Iraq's Female Journalists, Suing the FDA Over Plan B

GENERAL

Corporation Appoints First Black Female - The Harvard Crimson
Patricia A. King, a Georgetown professor who helped pioneer the study of bioethics and law, was elected yesterday as the first African-American woman on the Harvard Corporation, the University's top governing board. King will replace Conrad K. Harper, the board's first black male, who resigned in August amid growing discontent with University President Lawrence H. Summers' comments on women and minorities. In a telephone interview yesterday from her office at the Georgetown Law Center, King said, "In my experience, times like these and troubles like these can often lead to positive outcomes."

'Girlcott' Members Meet With Abercrombie Brass Over T-Shirts - WTAE
Teenagers who were offended by T-shirts on sale at Abercrombie & Fitch and launched what they called a "girlcott" met with company brass on Monday. Some of the T-shirts went too far, according to some young women. The shirts boasted slogans such as: "Blondes are adored, brunettes are ignored." "Give me something to scream about." The T-shirt that got the girls so upset in the first place said, "Who needs brains when you have these?" -- the words written across the chest of the shirt. One of the protesters said, "Just being in high school we have enough to deal with -- without having to walk around looking at my own peers just degrading themselves and demeaning themselves. Just how much more negative can you get?"


INTERNATIONAL

In Radio, Iraq Women Are Raising Their Voices - Women's eNews
Since the fall of Saddam Hussein, Iraq has seen a proliferation of female journalists and radio programs focused on women's issues. Three female talk show hosts visited New York to hone their skills with U.S. talk radio pros.

Sudan: Gender-Based Violence Still Rampant in Darfur, Say Aid Agencies - AllAfrica.com
Humanitarian agencies have called for increased efforts to prevent sexual and gender-based violence in war-torn western Sudan, saying such acts against women violate their human rights.

Indonesian women key to new Aceh: reconstruction boss - AFP
Women will be the key to a new Aceh that is open and progressive, the head of the agency tasked with overseeing the rebuilding in the tsunami-hit Indonesian province said as he defended the speed of reconstruction there.

Enacting Laws Won't End Female Cut - AllAfrica.com
This time of the year is the open season for FGM (female genital mutilation), which was criminalised in July 2001. You can commit the crime at any time without much fear of being prosecuted, even if the whole world knows about it.


REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

Over-the-Counter Insurgency - Mother Jones
A Food and Drug Administration advisory committee has called Plan B emergency contraception "the safest product that we have seen brought before us." So why is it still available by prescription only?

AG wants Doyle to approve morning-after pill lawsuit - AP
Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager asked the governor on Thursday for permission to sue the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for delaying a decision on whether to make the morning-after pill available without a prescription. Lautenschlager said the FDA's delays in approving the pills for over-the-counter distribution have hurt rape victims who want the pills immediately and strained state medical assistance programs with the costs of unplanned pregnancies. She accused the FDA and the Bush administration of caving in to conservative groups that oppose emergency contraception and don't want to see it as readily available as cough syrup and aspirin.