Spain bans harassment of women entering abortion clinics
The legal changes mean that anyone harassing a woman going into an abortion clinic will be committing a crime that can be punished with up to one year in prison.
Women's rights & well-being
This archive covers documented progress on women’s rights and well-being worldwide — from legal reforms and health advances to economic gains and shifts in policy. Stories here focus on what’s working, who’s driving change, and where meaningful progress is taking hold.
All-women news source launches in Somalia to cover inequality
The team of six female journalists will cover important issues often overlooked in male-produced Somali media such as gender-based violence, women in politics, and female entrepreneurs.
Ketanji Brown Jackson to become first Black woman to serve on U.S. Supreme Court
Jackson made history as the U.S. Senate confirmed her by a vote of 53-47. President Biden nominated Jackson to take over the seat of retiring Justice Stephen Breyer.
Washington State launches first-in-the-nation missing Indigenous people alert system
Washington State’s new alert system for missing Indigenous people is the first of its kind in the nation, modeled on the familiar Amber Alert and pushing notifications out through highway billboards, radio, and social media the moment a family reports a loved one missing. The law was championed by State Representative Debra Lekanoff, a member of the Aleut and Tlingit tribes, and inspired in part by the disappearance of Tulalip woman Mary Johnson-Davis in 2020. A companion bill tackles a quieter injustice: requiring coroners to correctly identify Indigenous victims and notify their families, so cultural and burial traditions can be honored. Oregon, Wisconsin, and Arizona are moving in similar directions, suggesting Washington has built a foundation other states can follow toward visibility, dignity, and accountability.
The majority of Portuguese Cabinet Ministers are women for the first time ever
The socialist-majority government will take over on March 30, in a week. For the first time ever in the history of Portugal, the majority of ministers are women, 9 out of 17.
In landmark order, India’s Karnataka High Court affirms sexual assault on wife against her consent is rape
Justice M Nagaprasanna said that the institution of marriage cannot be used to confer any special male privilege or a license for unleashing a “brutal beast” on the wife.
Pakistan confirms appointment of first female Supreme Court judge
A commission that decides on the promotion of judges on Thursday voted to make 55-year-old Justice Ayesha Malik the first female judge on the Supreme Court in the 75 years since the South Asian country’s independence.
Benin becomes the first West African country to legalize abortion
Before, abortion was only permitted if the pregnancy endangered the life of the pregnant woman, was the result of rape, or was conceived in an incestuous relationship.
Cleveland Clinic launches human trials on first-of-its-kind preventative breast cancer vaccine
After two decades of preclinical research, human trials are set to begin on a unique preventative vaccine that is designed to target a protein commonly expressed by triple-negative breast cancers.
Egypt’s State Council swears-in the nation’s first female judges
Ninety-eight women were sworn in before the council’s chief judge Mohammed Hossam el-Din as the first female judges in the country’s history to join the State Council.