“The Century of Woman” Women’s eNews shaping online women’s journalism.
When I was introduced to Rita Haley Jensen through Facebook by her daughter Ariel Jensen Vargas, she was sharing their recent Women’s eNews annual 21 Leaders for the 21st Century 2009 honorees. I had heard about the celebratory award given to 21 extraordinary female newsmakers (and one man) chosen every year. Nobel Peace Prize winners, writers, journalists, women’s rights activists, are selected from around the globe by non-profit Women’s eNews, for their “demonstrated commitment to creating change on behalf of all women”.
- Rita Haley Jensen
Interested in the organization behind this prestigious, outstanding leadership award, I asked Ariel with whom I could speak to and possibly interview, she lead me to founder and president of Women’s eNews Rita Haley Jensen.
As I researched Rita, read her articles, listened to her interviews, and watched her videos I was moved to my core. This lively international woman with her bright white hair, sparkling ice blue eyes and her enthusiastic sweet voice has shaped woman’s journalism for over two decades. She has inspired, hired, trained and mentored hundreds if not thousands of women journalists around the world. Rita is a former senior writer for the National Law Journal who won an Alicia Patterson Fellowship grant in 1994 and wrote an expose about the role lawyers played in the savings-and-loan scandal of the late 1980s. 1
Her amazing staff of professional women journalists at Women’s eNews; located in the heart of New York City, one block from Susan B. Anthony’s ‘Revolution’ newspaper publishing house (a newspaper for women’s rights in 1868) provides up to the minute breaking women’s news. Their focus at Women’s eNews is “balanced and non-partisan journalism” an electronic news service that distributes national and international women’s issues covering public policy, justice, reproductive rights, domestic violence, rape, trends in business, culture, politics, education, health, law, sports and safety.
Ten years ago, when Women’s eNews first began, they had their small staff and a mission. As Kathryn Rodgers, president of the news service’s parent organization, recounts its genesis this way: “Looking out at the media’s coverage of women, we saw a tremendous void in women’s voices, in women as opinion shapers, and in the coverage of all the things that women do in society. So we decided to show the media what they were missing. Not to go on a blame campaign, but to do the ground work, actually do the reporting, and go back to these media outlets and say, ‘Here’s what we’re talking about when we say you’re not covering women’s issues.’ ” 1
Same Website, New Design.
When I spoke to Rita shortly after, I was inspired by her relentless dedication over the years to women, young and old, speaking to what is possible in their lives. A commitment for all women to have their full rights acknowledged, and a peaceful life. What was Women’s eNews vehicle to reaching women around the world? Their ten year old website, “a model T Ford that got the job done” Rita laughed. Celebrating being online for 10 years as of June 15, 1999, Launched by the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund, www.womensenews.org is now getting a cutting edge, state-of-the-art new face August 2009.
Rita is excited about the opportunities their new website will create for everyone. An interactive site, with activities, favorite women blogger’s highlighted, survey questions, polls, and amazing photographs will be coupled with their archive of over 4,000 articles from international journalists. A popular feature; Journalist of The Month will remain. They have an active Facebook with a goal of hitting their 500 Facebook members.2
Women’s eNews has a growing membership and subscribership from major news organizations to small journalist and blog members. In over 120 Nations, everyday 100 of their brave, on-the-front-lines journalists deliver original stories not available anywhere else, each Wednesday, to Women’s eNews. Proudly they offer an Arabic site launched in 2003. The news service’s staff sends a weekly e-mail to some 8,000 newspapers, targeting national editors with a budget describing syndicated stories. In addition, a separate e-mail is sent to op-ed editors offering new commentaries.1
As I browsed through their current site, I was impressed with how much free information they were able to squeeze into their ‘model T Ford’. The current stories they were highlighting while I was visiting were ‘Health Reform’, ‘AT&T Case spotlights Gender issue for Sotomayor’ by Sharon Johnson, ‘Onal Found Remorse Among Turkish ‘Honor’ Killers’, ‘July Promises Femme Films’ by Jennifer Merin, ‘Iran, Dissidence Achieves Gender Parity’ by Soheila Vahdati, Women’s Philanthropy Outpaces the Pack’ by Kayla Hutzler, ‘U.N puts Female Peacekeepers on Display’ by Theresa Braine. Other stories were Iran’s Women’s Rights Activists Are Being Smeared, Influential Women’s Magazine Silenced in Iran, Memoir Goes Behind Iran’s Prison Gates, Black Maternal Health.
