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The phrase “war on women” has come up in the past couple of years and while many claim this is a hyperbole, it is true that legitimate legislation, which could negatively affect women in a variety of ways, has surfaced in Congress.
There are four primary areas where women are being affected: the economy, women’s rights and treatment in the workplace, the controversy over abortion and the issue of contraception.
A recent addition to Mitt Romney’s platform is an idea straight from the Tea Party movement: the repeal of Roe v. Wade.
Romney announced he would like to see it repealed if he is elected president, but he has also said that while abortion would be banned, there would be exceptions in the cases of “rape, incest and life of the mother.”
However, the term “forcible rape” is being thrown around among many conservatives to question the legitimacy and seriousness of an issue such as
rape. This certainly will be problematic for the first two cases Romney cited.
But Romney is not alone in this election season. Former Sen. George Allen, who is running against former Gov. Tim Kaine to replace Sen. James Webb, supports the repeal of Roe v. Wade, as well.
Additionally, the push against the “morning-after pill” and for “Personhood” bills also threatens the authority of women over their own lives and the choice of when to start a family.
The issue over contraception is equally complex, specifically due to the fact that contraception, like abortion, is not a black-and-white issue, and many conservatives turn a blind eye to the grey area in between.
According to NPR, the nonprofit Guttmacher Institute examined data from a survey completed by the National Survey of Family Growth and found that 14 percent of birth control pill users — or more than 1.5 million women — take the medication for a reason other than contraception.
The pill holds a large variety of medical uses other than contraception, including preventing migraines and reducing cramping associated with menstruation, regulating menstruation, controlling acne and controlling medical conditions such as endometriosis. Also noteworthy is only a minority of pill users — 42 percent — cited birth control as the main purpose for their usage.
Often ignored by politicians against contraception, the pill offers great health benefits for women all over the country and is often used for multiple purposes. The pill rightfully gives women control over their own bodies and can be essential to a woman’s health.
In the work force, women are also being impacted. According to Rolling Stone.com, women’s pay increases have stagnated in America, and women make an average of 23 percent less than men. Women, however, hold disproportionately more government jobs. The government cuts Romney has called for would result in a massive loss of public-sector jobs, thus impacting women more than men.
To put it into perspective, since June 2009, 601,000 government workers were put out of work due to budget cuts, and roughly two-thirds of those workers were women.
Politicians — primarily Republicans — have repeatedly voted against legislation proposed by Democrats to help women, such as the Paycheck Fairness Act.
After speaking with several women on these issues, they all expressed contempt for their lack of proper representation on these topics and believe women should have authority over their own bodies and the right to choose. They asserted the idea of more budgets cuts and fewer government jobs is daunting, and the anti-woman approach taken by many politicians and party talking-heads is reprehensible.
Unfortunately, with the exception of very conservative female politicians, legislation regarding women’s rights is constructed and argued over predominantly by men. For this very reason, it is imperative that women call out against these pieces of legislation, research these topics and write letters, columns, and stories to push our politicians away from legislation that could hurt the women of this country.
A version of this article appeared in the Oct 16 issue of the Collegiate Times.
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Just wanted to throw out there, Gary Johnson believes in a woman's right to choose and not limiting contraceptive options.
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The war on women is depressingly real.
It doesn't matter what a woman uses birth control for, it needs to be available for all of its reasons.
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Rather than call the phrase ' war on women ' I prefer to call it a ' war on God's word '.Those who believe in the sanctity of life and abortion as murder, are rightly echoing the statutes of God.What should be the 'safest ' place on this planet , in a women's womb, has become a ' killing field '.According to God, all life is sacred.Birth in wedlock or out of wedlock ,rape , incest,this person ,is created by God; " for you did form my inward parts; You did knit me together in my mother's womb"
.Psalm 139 : 13
A really big sticking point with God , who is the leading 'male'
expert on life issues, refutes the female mantra; 'control our own body'.
Are you ready?;' your body is not your own !'. 1 Cor.6 : 16-20
explains it very nicely.
You are obviously in BHO's democratic 'pro-death' camp. Along with abortion , gay marriaqge etc, the Democratic platform truly lives up to what Romans chapter 1 describes. ( special emphasis on verse 32)
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Romney doesn't care about women. Pop quiz; how many female partners were at Bain Capital when Romney was there? Zero. How many female partners are there now? 3 out of 49.
Romney only hired women when the government of Massachusetts was footing the bill.
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I agree 100% that women should control their own bodies. However, your rights end (or should) when they infringe on the rights of another. There is absolutely NO scientific disagreement regarding when life begins (that I've seen, but I welcome correction). A distinct, genetically unique individual exists at the moment of conception - a new human being. Please don't bring up "personhood". That is a red herring of the bioethicist, philosopher, etc realm and is an entirely different issue and impacts lots of other stuff. IMO that entire branch of the discussion regarding abortion is used to deflect the fact that the pro-choice side of the debate is not based in science but rather control/politics/etc.
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Other than the "morning after" area, where is contraception availability threatened?
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Interesting study of the wage gap - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwogDPh-Sow&feature=BFa&list=PLD78A4CA3338CFA7E
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Here is a link (add the www since the CT is scared of links) to an interesting wage gap study - youtube.com/watch?v=EwogDPh-Sow&feature=BFa&list=PLD78A4CA3338CFA7E
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I'm late to the party here but this column is so full of nonsense I have to respond. Not surprising when the writer's sources are NPR and Rolling Stone (to be fair I'm sure he also reads the Huffington Post and watches MSNBC for balance.) So, to begin with, if the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade it would only throw the abortion issue back to the states, where it belongs. Even liberals who support abortion admit that Roe v Wade is bad law and that the decision exacerbated the issue unnecessarily. As for Mitt Romney, while he'd like to see it repealed, he said he understands that's not where the country is at now. REPEAL OF ROW V WADE WOULD NOT END ABORTION IT WOULD ONLY LEAVE THE ISSUE UP TO THE INDIVIDUAL STATES.
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While I'm at it, does the writer think their is a competing interest when it comes to abortion? You know, the baby? Do the interests of the baby ever get taken into consideration? Or, is anyone who is uncomfortable with ending a life in the womb and suggests limitations to abortion, however minor, waging a 'war on women'? Just wondering. Since he implies that he is against "Personhood" bills which claim life starts at conception I suspect he thinks of the baby as expendable. Question: according to the writer, when does life begin? When, in the continuum from conception to birth, does the right to life that all of us have apply to that baby in the womb?
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As for contraception, who is trying to limit it? Who has even suggested banning the pill? The writer mentions the "morning after pill" and then goes on to describe the wonders of the traditional birth control pill, not at all the same thing. Talk about a straw man. When Romney was asked about contraception he said, "contraception is working fine, leave it alone." The issue is not limiting contraception but Obamacare forcing Catholic institutions to provide it to their workers against the teachings of their faith, a direct violation of the 1st amendment. Obamacare also forces the tax payer to pay for other's contraception. Under what theory of government am I required to use my tax dollars to pay for other people's contraception? Please explain.
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Finally, there are laws on the books stating you cannot pay a woman less than a man for the same work. The U.S. Census statistic showing women only make 77 cents per dollar that a man makes compares all jobs done by men and women, not the same jobs. The reason for the discrepanct is that women traditionally go into lower paying jobs, and they also take breaks in the middle of their careers to have children. That said, women have made tremendous strides within the work place over the past thirty years and their numbers in upper level management positions increase year by year.
Oh wait, perhaps we shouldn't count the last four years since everyone has sufferred during that period.
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I don't think as a male my health insurance should increase because of women's health.
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