadership
opportunities as boys.
Victims of domestic violence can be kicked out of public housing
simply because they have been abused. Immigrant women working in
service industries such as restaurants, hotels and garment
factories are often exploited and face discrimination. And for many
poor women, young women and those living in rural areas, the right
to make decisions about their own reproductive lives is a phantom
right, promised to all, but enjoyed by only a privileged few.
Yet, the ACLU Women's Rights Project works every day with women
whose dreams are derailed by injustice. Many of the roadblocks
women face in employment, housing, and education are linked either
directly or indirectly to reproductive rights issues. Some recent
cases make this connection clear.
Pregnant Officers at Risk A group of female officers in Suffolk
County, N.Y., came to the project seeking relief from a department
policy denying pregnant officers the opportunity to go on 'light
duty.' Instead the department forced pregnant officers to either
take leave or remain on 'full duty' even though they were not given
maternity-sized bullet-proof vests or gun belts.
The policy placed women in an untenable position: They could
continue to work and risk their health and safety or they could go
on leave and lose salary and seniority. The Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission in June 2003 agreed with our challenge and
found that the policy discriminated against pregnant officers.
Despite this finding, the county has yet to settle the case and we
await a hearing in federal court.
Welfare Excludes Some Children Since the passage of the 1996
welfare law, federal law permits states to deny public assistance
to children born into a family already receiving benefits. The
policy, known as a child exclusion policy, effectively coerces poor
women's reproductive choices, discriminates against children based
on the circumstances of their birth and, as research shows, does
nothing to help move women from welfare to work.
The Nebraska Supreme Court recently struck down that state's
child exclusion law as applied to disabled parents who are unable
to work. A legal challenge in New Jersey arguing that the state's
policy interfered with poor women's right to choose to bear a child
failed, however, leaving poor women on public assistance who become
pregnant with few options and scant resources. We are now pursuing
a legislative advocacy strategy to repeal this harmful law; similar
child exclusion laws were repealed in Maryland and Illinois in 2002
and 2003.
Honor Society Bars Teen Mothers When two high school girls in
Kentucky were denied membership in the National Honor Society
simply because they were teen mothers, the ACLU's Women's Rights
Project in 1998 sued the local school district. Both girls had
maintained a 3.5-grade-point average and had been involved in other
school activities, as required by Honor Society guidelines. The
case eventually was settled, and the school district was barred
from discriminating on the basis of gender or pregnancy in
selecting students to become members of the society. After
monitoring compliance with the settlement for several years, the
case was finally closed last month.
Without reproductive freedom, women cannot fully participate in
the work force, fully provide for their families or get the
educations they need.
The Women's Rights Project will be marching in April because
reproductive rights are fundamental to women's equality.
(WomensEnews, a service of news that matters to women, is
distributed by Global Information Network and available at
www.womensEnews.org)
Copyright 2004 IPS/GIN. The contents of this story can not be duplicated in any fashion without written permission of Global Information Network
Inter Press Service English News Wire
03-26-2004
NEW YORK, Mar. 26 (IPS/GIN) -- March is women's history month
and it gave women much to celebrate.
Since the 1970s, a hard-won set of federal and state laws have
banned sex discrimination in the workplace, in the nation's
classrooms and the housing sector.
Likewise, since the Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade in 1973,
the Constitution has guaranteed women the right to decide--free
from government interference whether to end a pregnancy.
These protections ensure that girls can aspire to build
independent lives for themselves and their families.
Despite the gains, women -- and in particular women of color -
- still earn far less than men for the same work. For every dollar
earned by a white man, white women earn 72 cents, while
African-American women earn 65 cents and Hispanic women earn 53
cents.
On April 25, at the March for Women's Lives in Washington, D.C.,
women will have the unique opportunity to collectively say to the
nation and the world: Women's equality depends on reproductive
freedom for all. Without meaningful access to contraception,
abortion, prenatal care and childbearing assistance--as well as
quality child care, secure housing and educational and economic
opportunities--equality for women will remain an empty promise for
too many.
The earning gap is only the beginning. Girls do not always have
access to the same educational, athletic and leadership
opportunities as boys.
Victims of domestic violence can be kicked out of public housing
simply because they have been abused. Immigrant women working in
service industries such as restaurants, hotels and garment
factories are often exploited and face discrimination. And for many
poor women, young women and those living in rural areas, the right
to make decisions about their own reproductive lives is a phantom
right, promised to all, but enjoyed by only a privileged few.
Yet, the ACLU Women's Rights Project works every day with women
whose dreams are derailed by injustice. Many of the roadblocks
women face in employment, housing, and education are linked either
directly or indirectly to reproductive rights issues. Some recent
cases make this connection clear.
Pregnant Officers at Risk A group of female officers in Suffolk
County, N.Y., came to the project seeking relief from a department
policy denying pregnant officers the opportunity to go on 'light
duty.' Instead the department forced pregnant officers to either
take leave or remain on 'full duty' even though they were not given
maternity-sized bullet-proof vests or gun belts.
The policy placed women in an untenable position: They could
continue to work and risk their health and safety or they could go
on leave and lose salary and seniority. The Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission in June 2003 agreed with our challenge and
found that the policy discriminated against pregnant officers.
Despite this finding, the county has yet to settle the case and we
await a hearing in federal court.
Welfare Excludes Some Children Since the passage of the 1996
welfare law, federal law permits states to deny public assistance
to children born into a family already receiving benefits. The
policy, known as a child exclusion policy, effectively coerces poor
women's reproductive choices, discriminates against children based
on the circumstances of their birth and, as research shows, does
nothing to help move women from welfare to work.
The Nebraska Supreme Court recently struck down that state's
child exclusion law as applied to disabled parents who are unable
to work. A legal challenge in New Jersey arguing that the state's
policy interfered with poor women's right to choose to bear a child
failed, however, leaving poor women on public assistance who become
pregnant with few options and scant resources. We are now pursuing
a legislative advocacy strategy to repeal this harmful law; similar
child exclusion laws were repealed in Maryland and Illinois in 2002
and 2003.
Honor Society Bars Teen Mothers When two high school girls in
Kentucky were denied membership in the National Honor Society
simply because they were teen mothers, the ACLU's Women's Rights
Project in 1998 sued the local school district. Both girls had
maintained a 3.5-grade-point average and had been involved in other
school activities, as required by Honor Society guidelines. The
case eventually was settled, and the school district was barred
from discriminating on the basis of gender or pregnancy in
selecting students to become members of the society. After
monitoring compliance with the settlement for several years, the
case was finally closed last month.
Without reproductive freedom, women cannot fully participate in
the work force, fully provide for their families or get the
educations they need.
The Women's Rights Project will be marching in April because
reproductive rights are fundamental to women's equality.
(WomensEnews, a service of news that matters to women, is
distributed by Global Information Network and available at
www.womensEnews.org)
Copyright 2004 IPS/GIN. The contents of this story can not be duplicated in any fashion without written permission of Global Information Network
