A Wonderful Day for Fair Pay

by lawyerlylisa

Today, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act became the first bill signed into law by President Obama.

On a personal note, President Obama’s action today more than makes up for my anger towards him over my purple ticket nightmare trying to get into his swearing-in ceremony.

Seriously, though – what a difference a president can make! From President Obama’s remarks at the signing today:

“It is fitting that with the very first bill I sign … we are upholding one of this nation’s first principles: that we are all created equal and each deserve a chance to pursue our own version of happiness,” Obama said at a ceremony in the East Room of the White House.

“If we stay focused, as Lilly did, and keep standing for what’s right, as Lilly did, we will close that pay gap and ensure that our daughters have the same rights, the same chances, and the same freedom to pursue their dreams as our sons.”

Ledbetter worked for Goodyear for 19 years before discovering that she was paid significantly less than her male counterparts with the same or less experience. In 2007, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the complaint had to be filed within 180 days of the initial salary decision even if the victim is unaware of the discrimination until much later.

The law signed today overturns the Supreme Court’s decision in the Ledbetter case.

It’s also worth mentioning that the law covers discrimination claims on the basis of not only sex, but race, religion, national origin, disability, and age.

A pretty solid pick for the first of what I hope is many more pieces of pro-justice, anti-discrimination legislation.

Rape is Cheap: Eve Ensler, VDAY, and Violence Against Women and Girls in DRC

At 8:30 this Saturday morning, my phone rang. Groggy, I fumbled to figure out who was in touch, and about what, at this hour. My Plus-One fast asleep next to me, my new President snug as a bug in the White House, I was snuggled up detoxing after the previous week’s inauguration events.

#02 Text From: Jessicaneeb

Julia! I just heard something on npr about women being raped in the drc – we have to do something! Send money or spread the word or something…

#01 Text From: Jessicaneeb

It was eve ensler and a doctor talking, which is also why i thought of you at 830 am

Ah. Time to wake up.

Jessica and I directed The Vagina Monologues together in college, hence the Ensler reference. No matter how you feel about the play, I strongly encourage everyone to listen to the NPR interview about the situation in DRC. If you’re in New York, California, Atlanta, or DC, you might also go see Ensler, founder of the VDAY movement, and Dr. Denis Mukwege, founder of a clinic in DRC serving victims of rape and mutilation, on their Turning Pain to Power speaking tour this February.

Stop Raping Our Greatest Resource (VDAY poster)

talk it out

by viva7

so for about, i don’t know, maybe 3 months now? i have been meaning to blog. i have even started a few posts. but every time i write something down, i get busy and distracted and the timeliness and all of my intentions are lost.

what i really want to get at here is – there is no excuse for my neglect of this blog. if the only goal is to initiate dialogue, the only necessary action is to say something. i need to stop editing and put some thoughts down.

so. this is a list of things i want to talk about.

1. the inauguration and the fact that the leader of this country is someone who agrees with me more than 75% of the time. how did that happen? how exciting that policy might soon support the important work that needs to be done? what doors are going to be opened for all of us? and what am i going to do with my anger if i can no longer direct it at the head of state?

2. between the individual amazingness of the election and the inauguration was the run-off. i was so disappointed by the results here in ga. more than that, i was surprised by the lack of mobilization. it was like everyone stopped caring after the general election. we were exhausted, i know, but we took such a step backwards from where we were just one month earlier. it was the kind of loss that makes one feel personally responsible, you know? i voted, but i did not do more.

3. happy anniversary roe v. wade. my celebration was most excellent and i heard jennifer baumgardner speak for a few minutes. she told a story about growing up in a home where she was taught to be pro-choice and pro-gay rights in a very detached, remote way. as in, abortion and homosexuality should be supported, but they won’t happen here. what i took away was the importance of reconciling our beliefs with our actual lives. i believe in that – in being open and honest and real and non-judgmental, even when we look at our own lives.

done (for now)

Too Full for Spin the Truth?

by juliacsmith

The other day I read a post by Seth Godin called Warning: The Internet is Almost Full:

Of course, the decentralized nature of the net means that it will never be physically full. As long as we can keep making hard drives, we won’t run out of space to store those inane videos of your Aunt Sally. What is full is our attention.

Ten years ago, you had a shot of at least being aware of everything that mattered. Five years ago, you had to be really selective about what you took in, but at least it was possible to know what you didn’t know. Today, it’s impossible. Today, you can’t even read every article on a thin slice of a thin topic.

“What is full is our attention.” I think this is true of our writers as well; we’ve been on a bit of an unplanned hiatus at the busy end of this calendar year.

As I reflect on 2008 and start to think about my hopes and plans for ‘09, I am genuinely curious to know: do you get anything out of reading this blog (and/or writing for it)? Want to see more of Yarn X? Less of Thread Z?

And mostly I want to thank the smart, fun people who contributed in our inaugural half-year: Aviva, Lisa, Joanna, Elissa, and Jared. I’m glad we’re friends, and I’m glad you’ve been brave enough to add your voices to the noisy overflowing stadium that is the internet.