Sexual Assault Awareness Month: It’s time to talk

What began as organized protests in England in the 1970s, to raise awareness for sexual violence against women, has developed into a global initiative to raise awareness about the rape, sexual harassment, incest, molestation, and sex trafficking of both genders. Through tireless efforts from the National Coalition Against Sexual Assault (NCASA), in 2001, April was designated as Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM).

With a theme of “Talk Early, TalkOften,” the 2013 SAAM campaign focuses on healthy sexuality and its connection to child sexual abuse prevention. Talking with our children about sex isn’t a comfortable subject for some parents, but avoiding an uncomfortable conversation is not giving your child your best. The SAAM campaign encourages parents to start talking with their children to prevent child sexual abuse and offers a plethora of tools to engage in age appropriate talks with children. Materials are available in both English and En Espanol.

Guess what? Child sexual abuse is not gender specific. According to the study, “Prevalence and Psychological Sequence of Self-Reported Childhood Physical and Sexual Abuse in General Population,” Briere, one in seven boys will be sexually abused at some point in their childhood. In the report, as with many others, it is acknowledged that the statistic is actually higher due to the fact that often the crime of child sex abuse is not reported.

While we as adults can choose to become polarized in the fear of discomfort, imagine how a child must feel. How often have you heard a friend say that they wish that they’d been able to talk to their mom or dad about sex? Unfortunately, this writer hears it too often. The ability, the comfort that our children have to speak with us about sex, is our responsibility. So take some time, check out the SAAM website and talk to your kids.

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Soledad O’Brien Partners with CoverGirl for ‘Girls Can’ Campaign

Soledad O'Brien - Courtesy of CoverGirl

CoverGirl officially announced Monday, Feb. 24, a unique partnership with Soledad O’Brien that will focus on the empowerment of young women. The “Girls Can” campaign began with a soft launch during the closing ceremonies at Sochi, in which CoverGirl debuted an inspiring video starring CoverGirl ambassadors, Queen Latifah, Ellen, P!nk, Sofia Vergara, Becky G, Katy Perry and Janelle Monae.

Through Soledad O’Brien’s production company, Starfish Media Group, O’Brien will host a series that explores many of the biggest challenges facing young women today. When a young woman pursues dreams of higher education, or success in business, achieving those dreams are often fraught with obstacles. O’Brien’s series will follow the lives of several young women through their personal challenges and share how each young woman has overcome specific issues with the assistance of O’Brien and Brad Raymond’s Starfish Foundation.

CoverGirl is asking for all women to get involved and join the conversation. How can we, as women, turn a can’t into a can? A large part of this campaign is opening a dialogue in which we can all discover the barriers that stand between young women and their successes. Through CoverGirl’s #GirlsCan discussions, CoverGirl seeks to help tailor the “Girls Can” campaign and find the most effective avenues to help young women. Additionally, CoverGirl has committed to supporting further programming and funding scholarships for girls that the Starfish Foundation mentors and sends to college.

To learn more about Soledad O’Brien and CoverGirl’s “Girls Can” campaign, or to join the conversation, visit Yes Girls Can.

©2014 The Women’s Network, All rights reserved. 

Empire Beauty Schools to host fundraiser for domestic violence shelters

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Empire Beauty Schools to host fundraiser for domestic violence shelters

National Domestic Abuse Hotline

1-800-799-7233

Involvement Opportunities for the Half The Sky Movement

HOW TO GET INVOLVED:  

• Follow and interact as Union (@itsGabrielleU), live tweets during night one of the broadcast, while Ferrera (@AmericaFerrera) and Wilde (@OliviaWilde) partake night two. Kristof (@NickKristof) and WuDunn (@WuDunn) will live tweet on both 10/1 and 10/2.
• Engage and retweet as Olivia Wilde takes over the @PBS twitter handle before the 10/2 broadcast
• Interact with Kristof on 9/24 at 2:30PM, as he participates in “Ask Me Anything” on reddit
• Participate in a “Women Hold Up Half the Sky Because…” user-generated content Tumblr campaign and browse submitted photos via Half the Sky’s Facebook albums here and here
• Starting 9/26, share why you support the #HalftheSky movement via Facebook and Twitter, and your profile picture will be added to the Hastagart Half the Sky mosaic
• “Check-in” to the documentary and engage with the Half the Sky Movement and other viewers on TV companion platforms, GetGlue and yap.TV 
• Download and share 30 Songs 30 Days, featuring a free, empowering song from a legendary or up-and-coming female artist through 10/2, then revisit and listen to all the songs on Spotify, well after the 30 days conclude
• Watch and share additional YouTube videos and content about the film and its participants
• Donate towards any Half the Sky Movement charity and their NGO partners via CrowdRise, an online fundraising site. The team that raises the most will be matched by a $20,000 donation.
• Engage and follow along via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, Tumblr, Google+, Foursquare, and interact via a Facebook game created to teach users about the movement. 

