Stories about Women & Gender from October, 2019
Protesting domestic violence, Azerbaijani women take to the streets and social networks
One girl's story of domestic violence has sparked a nationwide conversation.
Cry of ‘Free the [bleeping] weed!’ leads to arrest of Trinidadian cannabis advocate
"To those who say the war is over, Rowley has promised to decriminalise, tell that to the citizens of this country who are packed 15 man to one stinking cell."
The struggle of the Bolivian feminist chola is now online
Yolanda Mamani, a feminist chola who started fighting for her rights as a child domestic worker, now take her talkative style to her radio show, blog and YouTube channel.
Portuguese rapper causes controversy for portraying domestic violence in music video
Dozens of women's rights associations criticized the rapper Valete, who responded saying the controversy was "empty".
Mexican feminist groups fight for the right to stay safe online
After falling victim to the dissemination of intimate images without her consent, Olimpia Coral Melo Cruz, together with feminist organizations, fights for the adoption of laws to make this behavior a crime.
How football-mad Cameroon is lifting up the sport in the country
After years of regression and neglect, the Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot) has decided to put domestic football league business back on track.
First Thai female Theravada monk named one of BBC’s 100 most influential women
Dhammananda’s efforts to re-establish the Theravada bhikkhuni (female monastic) lineage in Thailand have been met with resistance from both the laity and monks who are against ordaining women.
Rwanda deports American evangelical pastor accused of hate speech and visa violations
Many Rwandans lauded the US evangelical preacher's deportation, decrying hate speech in Rwanda. But supporters see it as an attack on faith-based organizations by the Kagame administration.
Is Rihanna Barbadian or Jamaican? Jamaican Twitter claims the superstar as their own
Barbadian Twitter users poked fun at the Jamaican Dollar exchange rate, so Jamaicans did the next best thing — they claimed Rihanna.
Arts festival caught in the crosshairs of Azerbaijan's ‘national mentality’
One mural depicting the body of a transgender person drew so much attention that it was painted over once the festival ended — in a not so artistically-friendly way.
Young Jamaican senator makes ‘inappropriate’ comments in parliament about breast cancer
"How is [discussing] part of a woman's body either appropriate or relevant in a Parliamentary (or any other public/formal discourse)?"
Despite last year's ‘alternative’ win, Guadeloupe's Maryse Condé passed over for 2019 Nobel Prize in Literature
The odds appeared to be in Condé's favour, but the Swedish Academy instead named Austrian author Peter Handke winner of the 2019 recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature.
#SexForGrades: A new documentary exposes sexual harassment at West African universities
Professors who harass female students and pressure them for sex in return for grades or school admission has become the norm in many universities in Nigeria and Ghana.
Forum on Internet Freedom in Africa: Global Voices represents at Addis Ababa digital rights conference
The forum represented a huge step forward for digital rights in Ethiopia, where, just five years ago, press freedom and digital rights were at an all-time low.
A burqa controversy in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
The government needs to come out of the thinking covering women in an abaya or chadar will protect them from harassers.
Trinidad and Tobago president's stance on unmarried partners faces backlash
Not legally married? Don't expect your partner to receive an invitation to an event at President's House — unless President Weekes reconsiders her "Victorian era" decision.