Cinemas in Sweden are introducing a classification system similar to age of audience test to determine gender representation and equality in films. If a movie passes the Bechdel Test, it would get an A grade; similar to if the film had no violence, nudity or coarse language it would get a G rating. The Bechdel…
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A Kuwaiti woman was arrested in Saudi Arabia earlier this week for driving her diabetic father to a hospital. The latest incident comes just days after more than 60 women filmed themselves driving and posted the videos online in protest against the country’s ban against women driving without being accompanied by a male companion. Although…
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Texas judge rules new abortion restrictions unconstitutional. Despite Wendy Davis’ 11-hour filibuster blocking a super restrictive anti-abortion law in Texas, the law passed in July, banning abortions after 20 weeks and requiring doctors to perform abortions at special facilities. But the good news is that this week a judge ruled that the new regulations are…
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In case you missed it: Australia ranks 24th in global gender equality. Well, great, according to the latest World Economic Forum Global Gender Gap report, Australia ranks a pitiful 24th in terms of gender equality. The report measures progress in closing the gender gap in terms of health, education, economics and politics. Although Australia is the…
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Breastfeeding mother charged with contempt of court. A Missouri mother has been charged with contempt of court when she appeared for jury duty with her breastfeeding seven-month-old son. Laura Trickle received a court order that said she ‘wilfully and contemptuously appeared for jury service with her child and no one to care to the child.’…
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New Labor Leader, Bill Shorten names Tanya Plibersek as deputy leader. In case you missed it, the Labor Party leadership ballot has been and gone, with Bill Shorten being elected the new Labor leader of the opposition. Today, former Health minister in the Rudd Government, Tanya Plibersek has been appointed as Shorten’s deputy leader. Penny…
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Russian parliament debate law to strip gay parents of their children. In February the Russian parliament will debate a bill that could cause same sex parents to lose custody of their children. The potential law would allow the state to strip parents of custody if they practise ‘non-traditional sexual relations.’ Currently in Russia children can…
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What do you think of this: American Apparel ‘Period Power’ T shirt? American Apparel has collaborated with artist, Petra Collins, and produced this T-shirt featuring a graphic illustration of a woman masturbating while her vagina oozes blood. Collins is known for her work that explores feminine sexuality and teen girl culture, with half the proceeds…
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Do Not Want: The face-bra will (not) make you look younger. If you’re a female over the age of oh, I dunno, twelve, you probably have an extensive knowledge of the cornucopia of products, contraptions and elixirs available to make you conform to cultural ideals of beauty/youth/sexiness. Well, here’s another thingamybob to add to the…
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Maybe it was the surrealism of policemen lying on their bellies, guns ready, between cafe tables; of shattered glass framing a deserted fast food complex; of a terrified family creeping past empty chairs to safety; of extreme violence erupting in a place identical to one we visit weekly. The world watched last week as a…
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South African women’s prison now home to giant screaming vagina. It’s a pretty eye catching headline, isn’t it? A former prison in South Africa, where Winnie Mandela was incarcerated for protesting against apartheid segregation in 1958, has been equipped with a 12 meter deep, walk through vagina installation. Artist and creator, Reshma Chhiba, conceptualised the installation as…
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Young girls in the West feel pressure to have large breasts, but in the West African nation of Cameroon, girls on the cusp of puberty are having their breasts ironed by family members to stop them developing. Breast ironing has emerged as a result of victim blaming and poor sex education in the country. Unlike…
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Saudi Cleric says driving cars damages women’s ovaries. An Ultra-conservative Saudi Sheikh, Saleh bin Saad al-Lohaidan, has argued that women should not be allowed to drive cars because (apparently) ‘studies show’ that driving damages women’s ovaries and pelvises, causing them to give birth to babies with clinical problems. Although there is no official law…
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Women only spaces on the rise in India. After the 2012 New Delhi bus rape, a woman-only culture has blossomed in India, with women seeking out woman-only hotel floors, cabs and busses. In November the Indian government is launching a bank just for women, to empower them financially. The report rate of sexual violence in…
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