The TSA Grope–Concerns Raised Regarding Pregnant Women, Breast Cancer Survivors And More

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Nov 172010
 

Having already written about the new TSA scanners and  pat-downs twice this week, I’ll keep this brief.  However, a number of other serious concerns have been raised that I think need to be considered:

  1. The new  pat-down procedure could be extremely painful and embarrassing for someone who has had any kind of breast surgery and particularly for breast cancer victims.
  2. Ditto for men who have had prostrate or testicular surgery.
  3. The groping pat-downs could be a major trigger for anyone who has ever been physically assaulted, especially sexual abuse victims.
  4. They could be very uncomfortable for pregnant women who certainly will not want to be exposed to radiation from the scanners.
  5. A given dose of radiation has a much greater impact on a small child than an adult.
  6. There are already videos of TSA personnel roughly searching children.  Traumatizing children in this manner should never be acceptable.

Bottom line, we really don’t need to worry about terrorists anymore.  We are terrorizing ourselves.

———-

Okay, forget the promise of brevity, this is an excellent comment on the issue of triggering for sexual assault victims:

A woman who has been sexually victimized through molestation and rape is more likely to have triggers, flashbacks, and panic attacks of the incident ensuing from words, images, and actions that remind her that her body is no longer sacred. For a rape victim, an enhanced pat down from a stranger in public may come with emotional consequences for her, altering a simple flight to an incident of victimization.

We all may be unsuspecting victims to the delight of certain security personnel. According to Peter Bacqué of WSLS 10 News in Roanoke, VA, TSA ordered Richmond airport to give the highest level of security clearance to a convicted felon even after he was cited for falsifying his employment application.

And as this post points out, there is a lot of concern about the policy in trans communities.

Finally, check out this mashup video of incident after incident after incident of abuse being committed by TSA agents.

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 Posted by Fempeace on November 17, 2010

Tell The FDA To Adhere To Court Order Ending Age Restrictions On Emergency Contraception

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Nov 172010
 

The Center for Reproductive Rights is taking the FDA back to court, 

for ignoring a March 2009 court order to end age restrictions on emergency contraception.

The FDA is not above the law and should have to follow a court order (not to mention overwhelming scientific evidence) just like everyone else. We hope you’ll share this case with your readers and encourage them to take action against the FDA with us.

The restrictions were originally put in place during the Bush administration because they didn’t want young women to have access to EC. Medical and scientific consensus provides no rationale for age restrictions on EC, and a court ruled in the Center’s favor in 2009 and ordered the FDA to reconsider its policy.

The judge trusted that the Obama administration would do the right thing and reverse course, but fast forward a year and a half and the FDA continues to make excuses. What’s worse is that at the start of his administration, President Obama declared that politics would no longer play a role in U.S. science policy, stating, “we make scientific decisions based on facts, not ideology.”

The Center first sued the FDA in 2005, and even a 2009 victory  hasn’t driven the message home to the White House that women of all ages deserve quick, safe access to emergency contraception

Take Action and send a message to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg.  And since you absolutely shouldn’t have a conversation about contraception without bunnies, enjoy:

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 Posted by Fempeace on November 17, 2010

Pushing Back Against The Barbie And Ken Paradigm

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May 172010
 

Just watch it:

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 Posted by Fempeace on May 17, 2010

Great Resource For Teaching About Teen Dating Violence

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Mar 262009
 

Press Release from the Family Violence Prevention Fund:

Teen Dating Violence – Teachers Can Make a DifferenceInnovative New Resource Helps English Teachers
Use Existing Texts to Encourage Teens to Say ‘No’ to Violence

SAN FRANCISCO – One of the nation’s violence prevention leaders and a national educational organization that promotes student achievement today unveiled an innovative new resource designed to help teachers incorporate violence prevention lessons into existing curricula.  The Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF) and the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) released Lessons from Literature, a free online resource that gives English teachers a framework to use the novels, poems, plays and stories they’re already teaching to help their students build healthy, non-violent relationships.

Its website  is the central hub of the program, where teachers can download a Classroom Manual and access other resources.  The Lessons from Literature program includes:

  • Lesson plans aligned with National Standards for the English Language Arts that address themes of abuse, violence, inequality, family/interpersonal issues, and more;
    A Lesson Template that serves as a guide for teachers to create or modify their own lessons;
  • Materials, including handouts and fact sheets on teen dating abuse, to prepare teachers and students to discuss abuse;
  • An online resource library of  books, poems, songs, movies and more to help build creative and meaningful exercises into pre-existing lessons; and
  • Opportunities for teachers to share lesson plans, ideas, resources and experiences with each other and to identify professional development opportunities through this work.

“Teachers are powerful influencers, motivators and leaders,” said FVPF President Esta Soler.  “Lessons from Literature is a groundbreaking tool that will make it easy for teachers to help students develop the skills to recognize and avoid dating violence so they can build healthy relationships.  We are so proud to partner with the National Council of Teachers of English.  Its reach will do so much to position educators to increase awareness about the damaging effects of physical, sexual and verbal abuse.”

Continue reading »

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 Posted by Fempeace on March 26, 2009

Girls Scouts And Microsoft Create Website About Internet Sexual Predators

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Feb 252009
 

Microsoft and Girl Scouts of America have teamed up to create a pair of websites called Let Me Know about cyber-bullying and online sexual predators. One site is for teenagers the other is for their parents.

I was particularly struck by a section called, Does Fear of Internet Sexual Predators Influence What You Do Online? which addresses the cyber version of the fear that girls and women have always felt in the real world.

While some of the information for parents is useful, the site for girls is a bit lame. It talks about social networking, and has some good videos–but there is no way to link the articles or videos to My Space, Facebook, etc. which would be a hugely useful way to spread the word further. There is also a “digital patch” that looks like a Girl Scout Badge that you can get, but you have to register first, which I didn’t bother with, would be more likely that people would just put it on their sites if they just gave you the code. In other words, the site looks more like it was designed by parents than kids even though many young women have contributed their thoughts to the site. Good effort, but could be a tad more connected.

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 Posted by Fempeace on February 25, 2009
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