|
Issues | ||
July/August 2005Republican priorities not in line with women's valuesA new report by EMILY's List, Women at the Center of Political Change, finds that the majority of women voters do not support President Bush, and many of the women who voted for Bush in 2004 are quickly losing confidence in his leadership. Women are more likely to vote for a Democratic candidate in a congressional election than for a Republican candidate. The report reveals a connection between women's waning support for the current Administration and their personal values and political views. When polled, a majority of women said that taking care of the needs of other people is their most important role. Women cited caring about people in need, providing equality of opportunity, and the importance of family, as some of the most critical values for elected leaders. However, many women polled believed the Republican leadership infringed upon these values by making cuts to critical health care programs, such as Medicaid, and by seeking to privatize Social Security. Women also reported that the government is overstepping its boundaries by promoting religion and morality. Women see themselves as the arbitrator of family values and expect their elected leaders to respect this role by not intruding into family privacy. Today, women are looking toward the Democrats for a national agenda that protects working families, strengthens economic security, and recognizes the important roles that women play in society. The Women's Monitor Survey began in 1996 as a tool to assess the role that women voters play in federal elections. Today, the Monitor serves as an important way to track women's voting preferences in both federal and congressional elections, as well as to foster a greater understanding of the perceptions that shape women's political views. For more information, and a copy of the report, check out the EMILY'S List website. Supreme Court nominee critical of women's rightsNewly released documents from Judge Roberts' time as an associate counsel in the Reagan White House reveal a stark hostility toward women's rights. The papers, which consist of memos, letters and other writings, offer the most extensive indication of Roberts' views on core women's issues, such as pay equity and equal opportunity in the workplace. In these papers, Roberts criticizes a report on state efforts to combat sex discrimination in the workplace and calls the concept of comparable worth for women as "staggeringly pernicious" and "anti-capitalist". He also disparages what he calls "the purported gender gap" and the "perceived problems" of gender bias, according to the Washington Post. In one memo from 1985, Roberts questioned "whether encouraging homemakers to become lawyers contributes to the common good." Roberts was assigned to look into ethical issues of a White House staff member entering a contest to honor women who changed their lives after 30, according to the Washington Post. While he found no legal objections to her participation, he noted that as an assistant dean at a law school the staffer encouraged homemakers to become lawyers. His comment about homemakers is startling and reveals a distain for women's advancement. Roberts' record raises serious concerns for women. Although Roberts has a limited record as a sitting judge, these papers document views that are outside the mainstream. Please contact your Senators and urge them to thoroughly review Roberts' background and demand a full accounting of his activities while he worked in the Reagan and Bush administrations. Supreme Court hearings will begin this September when the Senate reconvenes after Labor Day. Renewed push for private accountsIn early July, House Republican leaders announced they will do everything they can to hold a vote on private accounts following the August recess. Recently, Republicans introduced a bill into the House that incorporates private accounts into the Social Security program. However, the bill does nothing to address the solvency issues of the program. Without a strong and solvent program, women's economic security in retirement is in jeopardy. Rep. McCrery (R-LA) introduced his private accounts bill into the House on July 15, 2005. Keeping pace with the House agenda, Sen. DeMint (R-SC) introduced a companion bill into the Senate. The bill finances personal accounts through purchasing Treasury bonds with the surplus money from payroll taxes collected each year through 2016. However, because the Trust Fund is not expected to run a surplus after 2018, the proposal is not financially feasible for future generations and does not improve the solvency of Social Security. In fact, Stephen Goss, Chief Actuary of the Social Security Administration, estimates that this plan would increase the national debt over 11 years by $851 billion. Social Security protects working families and provides economic security for women of all ages. The next few months are critical to ensuring that guaranteed benefits for women and their families are protected. Mobilize your families and friends, and reach out to your elected officials. Together, we can win the fight for a secure future for all women! Bankruptcy