Read the week's best commentary from bloggers at Raising Women's Voices, WMC and more.
ACCESS TO CARE:
"Helping women and families use their coverage effectively," Raising Women's Voices: "As more women and families gain health insurance for the first time, they need to understand how to use their coverage to get the care they need without unexpected costs," according to the Raising Women's Voices (RWV) blog. In an effort to improve understanding, RWV's My Health, My Voice campaign this year is "support[ing] RWV regional coordinators in a number of states to take action on health insurance literacy," who in turn are "help[ing] women gain the confidence to use their new health insurance and take charge of their health." The blog cites several examples of RWV's efforts, including outreach and education initiatives in conjunction with Enroll Michigan, WV Free in West Virginia, the Wisconsin Alliance for Women's Health, Raising Women's Voices-NY and Consumers for Affordable Health Care in Maine (Raising Women's Voices, 9/21).
LGBT:
"Transgender and in prison: Violence, harassment, and denial of medical care are the norm," Susan Buttenwieser, WMC: Susan Buttenwieser discusses the discrimination transgender men and women encounter in interactions with the criminal justice system in the United States. Citing a recent report from the Movement Advancement Project (MAP) and the Center for American Progress, Buttenwieser notes that while about 5 percent of adults in the United States are incarcerated in their lifetime, the rate is 10 percent among transgender men and about 20 percent among transgender women. Further, the report found that nearly 50 percent of black and 25 percent of Latinx transgender and gender-nonconforming people are incarcerated at least once in their lifetime, compared with 12 percent of white transgender adults. According to Buttenwieser, the MAP report "points to discrimination and homophobia as root causes" for overrepresentation of LGBT people of color in the criminal justice system. Further, despite the 2012 implementation of the Prison Rape Elimination Act's (PREA) (PL 108-79) guidelines, "around 35 percent of transgender people in prisons and jails report experiencing sexual abuse, compared to less than 5 percent of all those incarcerated," Buttenwieser writes, adding that prisons often ostensibly use solitary confinement to keep transgender inmates "safe" (Buttenwieser, WMC, 9/20).
What others are saying about LGBT rights:
~ "Why North Carolina judges can still refuse to perform same-sex marriages," Emma Green, The Atlantic.
GLOBAL ISSUES:
"Hundreds of nuns are biking the Himalayas to combat human trafficking," Steve Williams, Care2: "A group of Buddhist nuns well-versed in martial arts are biking a treacherous path through the Himalayas for one important goal: to combat human trafficking," Williams writes. He explains that the Buddhist nuns of the Drukpa Order "began their mammoth trek from Nepal's Kathmandu to India's northern city of Leh back in August" and are scheduled to complete their trip this month. According to Williams, the nuns initiated the trek after providing relief support for two earthquakes that hit Nepal earlier this year, which they learned "can make women and children extra vulnerable to" human trafficking. With the biking trip, the nuns also aim to combat human trafficking by addressing gender inequalities facing Buddhist nuns, who are "[o]ften relegated to servile roles, such as cooking and cleaning" rather than "the more physical aspects of the discipline, like learning martial arts and exercising." Williams concludes, "[T]heir feats of physical endurance -- in addition to their vital aid work, such as ministering to the poor and helping to rebuild devastated towns -- is certainly throwing a much needed spotlight on this ongoing human rights problem" (Williams, Care2, 9/22).
What others are saying about global issues:
~ "Leaders must take action now to help women and girls," Tewodros Melesse, Huffington Post blog.