Rita and I continued to speak about the current protests in Iran, and she told about the type of women they honor, and support like a prominent women’s rights activist in Tehran, Iranian journalist and Human Rights Attorney Shadi Sadr, whom accepted their Ida B. Wells Award for Bravery in Journalism at the Women’s eNews 21 Leaders for the 21st Century. Ms. Shirin Ebadi, is a Nobel Prize winner, and during the protest she was threatened with judicial prosecution. She has been a respected voice defending human rights, and women’s rights in Iran.
We agreed the importance of being proactive with our children, and young people in creating awareness of what is happening in the world. Women’s eNews goes as far as giving walking tours to young journalism students, groups, organizations and visitors for an hour in their historic neighborhood.
When asking Rita to look back at what expectations did she have in 1999 for women’s news coverage, major media coverage about women, and how her website might influence both areas, this is how she recalls that time:
“It was a hunger, really, to do the journalism
I loved and to present to the other news media—here,
these are great stories. I had hoped the power of
our journalism would inspire them to do the same.”
Furthermore, I asked her what progress has she seen in the ten years she has been offering an e-news service? She recalls; “I see that major newspapers are improving their coverage, particularly of women overseas and feminist is no longer a pejorative and feminism is no longer being declared dead or passé.”
After making huge journalistic progress and contributions over the last ten years through Women’s eNews, I asked her what she thought the next ten years would look for Women’s Rights, including in the media, this is what Rita had to say: “Even with a pro-women’s rights president in office, many battles must be fought—fair employment practices, reproductive justice—the opportunity to have children or not—freedom from violence, just to name three…”
Without really knowing the full global impact Women eNews has truly been for the landscape of fair journalism for women, Rita is remarkably humble. She is truly on the front lines with her dedicated army of professional female journalists. I attribute her character to that of one particular woman who launched a paper called “Revolution” a century ago, fighting for women’s right to vote only a few blocks away from their headquarters.
So, naturally I asked her “Do you believe Women’s eNews has been at the foundation or source of this progress?” Rita’s response: “Women’s News can’t take credit for the entire shift, but I am confident that without us, it might not have happened.”
Rita Henley Jensen is Founder and Editor in Chief of Women’s eNews (www.womensenews.org), an independent daily news service covering issues of particular concern to women, which has won 31 journalism awards, including the PASS Award from the National Council on Crime and Delinquency and the Rosa Cisneros award from the International Planned Parenthood Federation, Western Hemisphere Region. Jensen also was named by the New York Daily News one of the 100 most influential women in New York. A former senior writer for the National Law Journal and columnist for The New York Times Syndicate, Jensen has more than 20 years of experience in journalism and journalism education, as well as an armload of awards, including the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism Alumni award, the Hunter College Presidential Grant for Innovative Uses of Technology in Teaching, the Alicia Patterson fellowship, and the Lloyd P. Burns Public Service prize. Jensen is also a survivor of domestic violence and a former welfare mother who earned degrees from Ohio State University and Columbia Graduate School of Journalism. She is also the grandmother of four, two granddaughters and two grandsons.
Anyone can obtain permission to republish the material in any medium simply by dropping them a note.Women’s eNews is a project of the incubator program of the Fund for the City of New York, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. For more information, or to inquire about subscribing or to make a donation, please visit www.womensenews.org or call (212) 244-1720.
Bobbi Miller-Moro is the founder of Women Without Borders, is an supporter for Women’s Rights and successful co-parenting; author of ‘Lessons We Learned From Obama’, actress and filmmaker of transformational films, and mother of five children. She lives with her husband and children in Los Angeles.
- Nonprofit launches journalism operation to cover women’s issues
- Womens eNews Facebook page: Here
Motivational Speaker Leatrice Naylor: “The Billionaire Mom…why not?”
by Bobbi Miller-Moro
One mom went from tragedy to breakthrough invention for women.
