Stories about Women & Gender from October, 2011
Cuba: Off-Colour Remark in Red Light District
babalu is appalled by a remark that Mariela Castro (director of Cuba's National Center for Sexual Education) makes in an interview with Radio Netherlands during a visit to the red light district in Amsterdam, saying: “[She] enjoys a hearty laugh at the expense of Cuban women who are forced to...
Cuba: Members of “Las Damas” Detained
Uncommon Sense learns that “ten members of the Laura Pollan Damas De Blanco…were among severa dissidents arrested in Santiago de Cuba as they tried to gather for Mass” yesterday morning.
Trinidad & Tobago: Role of the Telecommunications Authority
Plain Talk suggests that the Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago is abdicating its responsibility in light of the recent national broadcast of the rape of a child and the release of a soca song that “glorif[ies] and promote[s] human trafficking and sexual slavery”, saying: “Much of what is being...
Puerto Rico: Sports Journalism and Female Athletes
Blogger and sports journalist Rafael R. Díaz offers a critique of the sexist language sports journalists in Puerto Rico used to describe the triumph of the female basketball team at the Pan American Games [es] being held in Guadalajara, Mexico. The women'es basketball team won the gold medal in a...
Puerto Rico: Remembering Luisa Capetillo
The digital news outlet Noticel published an article commemorating the birth 132 years ago of the pioneering Puerto Rican union leader, anarchist, and feminist Luisa Capetillo [es].
Trinidad & Tobago: Celebrating Anya's Project Runway Win
The Trinidad and Tobago blogosphere has been extremely active over the past week as Season 9 of Lifetime's hit reality show, Project Runway, drew to a close. Home-grown design hopeful, Anya Ayoung-Chee eventually walked away with the coveted title of Season 9 designer.
Trinidad & Tobago: Outcry over Airing of Child Assault Video
Women Speak is outraged by a local television show which “aired video footage of a 13 year old girl being beaten and raped” and wants the show off the air; Bahamian blogger Womanish Words stands in solidarity.
Bahamas: “War” Against Women & Children
“The war against women and children in the Bahamas rages on,” says Womanish Words, adding: “This war that was dismissed for years as ‘domestic’ violence is by far the biggest and most damaging social problem we have and it is destroying us all.”
Yemen: Yemeni Women Burn their Veils
Yemeni women burnt their veils and head scarves today as a sign of protest to condemn the regime's brutality and violence, which has killed around 25 people overnight in Sanaa and Taiz and has been targeting women lately.
Mexico: Nonprofit Supports Low-Income Women Entrepreneurs
Food blogger Lesley Téllez highlights the work of CREA, “a Mexico City nonprofit that supports women entrepreneurs in low-income communities”. Lesley shares photos of food she made using some of these women's food products.
Cuba: One Week After Pollan's Death
Notes from the Cuban Exile Quarter examines the new reality of the Ladies in White one week after Laura Pollan's death.
Armenia: Newfound Support for Domestic Violence Victims
Domestic violence has long been a taboo subject in Armenian circles. But when 20-year-old mother Zaruhi Petrosyan was brutally beaten to death by her husband and mother-in-law last October, the case mobilized individuals and organizations in confronting this issue which affects over a quarter of women in Armenia.
Cuba: More Tributes to Pollan
More tributes to the late Laura Pollan, here, here, here and here.
Ghana: Blogger Assaulted
A female blogger was assaulted in Accra this morning: “This morning, at about 7.38 am, I was physically assaulted in my car, on the Mallam-Weija Highway by a man of about mid-thirties, about 5'11 tall, toughly built … dressed in balck office shirt and tucked into black denim trousers, black...
Trinidad & Tobago: Project Runway’s Social Media Queen
The season finale for Lifetime network's hit reality show, Project Runway, is almost here and Trinidad and Tobago’s Anya Ayoung-Chee, a designer who has made it into the top five, has a shot at winning this season's coveted prize. Caribbean netizens rally around her.
Cuba: Journalist Held While Trying to Pay Respects to Pollan
Uncommon Sense reports that “the Cuban independent journalist and blogger Dania Virgen Garcia Garcia was beaten and arrested…while trying to attend a gathering at the home of the late Laura Pollan.”
Central America: The Dangerous Journey of Female Migrants
“Every year, thousands of migrants risk their lives on a treacherous journey toward el norte, facing violence, extortion, kidnapping and discrimination. However, female migrants face a heightened risk of exploitation in the form of sexual violence and trafficking at the hands of many groups: criminal gangs, corrupt officials, law enforcement,...
Cuba: Remembering Laura Pollan
Four days after her death, the online tributes are still pouring in for Laura Pollan, the late leader of one of Cuba's most recognized and respected opposition groups, Las Damas de Blanco. Many bloggers want to continue their fight for human rights while others just want to remember their friend and hero.
Ethiopia: Aberash Hailay's Case Ignites Campaign to Stop Violence Against Women
Aberash Hailay is an Ethiopian Airlines flight attendant whose ex-husband, Fisseha Tadesse, stabbed both her eyes with a knife in Bangkok, Thailand. Ethiopian activists are using the Internet to call for justice for Aberash Hailay and draw attention to issue of violence against women in Ethiopia.
Cuba: Mourning the Loss of Laura Pollan
Cuban bloggers are in mourning over the death of Laura Pollan, the former leader of the opposition group Las Damas de Blanco. The sad news made its way across the blogosphere with lightning speed and bloggers, both within Cuba and throughout the diaspora, were soon posting their remembrances of the late human rights activist online.
Yemen: Azizah Abdo Othman, Yemen's First Female Martyr
More than 30 anti-regime protesters have been killed in Yemen on Saturday and yesterday, including the country's first female martyr Aziza Abdo, who was shot dead by a sniper during a protest in Taiz. Yemeni netizens react to the carnage.
