Our girls need role models from both the past and the present and all children need to learn about women’s role in history. For these reasons I have become a passionate collector of women’s history picture books and recently I stumbled upon a great one about Esther Morris.
When Esther Morris Headed West: Women, Wyoming and the Right to Vote by Connie Nordhielm Wooldridge and illustrated by Jacqueline Rogers is a fascinating read for young and old alike. The beautifully illustrated book chronicles the political activism of Esther Morris, a frontier …

March 10th is Harriet Tubman Day!
Harriet Tubman is one of our most celebrated American heroines and I was very pleased to learn that she has her own holiday. In 1990 President George H. W. Bush declared March 10 as Harriet Tubman Day and in 2003 Governor George Pataki of New York declared it a state holiday.
Tubman, who was born a slave in Maryland some time around 1820, escaped to freedom at the age of 29. Not content with just her own emancipation, Tubman helped more than 300 slaves to freedom …

The opinions expressed herein are those of the author, and not necessarily those of The New Agenda.
I’m feeling frosted. How is it that some of the best ski jumpers in the WORLD are not allowed to compete in jumping in this year’s winter Olympics? Well, the answer becomes clear when one realizes that these accomplished athletes are women.
It turns out that ski jumping is the only remaining Olympic sport that still bans women. So I think it’s time for this Olympic sport to update its look.
Jacques …

There’s more to life for little girls than pink princesses, baby dolls and toy kitchen sets. But sometimes it’s hard to know this judging from the plethora of gender specific toys out there. Sure many girls like baby dolls (as do most of the little boys in my daughter’s playgroup). But girls are too multidimensional to be confined to the roles of princesses and homemakers and it’s nice to see this reflected in the Playmobil series of toy figurines.
Playmobil does offers the standard princess and mom-at-home-doing-housework toy sets. But they …

The opinions expressed herein are those of the author, and not necessarily those of The New Agenda.
Nicholas D. Kristof is one of my feminist heroes. He and his wife, Sherly WuDunn (who is easily one of my feminist heroines) are the writers of the recently published book, Half the Sky. This book outlines the struggles of the most oppressed women around the globe and how women’s rights should be at the forefront of issue to tackle for our generation. In addition, Kristof has been writing …

How do Republican women fare when it comes to women’s issues? Just ask Al Franken.
Al Franken, the Democratic Junior Senator from Minnesota and former SNL comedian, recently introduced an amendment to the Defense Appropriations bill that protects the rights of rape victims who work for federal contractors overseas. The amendment has recently passed, in part due to the support of our Republican women senators.
The personal story that inspired Franken to introduce this amendment is absolutely horrific. In 2005, Jamie Leigh Jones, a young …

The New Agenda welcomes back Alison Freidlin, a mom and a teacher who has researched and developed a Women’s History curriculum.  She previously contributed this article reviewing children’s books on women’s history.  She presents her own opinions, not necessarily those of The New Agenda.
In Shining Days, actor Patricia Duran brings to life G.B. Shaw's often-uncredit collaborator, Florence Farr Emery.
Do women support each other in the world of theatre? A recent article in the New York Times suggests that female creative directors show bias towards scripts written by men and are less …

(Editor’s note: We are pleased to present this guest post by Ali, one of our regular commenters on The New Agenda blog. Thank you, Ali!)
Who is Alice Paul? I didn’t know until a few years ago when I watched Iron Jawed Angels for the first time. I couldn’t believe that I had never heard of this amazing woman but I assumed it was just me. Everyone else must know her story, right? Wrong. After asking countless friends, family members and acquaintances “Who is Alice Paul?” only one person …