Saturday Newsletter
Welcome!
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Now, on to this week's stories...
Of Western Wars and Muslim Women
Today is the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the US, an event which certainly shaped this generation of Americans and arguably the rest of the world, too. We want to highlight this 2010 article that Al Jazeera republished this week. It gives an important global perspective on the resulting war in Afghanistan, and specifically, the West's fetish with "liberating" Muslim women -- which is not at all the reality of what happens. Read the full article here.
France to Make Contraception Free to Those Under 25
To be honest, we were a little surprised to learn that France charges women for contraception at all. But, the country recently did a survey of women not using birth control and learned the biggest factor was financial. We're glad that this is being remedied. In light of the news about abortion in Texas, it's also worth noting that abortion in France is free to women of any age. Read the full story here
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Saving Seeds and Lives: Tunisian Women On the Frontline of Climate Change
More than 100 women across Tunisia have joined an effect to preserve heirloom seeds and farming methods. They are protecting their regions from climate change by utilizing ancient knowledge of agriculture that have been refined by generations of experience with their climate, combating efforts to move to monocultures that decimate the land. Cultivating biodiversity is key to maintaining a resilient agricultural system, ensuring the production of healthy food and at the same time an income for families living in the park. Read the full story here.
Lady Mary Wortley Montagu - the Forgotten Immunization Pioneer
Pretty much every history book tells the story of Edward Jenner, the man credited with creating the smallpox vaccine, the first widely-used vaccine in the western world. A hundred years before, Mary Wortley Montagu, an unconventional British woman, became interested in the culture of Turkish women and noticed that they were inoculating their children against smallpox using a method nearly identical to the one Jenner eventually came up with. She demonstrated inoculation to physicians in Europe and even had her own son inoculated, but since the method was created by women (especially non-white women), it went largely dismissed. For a hundred years. Read the full story here.
Zambia Elects First Woman As Parliament Speaker
Nelly Mutti, a lawyer based in Lusaka, was elected unopposed to replace Patrick Matibini after last month’s elections ushered in a new government.A human rights lawyer and a former chairwoman of the country’s anti-corruption commission, Mutti will have the job to preside over a parliament where the ruling party still needs the cooperation of opposition members of parliament to make constitutional changes. Read the full story here.
India Girls Write to Modi Demanding Marriage Age Be Raised to 21
The minimum age of marriage in India for girls is 18 years old, which frankly seems reasonable compared to the laws (or lack thereof) in other countries, including the US. But in India, marriage is often an arrangement by the parents, meaning that girls may not have a chance to finish their university studies before they are married. The minimum age of marriage for boys is 21 for this reason. Girls are writing letters to Prime Minister Modi en masse, asking that he fulfill his campaign promise to match the age for girls. Read the full story here.
China Wants Families to Have Three Children, But Many Women Aren't Convinced
China famously (or perhaps, infamously) enforced its one-child policy for 35 years, from 1980-2015, with... not great consequences. Now facing a demographic crisis, including a worker shortage and thousands of extra men due to sex-selective abortions, China wants families to have three children. But women are not on board, citing disproportionate domestic responsibilities and lack of support systems like quality, affordable childcare and parental leave. Read the full story here.
By Design
If you have a bit of spare time, check out this completely fascinating essay on the history of kitchen design by Meg Conley. We discovered it via Design Mom's newsletter. In her words, "It starts with eat-the-rich vibes and then goes DEEP into the history of kitchen design and how it intersects with sexism, racism, communism and more." It's a wild and very entertaining ride. Read it here.
An Update on Tigray in Ethiopia
It's been a while since we've shared an update on the war and human rights abuses in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. This piece in the New York Times reports on how the government drive to enlist civilians in the war effort threatens to widen the conflict, forcing ethnic groups to take sides and potentially spill into the broader region. This brief by the United Nations Population Fund gives some stats on how the rampant sexual violence against women is being under-reported.
Resisting the Coup and the Patriarchy
We're also due to give an update about the coup that overthrew Myanmar's prime minister, Aung San Suu Kyi. She is still under house arrest awaiting a "trial", but citizens from all over Myanmar have mobilized to form the resistance against Myanmar’s military government, including, unsurprisingly, artists and feminists. Check out an interview with Nandar, a prominent women's rights advocate, here.