Women of America: Wake the hell up

A few days ago, a federal appeals court judge upheld a ruling that a female bartender in San Francisco was not unfairly fired from her job at a Harrah's Casino in 2000 because she refused to wear makeup. The plaintiff had been on the job for 20 years and had a stirling reputation as a bartender, but when the company revised its policy to insist that women employees wear makeup, she did not go along.

After she was fired, the employeee, Darlene Jespersen, sued Harrah's for sex discrimination, and a 3-judge panel of the oh-so-liberal 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 that the firing was justified, thus upholding a lower court ruling. The Court based its decision on previous rulings that allow for different grooming standards between men and women. Both the Lamda Defense Fund and the dissenting judge argued that Jespersen's firing was a violation of Title VII. The majority, however, ruled that the new Harrah's grooming standards were no more burdensome to women than to men.

One cannot help but note that there may have been other motives for getting rid of an otherwise excellent bartender. Jespersen had worked there long enough to indicate that she must have been at least 40 when she was fired, and the Lambda defense indicates that she is a lesbian. At any rate, requiring women to wear makeup is sexist, no matter how you slice it, and is a Title VII violation if I ever saw one.

Then there is the woman in Spokane who was told by a judge that she cannot divorce her abusive husband while she is pregnant. In 2002, Shawnna Hughes' husband beat her so severely that he went to jail. She is now prenant by another man, and he baby is due in March. The divorce--never contested by Hughes' husbands--was approved until it was discovered that she was pregnant. Now, Spokane County Superior Court Judge Paul Bastine says "There's a lot of case law that says it is important in this state that children not be illigitamized."

Putting aside the stupidity of that argument, the other part of the equation is that Hughes is set to marry the father of her child, and now the judge is preventing her from doing so.

It will not suprise anyone that Judge Bastine commented that women who are married should not become pregnant by other men. Thanks for that, Paul.

It is the 21st Century, but a radio network holds a contest to give away large breasts to women. A White House-backed Abstinence-Only education curriculum teaches that financial support is one of the five major needs of women, and domestic support is one of the five major needs of men. Male pharmacists across the country are refusing to fill prescriptions for women's birth control on "moral" grounds, and not all of them have lost their jobs over it. Congress keeps hacking away at funding for the Violence Against Women Act.

It's all going backwards, and at a rapid pace. When was the last time you: Wrote a letter to the editor about sexism in your community? Wrote to your Congresspeople and Senators about legislation for women? Challenged sexist remarks and behaviors in your office, your church, and your home? Donated money to feminist organizations?

The work of the Second Wave is being undone. This is a warning. Heed it now.