Features

By Herminia Ibarra for HBR Blog- IMF head Christine Lagarde tells a story about a woman leader she met who took over at a tough moment in her country’s history and resolved to be different. They had to cut the deficit and she wanted to set standards by personal example. When she travelled around the country, she…

By Meghan Groob, Media Relations Associate, ACLU  Last week, the Obama administration released a proposed rule implementing the requirement that insurance plans cover birth control as part of “Obamacare.” The proposal implements an accommodation announced last year, which allows nonprofits with religious affiliations to opt out of providing contraceptive coverage while ensuring that employees and dependents…

Huffington Post – CHICAGO — Cardiss Collins, the first African-American woman to represent Illinois in Congress, died of complications from pneumonia at a Virginia hospital, according to a family friend. Mel Blackwell said this week that Collins died Sunday evening at a hospital in Alexandria, Va., after suffering a stroke and spending time in a…

By Kathy Groob, Founder ElectWomen.com – Today is the final day of Hillary Clinton’s tenure as United States Secretary of State. She steps down as the President’s chief foreign affairs advisor with high praise and respect. Hoping to catch up on much needed rest and sleep, Secretary Clinton did not completely close the door to…

Former Congresswoman Debbie Halvorson, frontrunner in the upcoming special election to fill Jesse Jackson Jr.’s seat in Chicago’s 2nd Congressional District addressed her critics today in a letter to voters.  Halverson had come under fire for her positions with the NRA in the Congressional district she previously held.  The 2nd Congressional District has changed significantly…

BY STELLA BUGBEE – Yesterday, Nicholas D. Kristof man-serted himself into the “having it all” debate with his New York Times op-ed “She’s (Rarely) the Boss.” Describing the forthcoming book Lean In, by Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, Kristof finds himself wishing for two versions of Sandberg’s book, “One marketed to young women would encourage them to be more assertive. One marketed…

Campaigns & Elections Magazine – Campaign practitioners have said for two cycles now: the Internet’s great for fundraising and field but not nearly as good for persuasion. The problem is that campaigns lack a social media tool that accurately measures the quality of conversations, and until they have one there’s no way to tell if online…

By Jennifer Bendery,Huffington Post, WASHINGTON — The Senate will vote early next week to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, senior Democratic aides told The Huffington Post on Monday. The Senate has been moving with lightning speed to get VAWA up and out the door. Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) introduced their bill last Tuesday…