reform bill: Kicks women when they're downThe new Bankruptcy Reform Bill, signed into law on April 20, 2005, will make it harder for working women to wipe away their debts and start anew. According to the Consumer Bankruptcy Project, a Harvard University-based think tank, in 2001, the average debtor was a forty-one year old woman with children and at least some college education. These women filed bankruptcy due to job loss, divorce, or medical crises. In fact, 46 percent of debtors were forced to file bankruptcy due to illness or medical bills exceeding $1,000. About 800,000 families in bankruptcy have experienced serious medical problems, and with women being much less likely to have employer-sponsored health insurance than men, medical expenses can have a very damaging effect on the financial stability of working women. Additionally, a single mother is four times more likely to file bankruptcy than a single woman with no dependents. In the past, people who had no hope of repaying their debts were able to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, meaning they could turn over some of their assets in order to have their debt erased. Under the new reform bill, the standards are much more difficult to meet, forcing many to file for Chapter 13 bankruptcy. Under Chapter 13, debtors' wages are garnished based on a strict repayment schedule over a number of years in order to pay back as many creditors as possible. Such an arrangement further decreases the income debtors have to meet the basic needs of their families. The new bankruptcy reforms are punitive to Americans who want to pay their debts, but are forced to file bankruptcy due to insurmountable medical bills. Rather than reforming the bankruptcy statutes, the administration should focus on the real problems facing working women and their families - unaffordable healthcare and millions of Americans families living without health insurance. U.S. Ranks low on women's empowermentAccording to a new report by the World Economic Forum, the United States is failing women in areas critical to their overall empowerment — health and well being and economic opportunity. The report, "Women's Empowerment: Measuring the Global Gender Gap," measured women's equality with men in five critical areas: economic participation, economic opportunity, political empowerment, educational attainment, and health and well-being. Scores in each area were used to determine an overall rank. Fifty-eight nations, including the U.S., were measured. The U.S. ranked 17th overall. The top ten countries included:
Although the U.S. scored well on women's educational attainment, economic participation, and political empowerment, it received poor marks in economic opportunity and health and well-being. Moreover, the report states that the U.S. rank is brought down by the category of health and well-being. In comparison with other developed nations, the U.S. has a large number of adolescents bearing children and a high maternal mortality ratio despite the relatively high number of physicians available. Other factors contributing to the low score were meager maternity leave, lack of maternity leave benefits and limited government-provided childcare. The U.S. also ranked low on economic opportunity, which according to the study corroborates the much-discussed "glass ceiling." While American women have generally high levels of economic participation, the study suggests that they are also subjected to a lack of opportunity for advancement in their careers. For economic participation, the Forum measures the number of women in the workforce and the remuneration they receive (for equal work) compared to men. The Forum hopes that by identifying and quantifying the gender gap of nations they will provide policy-makers with a tool to help significantly improve the economic, political and social potential of all their citizens. Read or download the report. New work family guideA new guide for activists, unions and community groups interested in forwarding a work and family agenda is now available! A Job and A Life: Organizing and Bargaining for Work Family Issues was recently published by the Labor Project for Working Families. For over 10 years, the Labor Project for Working Families has worked with unions, union members, community groups, organizations and other activists on work and family issues across the country. A Job and A Life is a 90-page guide that provides tools to advance a successful work and family agenda. It focuses on starting work/family committees; developing work/family surveys; negotiating family-friendly contract language and understanding current state family leave laws and how to develop new ones. The publication costs $10 plus shipping. To order a copy, call (510) 643-7088 or visit the Labor Project for Working Families website. You may also order, free of charge, the AFSCME Guide to Winning Work/Family Programs, and Eldercare: An AFSCME Guide for Families and Unions, by contacting the Women's Rights Department at (202) 429-5090 or by downloading a copy online. WomENews is produced by the Women's Rights Department and written by Quinci Moody, Harream Purdie, and Amy Vance.
|
 |
||
.gif)
