Tuesday, April 9, 2024, will go down in history. It is the day that far-right extremists got what they wanted in Arizona: a near-total ban on abortion. It is the day the Arizona Supreme Court turned the clock back 160 years—to a time before women could vote and before Arizona was even a state. It is a day that we will look back on with shame and horror. Like so many Arizona moms, my first thought was of my daughter, who was born last July in a post-Roe America. While we cannot snap our fingers and change the dynamic at the U.S. or Arizona Supreme Court, we can make our voices heard at the ball ..read more

In 1864, Arizona—which was an official territory of the United States—was a vast desert. Women in Arizona could not vote, serve on juries or exercise full control over property in a marriage. They had no direct say in laws governing their bodies. Hispanic and African American women had even fewer rights than white women. The Arizona Supreme Court ruled on April 9, 2024, that a 160-year-old abortion ban passed during this territorial period will go into effect. Since that ruling, the Arizona legislature has been grappling with how to handle the near-total ban. Even if the ban is ..read more

In the wake of Dobbs, while most abortion-restrictive states have maintained an exception to preserve the health of the pregnant woman, a handful of ban states—including Idaho—no longer permit abortions needed to protect a pregnant person’s health. The Biden administration says this is in direct conflict with the federal statute EMTALA. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar encapsulated what Justice Sotomayor referred to as the “big daylight” between the two laws: "In Idaho, doctors have to shut their eyes to everything except death—whereas, under EMTALA, you're supposed to be thinking about th ..read more

Taylor Swift commands a lot of attention. In mere days since its release, her 11th album The Tortured Poets Department, which is a lengthy 31 songs and runs over two hours, became the most streamed album in a single week and the first to reach over one billion streams on Spotify. To some, such success seems ... well, excessive. It's hard not to notice such takedowns targeted at Swift amid her breakneck success might have something to do with her gender. The post Who’s Afraid of Taylor Swift? appeared first on Ms. Magazine ..read more

Weekend Reading for Women's Representation is a compilation of stories about women's representation.  This week, read about the violent experiences women election workers face, especially since the 2020 election; explore the intersection between environmental justice and feminism; celebrate Fort Wayne’s first Black woman mayor; and multiple women candidates running for seats in Beaufort County, S.C. Finally, learn about women’s representation in the Indian elections. The post Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation: Women in S.C. Make a Play to Unseat the GOP; Exploring the Roots of Env ..read more

Regressive ideas about manhood underlie the anti-democracy movement plaguing the U.S. Men whose politics are to the left of center can do their part to counteract the right’s success in playing identity politics with white male voters. Here's where we start. (This article originally appears in the Spring 2024 issue of Ms. Join the Ms. community today and you’ll get issues delivered straight to your mailbox!) The post Men Need a New Narrative. The Future of U.S. Democracy Depends on It appeared first on Ms. Magazine ..read more

The narrowing of options for physicians in Idaho leaves them in a bind: Do you perform an abortion that could save a woman’s life or her organs, as dictated by EMTALA, or will you face penalties under Idaho law?  Oral arguments can sometimes reveal how the justices of the Supreme Court are approaching the issue at hand. The questions asked by the justices suggest three things: a lack of clarity under Idaho law; abortion as the standard of care; and acknowledgement of fetal personhood. The post ‘Tragedy Upon Tragedy’: What the Justices’ Questions on EMTALA Revealed appeared first on M ..read more

We’ve come to the point in post-Dobbs America where the legal system, and the nation’s highest Court, are now entertaining questions about how long is too long for a woman to have to wait to receive emergency care when her organs—including her reproductive organs—are in danger. Will women again be failed by this Court? Or will the justices finally be able to look at the devastation they have caused to women and families and not blink?  The post Will the Supreme Court Dump Women’s Lives and Futures *Again*? appeared first on Ms. Magazine ..read more

The United States Department of Education last week released its much-anticipated amendments to the existing Title IX regulations—which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any education program or activity that receives federal financial assistance.  The amendments make substantial changes to the existing Title IX regulations. Experts anticipate these new changes will result in an increase in the number of Title IX complaints, since they broaden the protections of Title IX. The Education Department is requiring all schools implement the new 2024 regulations by Aug. 1.&nbs ..read more

Happy April, and Happy National Poetry Month. Enjoy this list of the most exciting and extraordinary poetry titles I've read in the last year. I hope you find some collections that will have you reflecting on how poetry moves you, challenges you and represents you.  The post Reads for the Rest of Us: The Best Poetry of ’23-’24 appeared first on Ms. Magazine ..read more