Make Social Change A Reality

Today’s post marks the last in the series on women and the economy, and while we are now several weeks out in the post- Economic Stimulus Package world of 2009, there has been no decline in the amount of scrutiny on the Package and its implications for women. Reproductive health experts for example, were disheartened that the Package, now known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), succumbed to pressures in Congress and failed to expand national family planning program-funding, which would have served as a major cost-savings measure in the short and long-term. In addition, despite countless studies that have questioned the efficacy of abstinence-only education programs and exposed their inaccuracies and harmful messages on gender and sexuality to young people, Congress still increased abstinence-only education funding in the ARRA. Nevertheless, the public and non-profit sector agencies that serve women and girls in communities across the US are assessing the situatio...

Taking a cue from President Obama’s speech yesterday , this week’s posting in the series on women and the economy continues its focus on healthcare. Most of President Obama’s fireside-inspired speech which he delivered to Congress and the American public last night centered on the economy, and addressing the labor and economic needs of the 21st Century. A significant portion of the speech however, was geared towards healthcare and the dire need to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system as a critical part of reviving the economy. President Obama pledged reform to the American people in a compelling declaration in which he said that, "Health care reform cannot wait, it must not wait, and it will not wait another year.” Women’s issues were not specifically named in the speech, but hopefully the focus on healthcare and the economy will do some of the greatest good for middle and lower-income women and families. One of the areas of health services in which help is truly needed among women...