During these tough, almost brutal economic times it is easy to just operate from fear. Holding your money close, not taking risks, not starting new ventures or not following your dreams. However, something is happening at the deepest level for many people around the world; they are finding their strength and their most explosive creative forces are waiting to be uncovered. New start-up business and companies, mergers, new ventures are happening and it is exciting. If you are not at the forefront of this collective momentum, it is never too late. Your resources are limitless once you begin to look. One woman did just that, and Leatrice Naylor’s journey didn’t just start in the recession.
When one of her three daughters was discovered to have a golf ball sized tumor in her brain, her life changed instantly. Leatrice and her retired military husband gave their daughter everything they could to help recuperate her back to health after her emergency surgery. Through prayers and support she made a full recovery, but out of this harrowing and painful experience Leatrice discovered a solution to a simple, overlooked problem her daughter was having.
To relieve the experience of her daughter’s menstruation, she invented and developed a new product, Menzies. An attractive disposable panty, so no more ruined undergarments. Made with light, bio degradable fibers that easily dissolves into the earth once it is discarded it is a product who’s time has come. It has a built in pad for extra coverage, and makes for easy wear and coverage. Leatrice had no idea that this product would gain in popularity to the point that where she has been approached by the US Military, hospice centers, labor and delivery hospitals and an international manufacturer.
Out of her strong determination to see her invention go to market, she learned valuable lessons along the way. From how to get a patent attorney, distribution, manufacturing, marketing to pr. She learned the ins and outs of taking an idea to the shelves, all within the process of raising a family. This became a transformational journey for Leatrice, and she has seen first hand how many women and mothers have been in her shoes. Where they have so many ideas and don’t know where to start. She knows how difficult it can be especially right now when everything seems so economically impossible.
Leatrice’s daring attitude to venture into the world of manufacturing has also lead to the most natural and organic part of her realization of inspiring other women, she created “billionaire Moms…why not?” She thought of ‘Millionaire Moms’, but knew in this day and age, Billionaires are the new millionaires and to think really big. The “…why not?” part gives an elegant meaning to the dreams that is possible for everyone.
Leatrice is President of BAC Marketing and a degree in X and went X school, she wasn’t satisfied with the results until Menzies and “Billionaire Mom…Why Not?” was born. Out of overcoming her challenges, her story is heart felt and emotional and she began speaking in churches as a testament to the human spirit. Audiences responses were overwhelming, and from the heart, and they encouraged her to become a Motivational Speaker. And that’s exactly what she did. A mom of three from Northern Virginia, with a dream and a true harrowing story, she now is holding workshops nationwide for women’s organizations to teach women how to ‘manufacture their dream.’
- In her women’s workshop, she covers Steps on how Leatrice went from her dream idea for a product, to manufacturing.
- How she transitioned from working corporate to CEO.
- How to protect and patent your idea.
- Get hands-on materials to implement your ideas into reality.
- Also available Exclusive Resource Marketing Package.
Her next event will be at the beautiful satellite campus of George Mason University Campus in Virginia. If you are interested in having Leatrice Naylor speak at your church, organization, women’s group or function go to http://TheBillionaireMom.com or info@TheBillionaireMom.com
21 Outstanding Leaders honered by Women’s eNews
Although this has past, these 21 outstanding
leaders in the world have not stopped,
they just have gotten stronger.
For more pictures, bio and more info click
on each link or name.
Women’s eNews honored a Gala Benefit
Dinner Honoring 21 Leaders for 21st Century 2009.
New York City
Introduction by Rita Henly Jensen
http://www.aptinetvideo.com/leaders/
Women’s eNews is a Web site and electronic news service that distributes balanced and non-partisan journalism on the issues that matter to women. With more than 100 correspondents across the nation and around the globe, Women’s eNews covers national and international events and trends in business, culture, education, health, law, politics, sports and safety. Subscribers include more than 500 major media outlets in the United States and abroad. Women’s eNews is a project of the incubator program of the Fund for the City of New York, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. For more information, or to inquire about subscribing or to make a donation, please visit www.womensenews.org or call (212) 244-1720.