Turning oppression into opportunity for women on PBS

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Turning oppression into opportunity for women on PBS

Leader of Crips Gang Pleads Guilty in Virginia to Prostituting Eight Juveniles

ALEXANDRIA, VA—Justin Strom, aka “Jae,” “Jae Dee,” or “J-Dirt,” 26, of Lorton, Virginia, pleaded guilty today to recruiting at least eight juvenile girls to engage in commercial sex for his street gang’s prostitution business.

Neil H. MacBride, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Kenneth T. Cuccinelli, II, Attorney General of Virginia; Colonel David Rohrer, Fairfax County, Virginia Chief of Police; and Ronald T. Hosko, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office Criminal Division, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge James C. Cacheris.

“For six years, Justin Strom profited from preying on teenage girls and others he recruited as prostitutes in a commercial sex ring,” said U.S. Attorney MacBride. “Strom is the fifth and final Underground Gangster Crips gang member to plead guilty to sex trafficking a juvenile—a very serious crime that carries a potential life sentence.”

“Justin Strom robbed these girls of their childhoods, their innocence, and their trust, and he did that in the most base, vile, and despicable way possible,” said Attorney General Cuccinelli. “Nothing can ever repair the damages Strom inflicted on his victims, but it’s our hope that today’s guilty plea will help them begin a path towards healing and moving forward.”

“Today, a fifth member of the Underground Gangster Crips pleaded guilty to strong-arming and pimping underage girls in the illegal sex trade—a trade that is taking place here in some of the most affluent neighborhoods in our nation,” said Special Agent in Charge Hosko. “These gang members admitted that they beat and intimidated young girls they met on the Internet or in Metro stops in our area. They preyed on some of the most vulnerable in our society, and today Justin Strom admitted to these crimes.”

“This gang-driven prostitution ring was a direct threat to the safety and welfare of young women,” said Chief Rohrer. “With the help of our federal partners, we will continue to work aggressively and consistently to rid Fairfax County of gang violence and criminal operations wherever and whenever we find it.”

Strom pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a child, which carries a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and maximum penalty of life in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for September 14, 2012.

According to a statement of facts filed with his plea agreement and other court records, Strom is a member of the Underground Gangster Crips (UGC) set based in Fairfax County. From 2006 through March 2012, Strom misrepresented his identity online to recruit females—including juveniles—through online social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, and Datehookup and enticed the girls to use their good looks to earn money through prostitution. He and others posted numerous advertisements on Backpage, Craigslist, and other websites to solicit customers to pay to have sex with juvenile and adult prostitutes.

Strom admitted that he knowingly enticed at least eight juvenile girls to engage in prostitution for his business and that he received proceeds from this illicit conduct for approximately six years.

On March 28, 2012, Strom was among five members and associates of the UGC set based in Fairfax County charged with running a prostitution business that recruited and trafficked high school girls. Four previously pleaded guilty, and Strom’s guilty plea today marks the fifth and final conviction in this case.

Donyel Pier Dove, aka “Bleek,” 27, of Alexandria, Virginia, pleaded guilty on May 17, 2012 to sex trafficking of a juvenile. He also pleaded guilty to use of a firearm during a crime of violence in relation to two armed robberies of 7-11 stores in Manassas, Virginia, in March 2012 and to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in Fairfax, which also occurred in March 2012. Dove faces a mandatory minimum penalty of five years and a maximum of life on the use of a firearm charge and a maximum of 10 years in prison on the possession of a firearm charge. He is scheduled to be sentenced on August 10, 2012 by U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga.

On May 14, 2012, Henock Ghile, aka “Knots,” 23, of Springfield, Virginia, pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a juvenile. In court, Ghile admitted that he was a UGC gang associate and that from May 2011 through September 2011, he transported two 17-year-old girls to work as prostitutes. Sentencing has been scheduled for August 3, 2012, before U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton.

On April 14, 2012, two others associated with the UGC prostitution operation—Michael Tavon Jefferies, aka “Loc,” 21, of Woodbridge, Virginia; and Christopher Sylvia, 23, of Springfield, Virginia—pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a juvenile. Jefferies is scheduled to be sentenced on July 6, 2012 before U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema. Sylvia is scheduled for sentencing on July 20, 2012 before U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee.

This case was investigated by the Fairfax County Police Department and the FBI’s Washington Field Office, with assistance from the Northern Virginia Human Trafficking Task Force. Virginia Assistant Attorney General and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Birnbaum and Assistant U.S. Attorney Inayat Delawala are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

Founded in 2004, the Northern Virginia Human Trafficking Task Force is a collaboration of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies—along with non-governmental organizations—dedicated to combating human trafficking and related crimes.

