Christine de Pizan

Christine de Pizan
The Writer Christine de Pizan at Her Desk

Thursday, January 12, 2023

Time to Cover Up, Ladies . . .

When Women Became No Longer Equal, Part 11: It's Time to Cover Up, Ladies


I usually write quite a bit when I'm launching into a good rant. But, for once, I'm just gonna put this out here, in case you missed it:
The Republican-controlled Missouri House of Representatives used its session’s opening day Wednesday to tighten the dress code for female legislators, while leaving the men’s dress code alone.
Women need to wear a jacket over their dress or with their skirt and pants. Cover up those bare arms, you hussies! 
The Missouri House, where women "hold less than a third of the seats,"
and where this bit of legislation will undoubtedly encourage more 
women to run to become a state representative . . . 

To be honest, I'm sorta shocked women are "allowed" to wear pants. But I notice that the dress code does not say a woman needs to wear a blouse, sweater, or other top under her jacket . . . Hmmmm. 

Love this tweet, from Democratic member Peter Merideth: 


(It is also fun to note that the Republican woman spearheading this drive to ensure her female colleagues were dressed "professionally" was wearing sequins and velvet on the House floor. Yeah. Wonder what kind of job she thought she was going to . . . )

Here's a great line from The Riverfront Times: "Missouri Republicans aren't done telling women what to do with their bodies."

Tuesday, January 3, 2023

Women and the 118th U. S. Congress

 Women and the 118th U. S. Congress (convenes 3 January 2023)


There will be a record number of women in the 118th U. S. Congress--149 women, a grand total of two (TWO!!!) more than in the 117th Congress. 

Of this total, 124 women will serve in the House of Representatives (91 of them Democrats). And 25 of the 100 U. S. Senators are women (16 of them Democrats). 

From Center for American Women and Politics

But before you party too hard, this number represents only 27.9% of the total seats in Congress (535). As Beth Daley notes for The Conversation: "At this rate, it will take 118 more years – until 2140 – for there to be an equal number of male and female lawmakers in Congress."

And in the broader picture? Again, here's Daley: "While women are underrepresented in governments around the globe, it is a particularly significant problem in the United States. Currently, the U.S. ranks 73rd in the world when it comes to female representation in government."

Another revealing graphic, this one from CNN