Anika Rahman, Betsy Chandler, Jacki Zehner and Rita Henley Jensen
María Luisa Sánchez Fuentes, Galvanizer of Public Opinion
Amy Sananman, Materializer of Visions, Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Rabbi Diana Manber Finder of the Words for Clergy
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Anika Rahman Campaigner for Reproductive Health
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Jacki Zehner Investor in Female Futures
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Susan Stautberg, Roxanne Mankin Cason, Rita Henley Jensen, Rabbi Diana Manber
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Paula J. Giddings Biographer of Heroes Ida B. Wells Award Winner
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century,Dusti Gurule Grower of Latina Power
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Patrick C. Lynch Prosecutor Dedicated to Protection
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Nadia Farjood Teen Supporter of Afghans, Iranians
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Brenna Lacey on behalf of Cathi Rodgveller, Guider of Girl Techies
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Roxanne Mankin Cason Builder of Equity
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Susan Stautberg Opener of Doors to Fortune 500
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Dr. Linda Randolph Healer With a Mission
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Marilyn Smith Hearer of Silent Pleas
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Nancy Hopkins Tenured Catalytic Activist
Women’s eNews, 21 Leaders for the 21st Century, Lilly Ledbetter Flag-Bearer for Fair Pay
Patrick C Lynch and his mother at the Women’s eNews celebration of the 21 Leaders for the 21st Century 2009
In early 2007, Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch prosecuted the brutal murder of
Roxanne Mankin Cason speaks with Soledad O’Brien at the Women’s eNews celebration of the 21 Leaders for the 21st Century 2009
“I try to engage and see myself as a catalyst for systemic change for women and girls,”…
Eve Ensler and Christine Schuler Deschryver at the Women’s eNews celebration of the 21 Leaders for the 21st Century 2009
Human rights activist Christine Schuler Deschryver is haunted by the nightmarish stories of victims…
Journalist Dominique Soquel interviews Brenna Lacey at the Women’s eNews celebration of the 21 Leaders for the 21st Century 2009
Brenna Lacey speaks on behalf of Cathi Rodgveller. Cathi Rodgveller has been a teacher and counselor
David Temin and Kimberly Seals Allers at the Women’s eNews celebration of the 21 Leaders for the 21st Century 2009
David Temin, President and CEO at Temin and Company Incorporated and Kimberly Seals Allers, author
Malaak Compton-Rock speaks with Soledad O’Brien at Women’s eNews 21 Leaders for the 21st Century event
Malaak Compton-Rock is the founder of several innovative programs for women and children, from New
Board of Directors Chair Betsy Chandler sounds the tambourine at the 21 Leaders for the 21st Century
This opportunity for leadership of an international news organization is a profound honor and deeply…
June Cross presents Paula J. Giddings at the Women’s eNews celebration of the 21 Leaders for the 21st Century 2009
June Cross presents the Ida B. Wells award for outstanding journalism to Paula J. Giddings at the …
Women’s eNews 21 Leaders for the 21st Century group photo
Women’s eNews celebrates the 21 Leaders for the 21st Century 2009 Front, left to right: Nadia
Women’s eNews celebration of the 21 Leaders for the 21st Century 2009, Thursday, May 7, 2009 in New York City
Women’s eNews announces today its 21 Leaders for the 21st Century 2009: one man and 20 women…
A new word for prostitute: Victim
Ashley Berner, 19, of Hilliard, left home after graduation and quickly became trapped in the underworld of human trafficking.
A year earlier, Ashley was a typical high-school student.
Ashley now lives in a shelter for victims of human trafficking and is working through the emotional and physical trauma of her experiences.
At a strip club in Dayton, Pastor Sharon Amos, left, the founder of Oasis House, talks with Audrey about the women’s shelter run by church members. It provides food, counseling and help with education.
Ashley Berner, barely 18, pleaded to the driver to let her go. Three other women, who had taken her in from the streets, introduced her to the man she didn’t realize was a pimp. Soon, he was beating her and threatening to kill her and harm her family if she didn’t continue prostituting in the back seat of that car.
Two weeks earlier, she had been sitting in English and math classes at Hilliard Darby High School. She left home after graduation to get out on her own, and the first people she met lured her astray.
