IDST 255: Introduction to Women's and Gender Studies: Web Resources

The ACLU works "to extend rights to segments of our population that have traditionally been denied their rights, including Native Americans and other people of color; lesbians, gay men, bisexuals and transgendered people; women; mental-health patients; prisoners; people with disabilities; and the poor." The website provides information on a number of issues such as: criminal justice, immigrant rights, free speech, racial equality, students rights, voting rights, etc. See also the Virginia ACLU affiliate site: http://www.acluva.org/ .

"Through our detailed research and determined campaigning, we help fight abuses of human rights worldwide. We bring torturers to justice. Change oppressive laws. And free people jailed just for voicing their opinion." Try looking through the items on the Research section of the site to find primary snf secondary source materials.

" The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) amplifies the voice of the LGBT community by empowering real people to share their stories, holding the media accountable for the words and images they present, and helping grassroots organizations communicate effectively. By ensuring that the stories of LGBT people are heard through the media, GLAAD promotes understanding, increases acceptance, and advances equality. "

"The online home of our nation's premier grassroots citizen organization." The site is designed for those looking for all types of political information including voting, civic participation, and policy issues. The site provides the information and tools to "get involved in the democratic process at the federal, state and local levels. The site includes a Video Archive with Presidential Debate and Public Service Announcement footage which has been converted into streaming media files to be watched with Windows Media Player. Also available are .pdf versions of some of the League's historical documents and images of historical photographs. Additional publications are available either for downloading in .pdf format or for purchase in print format.

"The mission of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force is to build the political power of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community from the ground up. We do this by training activists, organizing broad-based campaigns to defeat anti-LGBT referenda and advance pro-LGBT legislation, and by building the organizational capacity of our movement. "

"...is the largest organization of feminist activists in the United States." Founded in 1966 the goal of NOW is equality for all women. Explore key issues of interest to women from abortion to women in the military.

"Soulforce's goal is to turn this world upside down and inside out in the name of justice and equity for folks across all marginalized racial, sexual, and gender identities. We seek to do the kind of collective activism that makes our souls burst as we free ourselves from spiritual violence."

Links to a variety of resources provided by the University of Massachusetts Stonewall Center.

"... a non-profit organization dedicated to engaging in effective advocacy for transgender people in our society." Provides access to a variety of information and resources.

"The Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, created in 1957 by the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1957, works to uphold the civil and constitutional rights of all Americans, particularly some of the most vulnerable members of our society. The Division enforces federal statutes prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, disability, religion, familial status and national origin."

"UN Women is the UN organization dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. A global champion for women and girls, UN Women was established to accelerate progress on meeting their needs worldwide. - See more at: http://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us#sthash.ZiWEYoxZ.dpuf"

The online site for the Advocate Magazine, "The World's Leading Gay News Resource."

"The GII is an inequality index. It measures gender inequalities in three important aspects of human development—reproductive health, measured by maternal mortality ratio and adolescent birth rates; empowerment, measured by proportion of parliamentary seats occupied by females and proportion of adult females and males aged 25 years and older with at least some secondary education; and economic status, expressed as labour market participation and measured by labour force participation rate of female and male populations aged 15 years and older. The GII is built on the same framework as the IHDI — to better expose differences in the distribution of achievements between women and men. It measures the human development costs of gender inequality, thus the higher the GII value the more disparities between females and males and the more loss to human development. "

This database from the World Bank Group supplies "gender statistics and indicators designed with user-friendly, menu-driven features." Sources for the information in the database include national statistics, the United Nations, and World Bank conducted or funded surveys. Select a country and then select a category of statistical data.

A collection of links to various materials on gender & sexuality provided by the Voice of the Shuttle.

"Womenwatch is the central gateway to information and resources on the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women throughout the United Nations system..."

"Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts."