25 Most Powerful Women of the Last Century

25 Most Powerful Women of the Last Century according to Time Magazine.

No-Win Situation

Just For Fun

Smart Women VIII

Smart Women VII

Smart Women VI

Smart Women V

Smart Women III

Smart Women II

Smart Women I

Makeover?

According to DC Comics, the 69-year-old Wonder Woman is getting a makeover. They said they are trying to "toughen her up, and give her a modern sensibility."

Well, I don't know about that, but she's certainly not showing as much skin.

You can read more about it HERE.

Statistics, Education, & Women

These statistics come from an article by Hanna Rosin in the July/August 2010 issue of The Atlantic:

• Earlier this year, for the first time in American history, the balance of the workforce tipped toward women, who now hold a majority of the nation's jobs.
• For every two men who will receive a B.A. this year, three women will do the same
• Of the 15 job categories projected to grow the most in the next decade in the U.S., all but two are occupied primarily by women.
• According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women now hold 51.4% of managerial and professional jobs--up from 26.1% in 1980.
• Women make up 54% of all accountants and hold about half of all banking and insurance jobs.
• About 1/3 of American physicians are now women, as are 45% of associates in law firms--and both of those percentages are rising fast.
• Only 3% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women, and the number has never risen much above that.
• While female CEOs may be rare in America's largest companies, they are highly prized: last year, they outearned their male counterparts by 43%, on average, and received bigger raises.
• Women now earn 60% of master's degrees, about half of all law and medical degrees, and 42% of all MBAs. Most important, women earn almost 60% of all bachelor's degrees.
• In a stark reversal since the 1970's, men are now more likely than women to hold only a high-school diploma.
• Women ages 25 to 34 with only a high-school diploma currently have a median income of $25,747, while men in the same position earn $32,469.
• [Many colleges and universities are] tipping toward 60% women, a level many admissions officers worry could permanently shift the atmosphere and reputation of a school.
• This is the first time that the cohort of Americans ages 30-44 has more college-educated women than college-educated men.
• In 1970, women contributed 2-6% of the family income. Now the typical working wife brings home 42.2%, and 4 in 10 mothers--many of them single mothers--are the primary breadwinners in their family.
• In 1970, 84% of women ages 30-44 were married; now 60% are. In 2007, among American women without a high-school diploma, 43% were married.

Very interesting . . .

Like Mommy

OK, I have to admit that I stole this, but it was too good not to pass along:

A first grade girl handed in the drawing below for her homework assignment.

The teacher graded it and the child brought it home.

She returned to school the next day with the following note:

Dear Ms. Davis,

I want to be perfectly clear on my child’s homework illustration.
It is NOT of me on a dance pole on a stage in a strip joint surrounded by male customers with money.
I work at Home Depot and had commented to my daughter how much money we made in the recent snowstorm.
This drawing is of me selling a shovel.


Sincerely,
Mrs. Harrington

Smart Girls at the Party

Amy Poehler, Meredith Walker and Amy Miles celebrate girls who are changing the world by being themselves. Check it out here.

Women & Ageism

Another Ad

Human Rights

I warn you: This movie is not for the faint of heart. In fact, it is painful to watch, but if you care about Human Rights and the fate of women worldwide, this is a film you should see.

From a producer of THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST comes this chilling true story. Academy Award® nominee Shorheh Aghdashloo stars as Zahra, a woman with a burning secret. When a journalist (Jim Caviezel) is stranded in her remote village, Zahra takes a bold chance to reveal what the villagers will stop at nothing to hide. Thus begins the story of Soraya (Mozhan Marnò), a kind woman whose cruel, divorce- seeking husband trumps up false charges of infidelity against her, which carry an unimaginable penalty. Soraya and Zahra attempt to navigate the villagers’ scheming, lies and deceit to prove her innocence. But when all else fails, Zahra must risk everything to use the only weapon she has left – her voice – to share Soraya's shocking story with the world. Her shocking story exposes the dark power of mob rule, uncivil law, and the utter lack of human rights for women under Islamic law.

Women's History Month 2010

From the National Women's History Project Website:

2010 Theme: Writing Women Back into History

2010 will be the 30th anniversary of the National Women’s History Project. When we began mobilizing the lobbying effort that resulted in President Carter issuing a Presidential Proclamation declaring the week of March 8, 1980 as the first National Women’s History Week, we had no idea what the future would bring. And then, in 1987, another of our successful lobbying efforts resulted in Congress expanding the week into a month, and March is now National Women’s History Month.

The overarching theme for 2010 and our 30th Anniversary celebration is Writing Women Back into History. It often seems that the history of women is written in invisible ink. Even when recognized in their own times, women are frequently left out of the history books. To honor our 2010 theme, we are highlighting pivotal themes from previous years. Each of these past themes recognizes a different aspect of women’s achievements, from ecology to art, and from sports to politics.

When we began our work in the early eighties, the topic of women’s history was limited to college curricula, and even there it languished. At that time, less than 3% of the content of teacher training textbooks mentioned the contributions of women and when included, women were usually written in as mere footnotes. Women of color and women in fields such as math, science, and art were completely omitted. This limited inclusion of women’s accomplishments deprived students of viable female role models.

Today, when you search the Internet with the words “women’s +history + month,” you’ll find more than 40,500,000 citations. These extraordinary numbers give testimony to the tireless work of thousands of individuals, organizations, and institutions to write women back into history. Much of this work was made possible by the generous support of people like you.
We are inviting other women’s and educational organizations as well as women’s history performers, authors, historic sites, and museums, unions, military units, universities, and women’s history programs and parents, grandparents, and interested individuals to join us in recognizing the importance of women in history.

Now, more than ever, the work of this movement needs to continue and expand. Each new generation needs to draw information and inspiration from the last.

Second Class Sandra

From "Oscar Roundtable" in the February 8, 2010 Newsweek:

Let's do some more hyping. Did you guys know that with The Blind Side, Sandra became the first female star to have her movie make more than $200 million?

Sandra Bullock: First chick.

Jeff Bridges: Beautiful!

Bullock: It's nice, but it's odd. It's like, you're female and you've done this! And I go, I know I'm a second-class citizen. I've been aware of that since I reached puberty.

Do you think studio heads are finally realizing that women can open movies just like men?

Bullock: That women are worth something? I don't think they've learned that 100%. It's a business. It's show business. . .

Another Must-See

If you care about the plight of women worldwide, you should see this film. It highlights the fear and despair experienced by Muslim women under Taliban rule. It is heartbreaking, yet beautifully filmed.

Osama (Persian: أسامة) is a 2003 film made in Afghanistan by Siddiq Barmak.It was the first film to be shot entirely in that country since 1996, when the Taliban régime banned the creation of all films.

The movie was filmed on location in Kabul, Afghanistan. Work began in June, 2002 and was completed in March 2003 with a budget of approximately $46,000 USD. All the actors in the film are amateurs found by the director on the streets of Kabul.

It is the story of a 12-year-old Afghan girl and her mother who lose their jobs when the Taliban closes the hospital where they work. The Taliban have also forbidden women to leave their houses without a male "legal companion." With her husband and brother dead, killed in battle, there is no one left to support the family—mother, daughter, and aging grandmother. Without being able to leave the house, the mother is left with nowhere to turn. Feeling that she has no other choice, she disguises her daughter as a boy. Now called “Osama,” the girl embarks on a terrifying and confusing journey as she tries to keep the Taliban from finding out her true identity--something she increasingly realizes is only a matter of time.