Feminist Update: July 22, 2015

Feminist Update
Your weekly update on all things feminism. Keep up to date on the election, the news, and what is going on in the world of women.
 
WGF Updates:
WGF is working hard alongside Pittsburgh UNITED and over 20 other members of a coalition to pass paid sick leave legislation. Last week WGF CEO, Heather Arnet, provided testimony at a Pittsburgh City Council hearing about the bill, and just this morning WGF VP, Tara Simmons, spoke during public comment at the committee vote session. The bill has been tabled until next week when revisions/amendments to the bill will be finalized and then voted upon.
Often, workers are forced to go to work when sick to the detriment of the quality of their work as well as the health of co-workers and customers. WGF is honored and excited to be a part of this effort! We will be out in full force next week before Pittsburgh City Council. We would love for you to join us! It was practically standing room only this morning at the committee meeting!  READ MORE>>
 
In the News:
Women’s Baseball Debuts at Pan-American Games: Women’s baseball teams worldwide made history by making the sport’s debut at the Pan Am Games, women’s baseball’s first time being played at a large, multi-sport event. Though the games were not televised, the players were happy with the progress being made. Says American player Sarah Hudek, “I just want to get women’s baseball more out there and open the doors for younger women knowing they don’t have to convert to softball if they don’t want to.” READ MORE>>
Femvertising Brings Positive Results: Super trendy in advertising right now are ads focusing on empowering girls and women and we are definitely not complaining! With ad campaigns such as Always’ #LikeaGirl, companies are recognizing the power of empowerment of women. She Knows Media, a digital women’s lifestyle media company, has created the Femvertising Awards, which will continue to highlight female empowerment in the advertising space. READ MORE>>
Emmy History Made With Two Black Outstanding Lead Actress Nominees: Viola Davis, star of How to Get Away with Murder, and Taraji P. Henson, star of Empire, have made history by both being nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for the 2015 Emmy Awards. No African American woman has ever won this category. This goes along with trends of increasing diversity in television, that have yet to be seen in the film industry. READ MORE>>
Title IX Complaint Leads to More Opportunities for Girls in Chicago Public Schools: A 2010 complaint by the National Women’s Law Center saying that Chicago school districts did not provide equal opportunities for girls and boys in sports, violating Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, has been resolved with an agreement to add more teams, levels, or sports to meet the needs of female athletes in the school system. READ MORE>>
 
Election Updates:
Ohio Governeor John Kasich Enters the Republican Race: Becoming the 16th prominent candidate vying for the Republican party nomination, John Kasich has entered the race. He is known as a moderate Republican, who has shown his ability to reach across the aisle in his support of Medicaid expansion, Common Core educational standards, and citizenship for illegal immigrants. He has also worked as an investment banker and Fox News host. READ MORE>>
Gig-Economy Debates Enter Presidential Race: Uber has made the news a lot lately in a case last week that classified its drivers as employees, not contractors, making Uber technically responsible for its drivers. The gig-economy, sometimes referred to as the freelance or sharing economy, allows people to use platforms such as AirBnb, Etsy, and Spinlister to make extra money on the side. These workers, however, are not on the companies’ payrolls. Hillary Clinton has advocated for the contractors/workers’ rights, but most Republican candidates have come out in opposition of any legislation that would make them official employees. READ MORE>>
$377 Million to Campaigns Shatters Records: With new Supreme Court decisions impacting campaign finance reform, particularly Citizens United vs. FEC, seemingly endless funds are flowing into the presidential campaign. The $377 million raised so far has already broken records for campaign fundraising. READ MORE>>
 
Featured Feminist:
Paul Feig to Direct All-Female Ghostbusters: Our first male Featured Feminist, Paul Feig will be directing a rebooted version of Ghostbusters, starring four female leads including Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones. Though it doesn’t come out until next summer, we can’t wait. READ MORE>>