National Organization for Women:
News & Action Summary
OCTOBER 25, 2011
IN THIS ISSUE:
Join NOW in advocating that women's access to abortion care coverage be made simple and affordable under the new health care reform law. Send your comments to Health and Human Services by Oct. 31. Take Action NOW!
Join the Veteran Feminists of America (VFA) in celebrating the 45th Anniversary of the Modern Feminist Movement. At the gala awards dinner, Gloria Steinem will present a Lifetime Achievement Award to NOW President Terry O'Neill! Read more.
After serving as the representative for Wisconsin's 2nd congressional district since 1999, Tammy Baldwin launched her bid for the state's open Senate seat with NOW/PAC's endorsement. Baldwin faces competition in the primary, and a number of Republicans have entered the race to battle for the seat, left open by retiring Sen. Herb Kohl (D). Read more.
NOW/PAC is pleased to endorse Democrat Susan Bysiewicz in her bid for U.S. Senate. Bysiewicz is one of four Democrats vying for the seat of retiring Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman. She could face Linda McMahon (R) in the general, who ran a close senate race in 2010 and is considering another run in 2012. Read more.
Suzanne Bonamici (D) is running a special election, following the resignation of Rep. David Wu. The primary is this Nov. 8 quickly followed by a general election on Jan. 31, 2012. Oregon has had no women in their congressional delegation in recent years making Bonamici's candidacy especially important for women's rights supporters. Read more.
NOW has joined national groups calling on TransUnion to discontinue its sale of credit reports to employers, which have a discriminatory impact on women, people of color, people with disabilities and the elderly. TransUnion has led the credit reporting industry in fighting state legislation that would restrict the ability of employers to check credit on job applicants. Read more.
In its comments to the Department of Health and Human Services, NOW recommended that extraordinary measures be taken to assure that the maximum number of women are able to obtain insurance coverage for abortion care, at a reasonable cost, under the new health care reform law. Read more.
On Oct. 19, the National Organization for Women Foundation celebrated its 14th annual Love Your Body Day -- a day when women of all sizes, colors, ages and abilities come together to celebrate self-acceptance and to promote positive body image. Read more.
NOW Foundation submitted comments to the Department of Labor expressing support for a new comprehensive survey of federal contractors to improve enforcement of laws prohibiting pay discrimination. Such information could help shrink the stubborn gender wage gap and would encourage employers to voluntarily comply with the law as they could better gauge their pay policies. Read more.
The U.N. Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women (SR VAW), Rashida Manjoo Esq., discusses the report she made to the U.N. General Assembly on Oct. 10 about the situation of violence against women in the U.S. Read more.
