Justice and Mental Health
The appointment of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson to the United States Supreme Court is a historic moment in this great experiment of democracy that began nearly 250 years ago. As the first Black woman to take a seat on the bench of the Supreme Court, Justice Jackson’s appointment embodies aspirational
We Should All Be Feminists
International Women’s Day took place this past Tuesday, March 8th. Adopted by the United Nations in 1977, its origins are rooted in the earlier twentieth-century social and political feminist movements that fought for women’s suffrage, labor rights, and the broad ideal of gender equality. According to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, we
Something Old, Something New
The ink is barely dry. Just yesterday, President Biden signed legislation establishing Juneteenth as a US federal holiday. Short for June 19th, Juneteenth is tomorrow. Because its debut as a federal holiday falls on Saturday, today was declared a holiday (occasionally government systems move quickly). Following Juneteenth, Sunday is Father’s
I May Be the First…
When Vice President-elect Kamala Harris walked on stage in her white suffragette suit on November 7th, I cried. One hundred years after women won the right to vote in the USA, she is the first woman vice president. The first Black and Asian American woman vice president. Kamala Harris acknowledged
RIP RBG
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg bid the world farewell last Friday as Jews around the world welcomed in the new year. The Notorious RBG is the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court and is the first woman and first Jew to lie in State in the United States Capitol.
#RaiseTheFlagForSarah
Last week, the United States Supreme Court decided a landmark civil rights case. In a 6-3 ruling, the court determined that federal anti-bias law, already on the books for decades, covers millions of gay, lesbian and transgender workers. It is being heralded as another milestone for the gay rights movement.
Men, Mental Health, and Tech Meet Ups
With this Sunday being Father’s Day and June being Men’s Mental Health Month, I have been thinking about men and mental health. Often, the discussion about men and mental health focuses on how bad things are – high rates of mental health problems, particularly substance use disorders and suicide – and low
Women On My Mind
This Sunday is Mother’s Day. At the time of this writing, Coronavirus accounts for 274,651 deaths globally. And this week, my honeybees are buzzing. The unexpected intersections of Mother’s Day, COVID-19, and honeybees bring together themes that move me to awe and prompt me to share five musings about women
International Day of the Girl: Get Out Your Hiking Boots
Today is International Day of the Girl. Yesterday was World Mental Health Day. Maybe it’s not a coincidence that these two days sit side by side on the calendar. In the world of mental health, the data are overwhelmingly clear that gender matters. Gender equality is associated with better public
Innovative (Women) Leaders in Global Mental Health
Earlier this month, Forbes Magazine released its list of America’s 100 Most Innovative Leaders. 99 men and 1 woman. Really? Outrageous on so many levels, even after Forbes provided its methodology. So much so, that this week’s Five on Friday breaks form to share with you 100 women who are
Know My Name
Trigger warning: sexual assault, sexual abuse, PTSD, suicide Chanel Miller, the victim of the now-infamous sexual assault case at Stanford University in 2015, has decided to share her name. She was known as Emily Doe when she read her searing victim impact statement in court, and in newspapers she was called ‘unconscious
Pride
I was a young girl at the time of the 1969 Stonewall riots. Those were days when virtually no one talked about homosexuality and the AIDS Epidemic was still in the future. Fifty years on, an estimated 4.5 million people will be in New York City for International Pride this
