9-30-14 Fraternity culture and college rape
Fraternity culture and college rape
The BBC Pop Up team has spent September living in a house on the edge of the Boulder campus of the University of Colorado. The issue of sexual assaults at US colleges was raised repeatedly by students we met. Students in Boulder speak about sexual assaults. While sexual assault is not a problem specific to fraternities, studies have shown that on college campuses, men who join a fraternity are three times more likely to rape than other men. It is a national problem, with studies suggesting one in five women will be victims during their time at university. (Webmaster's comment: But in the video the college men are blaming the college women! Why am I not surprised.)
9-29-14 Almaz's story
Almaz's story
Benjamin Dix and Lindsay Pollock tell the disturbing story of a young Ethiopian woman abused by her employers in Saudi Arabia. (Webmaster's comment: Told in comic script format, much like used for the French-Iranian film "Persepolis", and also an excellent choice for this story.)
9-29-14 California adopts college sex crime rule
California adopts college sex crime rule
California has become the first US state to require students on state-funded campuses to have clear, active consent before all sexual activity. The legislation stipulates that voluntary agreement, rather than lack of resistance, defines consent.
9-23-14 Demanding justice for women and children abused by Irish nuns
Demanding justice for women and children abused by Irish nuns
An inquiry last year into Ireland's Magdalene laundries, where for decades thousands of women were forced to work by nuns, found no evidence that workers were abused. But those who experienced life inside laundry walls angrily reject this, and are insisting that the nuns be held accountable. For decades, Ireland ignored the stories told by the former Magdalene laundry workers. After all, weren't people told by the priests that they were just fallen women, or the criminally insane, who deserved to be locked up for most of their adult lives and work, without pay, to atone for their sins? (Webmaster's comment: Seems the Catholic church is still running a cover-up. We have a very good movie on the Magdalene Sisters and the Catholic nun's abuse of women and children at The Magdalene Sisters).
9-22-14 Wesleyan University fraternities ordered to admit women
Wesleyan University fraternities ordered to admit women
A prominent US university has ordered two fraternities to accept women members within the next three years. The move comes amid a national debate over sex assault and binge drinking on campuses, but a spokeswoman said it was not a response to a single incident. Campus sexual assault has been a growing issue in the US, with one in five women believed to have been assaulted while attending university.
9-19-14 White House launches push against sexual assault
White House launches push against sexual assault
Celebrities and musicians are among those joining the White House in a public drive to prevent sexual assault on US university campuses. The US estimates one in five women are sexually assaulted while in university. "We still don't condemn sexual assault as loudly as we should," Mr Obama said. "We make excuses. We look the other way. The message that sends can have a chilling effect."
9-19-14 Law enforcement's domestic abuse problem
Law enforcement's domestic abuse problem
The National Center for Women and Policing cites two studies that found that "at least 40% of police officer families experience domestic violence, in contrast to 10% of families in the general population". "If there's any job that domestic abuse should disqualify a person from holding, isn't it the one job that gives you a lethal weapon, trains you to stalk people without their noticing, and relies on your judgment and discretion to protect the abused against domestic abusers?"
(Webmaster's comment: Why is anyone surprised? If you enjoy violence, and want to get away with it, what better organization to join other than a police force. What better place to do violence to someone you don't like because of race, or whatever, and have your buddies cover it up. It's a made to order gift for the violently inclined.)
9-19-14 Iran: Happy video dancers sentenced to 91 lashes and jail
Iran: Happy video dancers sentenced to 91 lashes and jail
Six Iranians arrested for appearing in a video dancing to Pharrell Williams' song Happy have been sentenced to up to one year in prison and 91 lashes, their lawyer says. The video shows three men and three unveiled women dancing on the streets and rooftops of Tehran.
9-18-14 NFL critics pressure sponsors via Twitter
NFL critics pressure sponsors via Twitter
Will fan pressure on sponsors force the NFL to change its domestic violence policies? People have taken to social media to protest the way the The National Football League (NFL) handled this case specifically and domestic abuse in general. After initially appealing directly to the league, many have targeted the league's sponsors, which account for over $1bn (£611m) of the NFL's $10bn annual revenue.
9-17-14 Jonathan Dwyer of Cardinals arrested over domestic violence
Jonathan Dwyer of Cardinals arrested over domestic violence
Jonathan Dwyer of the Arizona Cardinals has been arrested on suspicion of domestic violence, police have said. The 25-year-old running back, facing charges of aggravated assault and preventing someone from calling 911, has been suspended from the team. The charges are from two altercations at his home in July involving a woman and an 18-month-old child. (Webmaster's comment: Right now, as you read this, 100's of NFL players are probably warning their wives and girl friends "You say one word to anyone and I'll ..." You can bank on it! 14% of American males think physically discipling their wives is acceptable. Why should the NFL males be any different?)
9-16-14 Eight facts about violence against women everyone should know
Eight facts about violence against women everyone should know
- Most women experience physical abuse in their lifetime
- Nearly one-quarter of women experience a physical or sexual assault by an intimate partner
- Seven in ten assaults against women are perpetrated by an intimate partner
- One in five women are raped in their lifetime
- One in thirteen murder victims are killed by their husband or boyfriend
- One in ten female assault victims has a head or spinal cord injury as a result of the attack
- But most assault victims don't receive medical care
- Eighteen percent of mass shooters have a domestic violence charge
9-9-14 Survivors share why they stayed
Survivors share why they stayed
They're not unusual questions to hear asked whenever talk turns to an incident of domestic abuse. Why did she stay? Why didn't she leave him? According to a 2000 study by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1.3 million women in the US are the victims of domestic abuse each year and only 25% of physical assaults are reported. "I stayed because my pastor told me that God hates divorce." "I stayed because both he and the world said that it wasn't REAL abuse if he wasn't leaving obvious physical marks that people could see." "I stayed because he told me that no one will ever love me like he does. I left when I realized no one should ever love me like he did."
9-9-14 Wife of Ray Rice defends her husband who hit her
Wife of Ray Rice defends her husband who hit her
Janay Rice, the wife of Ray Rice, the NFL star sacked for punching her says she is "hurt beyond words" over how her husband has been treated. (Webmaster's comment: He knocks her unconscious and she comes back for more. Men have bullied and conditioned women in America to accept almost any level of abuse. It's beyond belief!)
9-8-14 American football star fired over girlfriend punch
American football star fired over girlfriend punch
The NFL's Baltimore Ravens have terminated the contract of their star running back Ray Rice, after the release of a video which appears to show him striking his wife.
9-8-14 Africa Union troops 'raped' girls in Mogadishu, Somalia
Africa Union troops 'raped' girls in Mogadishu, Somalia
African Union (AU) troops raped women and girls seeking medical aid or water from their bases in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, a rights group says. The troops had "misused" their power over women fleeing violence and poverty, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said.
9-3-14 Indian girl 'humiliated' by village elders found dead
Indian girl 'humiliated' by village elders found dead
The semi-naked body of a teenage girl who was allegedly humiliated by village elders for protesting against her father's harassment has been found near a railway track in eastern India. Police suspect the 15-year-old girl in West Bengal was raped and murdered. Her family said she was made to spit on the ground and lick it up - an act considered a grave form of humiliation.
