Women make up only about 20 percent of Congress and only 12 percent of our governors. Women publish less than 25 percent of op-eds in major newspapers and make up less than half of law firm and accounting firm partners. Women might make up over 50 percent of the work force these days, but that [...]
The White House just released the list of guests who will be joining Michelle Obama in the traditional First Lady's Seating Box for the State of the Union address. There are always some Americans invited whose stories are personally compelling and add something along the lines of what sportscasters call "color commentary" for an event. [...]
When I was first starting out as a young journalist, I believed there was no question that I would get paid the same salary as men doing the same job. After all, we'd come a long way, right? Women were not just "weather girls" anymore; we were becoming investigative journalists and sports anchors and producers. [...]
I sometimes use my experiences as PunditGirl's mother as a lens through which to view issues that are important to me. But PunditGirl isn't the only daughter in my life. I also have two adult step-daughters. They don't need me much at this stage of the game -- they're women with their own professional [...]
The Supreme Court has told one and a half million women who work at Wal-mart, in essence, be grateful you have jobs even if you make less money and get promoted less than men. Now, shut up and go home. That was the practical upshot of the ruling in the highly-watched case Dukes v. Wal-mart. [...]
This one was one of my favorites from last year. So I figured -- if it was good enough for Mother's Day 2010, it should still be good for 2011! Sure, I get to leave the dishes in the sink and the dirty laundry in the hamper today. And it's great that "some people" (you [...]
Welcome the latest installment Mothers of Intention! Pleas welcome Becky Beaupre Gillespie and Hollee Schwartz Temple, the authors of the new book, Good Enough Is the New Perfect: Finding Happiness and Success in Modern Motherhood. While I haven't had a chance to dig into this book yet, I'm looking forward to it because I've been [...]
A couple of months ago, I wondered what would happen for about 1.5 million women when the Supreme Court got its hands on the class-action, gender-discrimination lawsuit against corporate giant Wal-Mart. That's the approximate number of plaintiffs in the case who have alleged they've been victims of institutional efforts by Wal-mart to promote men over [...]
007 gets schooled by "M" on International Women's Day. What do you say -- Judi Dench in 2012? And I think Daniel Craig might look better as a redhead.
I don't want to see a conspiracy where there isn't one, but as some politicians push to cut reproductive and economic rights for women, it's hard not to view other efforts that would disproportionately impact women through that same lens of attack. So when labor statistics suggest that moves to weaken unions at the state [...]
The White House chose Women's History Month to release a new report on the status of American women called "Women in America: Indicators of Social and Economic Well-Being." The good news is that it's the first comprehensive report in about 50 years that presents an overall picture of how women are faring in a variety [...]
I've never been to Minnesota, but I'm a big fan -- I like it's current Senators Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken ('cause he was smart enough, good enough and gosh darn it the voters liked him!), someone was ingenious enough to come up with the idea of connecting most of the buildings in downtown Minneapolis [...]
Yup, still nose to the computer keyboard here for the never-ending manuscript edits! But that doesn't mean you can't find me some other cool places in the blogosphere! There's plenty of blame to go around for the failure of the Senate to even allow debate and a vote on the Paycheck Fairness Act. I'm definitely [...]
Do I really have to put on my "good girl" face if I want to be treated fairly by employers rather than just having a straightforward conversation about why I, as a woman, am deserving of equal pay for equal work? According to a recent report, it looks like assuming that I'll get paid the [...]
I'm pretty happy that President Obama has nominated another woman to the Supreme Court -- three out of nine still isn't the ratio I'd like to see of women to men, but it's a great step in the right direction. Last year, when Sonia Sotomayor was nominated to the highest court in the land, I [...]
It's down to the wire with the Mothers of Intention manuscript -- = : O -- so here are a few things I thought you'd like while I'm burning the midnight oil: In case you missed it, check out the NEWSWEEK story about the 40th anniversary of the gender discrimination lawsuit filed against it by [...]
Where can you find me this weekend while I'm trying to crank out the last chapter of Mothers of Intention? Check out my weekly column Speaker of the House at The Stir -- this week, I wonder how far we've really come since some brave women sued Newsweek for gender discrimination 40 year ago. See [...]
I'm glad there are some other people weighing in on some topics on my mind: --My fellow MOMocrats and I are having a little Super Bowl Party Tailgate Party for Choice. -- The Women's Media Center is also thinking about the controversial Super Bowl from Focus on the Family and is wondering, what does CBS [...]
I had a chance to be on a conference call this week with Lilly Ledbetter, the woman who has become an icon in the fight for fair pay and equal status for women in the workplace. While the a law bearing her name was signed into law a year ago, The Lilly Ledbetter Act doesn't [...]
I've had some interesting comments in E-mail discussions, Facebook posts, Twitter and other places about my last post on the attempts being made by former Congressman Harold Ford and his cadre of wealthy backers to push Kirsten Gillibrand out of her seat in the U.S. Senate. Because Gillibrand was appointed as Hillary Clinton's replacement, a [...]
Think you're getting shut out of prime work assignments because you have to do school pick-up? Have a feeling the "boys" are getting more parenting-credit at the office for going to a soccer game than you are for pediatrician's appointments? If so, you may be able to hold your bosses legally accountable. There's been increased [...]
As I started to write this post, I realized I was at a bit of a loss. I love writing about fair pay for women, health care for children and better schools, but I just couldn't help wondering why there's still a need to be writing about them? I'd like to think that in 2009, [...]
Once upon a time, in a land that now seems very far away, a 19-year-old girl landed what she thought at the time was her dream job -- a position as an on-air television reporter! It wasn't in a major city or anything, but she thought she was well on her way to the ultimate [...]