And just that fast, Ashley was trapped in an ugly underworld with no clear escape.
“I wanted out,” she said. “But he told me they owned me now.”
The image of human trafficking is one of women being smuggled across foreign borders into sex rings, or of children being abducted from Third World countries and forced into slave labor.
But a form of this heinous crime — the sex trafficking of juveniles and young women — is happening here in our community with our children.
Pimps and their recruiters target girls in schools and shopping malls, on Internet sites and college campuses and elsewhere. They trick or coerce them into prostitution.
The U.S. Department of State estimates that 15,000 to 18,000 women and girls are trafficked in the U.S. each year. Up to 300,000 may be at risk because they live in poverty, have a family history of abuse or are vulnerable for other reasons.
Once the pimps or sex-ring operators have girls such as Ashley, they use whatever it takes to keep them under control — drugs, beatings and death threats.
Some force girls to work in strip clubs and escort services. Immigrants often are forced to become domestic servants and day laborers for low pay and no freedom. There is little data to measure trafficking in central Ohio. But one rescue group says it sees up to 21 cases a month.
A Dispatch examination of sex trafficking confirmed that it is a serious and growing threat, largely invisible and vastly underreported. The problem is not limited to the inner city. According to law enforcement, it extends to affluent suburbs where pimps are increasingly looking for unsuspecting and naive girls.
“If these girls don’t have good role models or a guiding force in their life, they are left wide open to this kind of activity,” said Eric Fenner, executive director of Franklin County Children Services. “These are smooth-talking people in most cases who have made coercing these young girls into a science. We need to recognize that these girls are victims.”
That viewpoint gets to the heart of why it is so difficult to size up the problem: Society generally views prostitutes as criminals, not victims. Quantifying the problem — and fighting it — begins with a new definition of underage prostitutes as crime victims, say their advocates.
“A 12-year-old girl doesn’t decide to be a prostitute on her own,” said Theresa Flores, an advocate and former trafficking victim. “They are coerced, tricked and forced into that world.”
Officials from the State Highway Patrol, Ohio attorney general’s office, Franklin County Children Services, FBI and advocates who try to rescue and treat trafficked girls say the problem is serious.
“I would say this is a strong threat,” said Kristin Cadieux, an FBI agent who investigates federal trafficking cases in the Columbus area. “There are serious things happening out there to young girls.”
Some recent examples:
• Cadieux investigated a case last year in which seven women, mainly ages 18 to 22, were taken to West Virginia to be sold for prostitution. The young women were passed off as 14- and 15-year-olds by the pimp and his female recruiter.
• Federal investigators in Maryland used Web-based sex ads this past spring to lure pimps who were buying, selling and prostituting young girls. Authorities in the area between Baltimore and Washington, D.C., made several arrests and took numerous girls into protective custody. Two of those girls were from Columbus. One was 17; the other, 12.
• A Columbus man faces charges for running a sex ring from his home after he arranged for a 16-year-old girl to have sex with an undercover detective. Authorities said the girl was recruited and used in nude pictures on the Internet to advertise prostitution. It’s unknown how many other girls were involved.
Toledo’s reputation as a haven for human trafficking prompted creation of an FBI-led task force focused exclusively on the problem. In Columbus, 50 agencies are part of the federally funded Central Ohio Rescue and Restore Coalition.
Awareness of sex trafficking has been slow to spread, especially in suburban communities, where many who are aware of trafficking are hesitant to talk about it because they don’t want their communities or schools associated with the issue.
David Axner, superintendent of Dublin City Schools, made an exception this past spring by inviting Flores to speak to high-school girls.
Having heard Flores’ powerful story at a Rotary Club meeting, Axner said that his students should be told of the potential dangers.
“If I had not brought her to our district to raise awareness to this issue, I would not have been doing my job. It would have been irresponsible,” Axner said. “I didn’t want to sweep what I learned under the rug and hope it doesn’t happen to one of our kids.”
After Flores’ presentation at Dublin Coffman High School, some students approached at least one counselor and expressed concern about friends or other teens who they feared might be susceptible to trafficking.