Source: FBI

Romney Would Turn Back the Clock On Women's Health

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Planned Parenthood launches $3.2 million ad campaign 

Infant Abduction Prevention

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New and violent trends in infant abductions

Mothers and fathers are understandably absorbed with their new babies, but they should still exercise caution and common sense when using social networking sites online:

• Make sure your online privacy settings do not allow strangers, and possible offenders, to gain access to personal information such as where you plan to be with your baby at a certain time or on a certain day. Inadequate privacy settings also allow others to track your movements using embedded information in pictures posted online.
• FBI Crimes Against Children Unit suggests that new parents may not want to display the traditional pink or blue balloons outside their homes announcing a baby shower or a new arrival. “Doing so will advise random strangers that you have a new baby in the house or will soon,” said FBI Intelligence Analyst Ashli-Jade Douglas.
• People in general and especially new and expectant mothers should be aware of their surroundings whenever they are out in public. “Is someone too interested in your pregnancy or your newborn, asking too many questions or sounding odd?” Douglas asked. “Those may be red flags.”
• Lastly, any type of incident or odd behavior should be reported to local authorities. “You may not think it’s important,” Douglas explained, “but that type of information allows us to track incidents and it could help prevent future abductions.”

Source: fbi.gov

Is a woman’s anger viewed differently?

A woman and her husband are dining out with a group of friends, the service is horrible, the food is horrible, and requests from the table are met with a smarmy attitude from the waiter. The bill arrives with gratuities included. Finally the woman has had enough. She complains to the maître d’ and demands that the dinner bill be adjusted to reflect the substandard service. The other couples are shocked and embarrassed that this woman complained and furthermore requested a discount on the bill. If this had been her husband’s action, would the couples have reacted the same?

Another woman is at work, the stress to meet a deadline is hanging over her head like the Sword of Damocles and her assistant asks a question that the woman has already answered several times. Suddenly she snaps and harshly spouts off about the necessity to pay attention. This woman’s colleagues are shocked and frown upon her actions. Yet, just one day earlier, a male colleague exuded a similar display of emotion and no one so much as blinked an eye.

Daily life is stressful and each of us is most likely going to hit the anger button on occasion, violent outbursts of anger are not what I’m speaking of and those, male or female, that display such behaviors need to check themselves. People get angry all the time in a variety of situations but is a woman’s anger viewed differently? How many times have you witnessed a woman get angry and also witnessed the disapproving reactions of others? How many times have you said, “She’s just hormonal” or even said that about yourself? Why is a woman’s display of anger seen as “emotional” or “hormonal” but a man displaying the same actions is seen as “just being a typical male”?

Maybe it’s time to set the record straight. Anger is not an exclusive, God given, male emotion. If a women is angry it ain’t cause she’s hormonal or overly emotional, you probably screwed something up that she now has to fix! Setting jest aside, both men and women at times get angry. Perhaps approaching anger with the gender extracted may diffuse the upset a little faster.

Gender Discrimination, Gender Bias and now ... Gender Fatigue?

Perhaps this writer is little behind, until recently I’d never heard of “Gender Fatigue.” Being the curious person that I am, I had to find out what this gender fatigue was. Google is a beautiful thing. Where would we be without Google? Probably blissfully unaware of nauseating terms like, “gender fatigue.” Nonetheless, I found the source of this new label, a study conducted by Elisabeth Kelan, Ph.D., from King’s College London “Gender Fatigue: The Ideological Dilemma of Gender Neutrality and Discrimination in Organizations,” published in the 2010 Canadian Journal of Administrative Science.

Dr. Kelan found that workers acknowledge gender discrimination is possible in modern organizations, but at the same time maintain their workplaces to be gender neutral. Dr. Kelan notes, “Gender fatigue is caused by workers not acknowledging that bias against women occurs. The problem with gender fatigue is that it prohibits productive discussion regarding inequalities between men and women, making gender bias difficult to address. Future studies should explore what happens to gender fatigue over time and whether practical strategies can be developed to shape the way in which people in organizations speak about gender.” The study conducted in 2003-2004, included 26 men and women from two information communication technology companies. Basically what Dr. Kelan’s study states is that gender fatigue happens when gender bias is not acknowledged. This is fantastic. We women can now call our bosses and let them know that we won’t be into work today because we’re suffering from gender fatigue.

Women in the Labor Force: A Databook 2009 Edition published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics cites, that in 2008 women accounted for 51% of all persons employed in management, professional, and related occupations, somewhat more than their share of total employment at 47%. Further research from the World Economic Forum’s 2009 Gender Gap Report states, “No country in the world has yet managed to eliminate the gender gap.” But the report also states, “Out of the 115 countries covered in the report since 2006, more than two-thirds have posted gains in overall index scores, indicating that the world in general has made progress towards equality between men and women.”

Examining statistics from all three studies can certainly leave one very confused. We can acknowledge that discrimination of every type exists in the workplace but perhaps we should hold-off on using yet another label that divides the genders and focus our energies upon avenues to close the gender gap.