“I think the potential for this has always been there and continues to be there,” said GeorgiAnn Diniaco, a counselor at Coffman. “It was a good opportunity for the girls to have a chance to be empowered rather than taken. What I’m hearing from them is they are now more aware of who surrounds them and the situations they put themselves in.”
Some high-ranking politicians have long viewed girls caught up in trafficking as victims.
Among them are Teresa Fedor and Deborah Pryce, who are from opposite sides of the political fence: Fedor is a Democratic state senator from Toledo, and Pryce is a Republican former judge and congresswoman from Upper Arlington.
In recent years, they independently arrived at the same conclusion: Human trafficking is “modern-day slavery,” and it’s happening in Ohio.
Fedor subsequently sponsored Ohio’s new human-trafficking law; Pryce led the charge to reauthorize and strengthen the federal trafficking law.
Experts say that Ohio is a prime Midwest “recruitment area” for young girls who are forced to work as prostitutes in hotels, truck stops and temporary “cat houses” at major sporting events.
“The recruiters in trafficking go to the very places where you think your kids are safe,” said Celia Williamson, a University of Toledo professor and founder of Second Chance, a group founded 16 years ago to get women and girls out of the sex business.
“They don’t go to the bus stations,” Williamson said. “They go to the mall. They go to the hangout house where there are all girls there. The recruiter could be another girl.”
The rush from crack cocaine was the only thing that seemed to revive Ashley’s weary body and broken spirit night after night on the streets. Her pimp got what he wanted – a drug addict who needed both him and prostitution to support her craving for crack. She traded the little money she kept from turning tricks for more drugs.
She had become like the other street girls she encountered. Many were teenagers, some very young . Most were coerced into prostitution because of a history of abuse or trouble at home . They were prey for other women who faked friendship just long enough to introduce them to a pimp.
And, like Ashley, they were passed or sold from pimp to pimp.
A 2007 report on human trafficking was critical of how Ohio law enforcement, the courts and the juvenile system deal with the issue. The state generally has “a lack of awareness, training, resources and policies,” said the RAND Corp. Report prepared for the Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police.
The report by the independent, nonprofit think tank based in Santa Monica, Calif., singles out law enforcement and social-service providers.
“In Columbus, there is little identification of human-trafficking cases,” the report said. “There is no awareness of possible juvenile sex-trafficking victims in Columbus despite the broad consideration of the issue in Toledo.”
The report said that Franklin County’s juvenile-justice system “treats juveniles arrested for prostitution as offenders instead of victims. According to respondents, these cases are not treated as possible human-trafficking cases and are not investigated or prosecuted as such by federal law enforcement.”
Victim advocates agree, saying that more education is needed. They also call for a unit dedicated to pulling young girls out of those situations and arresting pimps. They argue that if sex trafficking were a higher priority for police, they would arrest more pimps and document the growing problem.
Columbus police officials say they know about the “hot-button issue.” Vice detectives working the streets typically carry a list of active prostitutes that included more than 800 women last year.
“It could be happening out there, and in some instances, I’m sure it is,” said Lt. Steve Hope, head of the Columbus vice unit. “But I wouldn’t say it’s rampant, based on what we have seen.”
Columbus Police Chief Walter Distelzweig said additional scrutiny is needed.
“Based on the increased concern from the FBI and others, it’s something we should take a harder look at,” he said.
He was just another man, just another trick for Ashley.
She had seen hundreds of men during the summer of 2008. Any attempt or even hint of running away prompted beating s and more threats. So with her pimp watching from nearby, she routinely offered men oral sex for $20.
But this particular guy wasn’t another john; he was an undercover Columbus cop. He arrested the teenager for solicitation and, without pity or coddling, booked her in to jail.
The police record lists Ashley’s address as “streets of Columbus.”
“I know I would be dead if he hadn’t arrested me that night,” Ashley said. “I was just a crack-addict hooker he was pulling in off the streets, not a victim. But that’s what gave me a chance to get my life back.”
On an uncharacteristically chilly June night, Sharon Amos and her band of volunteers prepare for their weekly visit to strip clubs on Dayton’s “Dixie Strip.”
The old stone building that is home to Oasis House seems out of place in an area that some say is riddled with the highest concentration of sex businesses in Ohio. Directly across the street is the Adult Superstore. A few blocks north is the Flamingo Show Club. To the south are Sharkey’s Lounge, the Harem, the Living Room and the Gentleman’s Club.
The five clubs employ about 400 dancers. Most perform topless, and a few take it all off.
Amos, pastor of Higher Ground United Methodist Church, heads to the Flamingo Show Club, where a sign outside advertises: “Amateur Night: $400 in prizes.”
Amos and a volunteer carry in trays of chicken-salad sandwiches, chips, strawberries, angel-food cake and brownies and spread them out on a table at the rear of the bar. Nearby, young women dance topless in front of mirrors and leering men. The women are bathed in neon and flashing lights, and gyrate to the sound of loud music with a deep, pulsing bass.
Within a few minutes, several scantily clad dancers perched on 6-inch heels gather around the food. Amos offers hugs to all, most of whom she knows by name.
She and the Oasis volunteers do not preach or push God in the clubs. Their goal is to help women escape stripping — considered by advocates as a form of human trafficking — and turn their lives around. Since Oasis House opened in late 2005, about a dozen women have taken the offer.
Remarkably, Oasis volunteers are not only welcomed but protected and encouraged by club managers, dancers, bartenders and bouncers.
“She’s a fascinating woman. I can think of several girls here at my club that they’ve helped out,” said Tim Walker, Flamingo manager. Walker said he doesn’t mind that Amos’ mission is to get women out of the business where he makes his living.
“A dancer’s career arc is pretty short,” he said. “Maybe it’s a good thing sometimes for them to leave.”
Amos’ ministry to strippers started when a dancer came to her church, also located on the Strip. For nine months, Amos and her volunteers mustered only enough courage to pull into the club parking lots during daytime hours, park their cars and pray.
“We were scared to death to start this ministry,” Amos said. But just before Christmas 2005, they took gift bags to the dancers.
“I knew we had to go to them,” Amos said. “They weren’t going to come to us. We were received very well.”
Most of the dancers at the Flamingo and other clubs are single moms who have health problems, addictions and felony records but no high-school diplomas. Few have transportation, and some are homeless.
Donna Cox, a licensed professional counselor on the Oasis staff, said most dancers are hooked up with boyfriends or pimps who force them to perform so they can bring home money each night.
On a good day, when customers are generous and “money rains,” as the dancers say, they can make up to $1,000. More often, they go home with just a few dollars and they can face punishment from their boyfriends or pimps.
“I see women beat up all the time,” Cox said. “I saw a woman so beat up I didn’t recognize her. She had the imprint of a man’s fist in her chest.”
Ashley awoke drenched in sweat, the image of her former pimp’s hardened face burned in her psyche. It had been seven months since a policeman pulled her from the grip of her captors .
But the nightmares still came in waves, even at a shelter that specializes in caring for battered young women. On this night, she couldn’t fall back asleep, so she wrote in her journal:
Dear Mom,
I’ve been feeling very scared lately. If he is to ever find me he would kill me , and that scares me. I’m trying the best I can to stay strong. I just feel so weak inside. I know I’m safe where I’m at and all, but I feel like he is right over me and breathing down my neck. I don’t like feeling this way, I hate it Mommy. I just need to hear your words of hope and love.
Love,
Ashley
Karen Stauss, policy director for the Polaris Project, a national and international anti-trafficking organization, said Ohio’s new trafficking law, while well-intentioned, is so weak that Polaris doesn’t include it among the 40 states that have specific criminal provisions on the books.
Ohio law adds a trafficking specification, much like the one tacked on for commission of a crime involving a gun, when there are already two other felony charges. It has other restrictions.
“I don’t think there’s a state in the union that doesn’t have a serious problem. It’s a big, big business,” Stauss said.
The Salvation Army plays a vital role locally as the organizer of Central Ohio Rescue and Restore Coalition. Columbus was the 21st city in the country to get funding for a coalition, because federal officials determined that central Ohio is “at risk” for trafficking. But the $20,000, eight-month federal grant is now gone and agencies are on their own in operating the coalition.
So far, the coalition has responded to seven trafficking cases with help for the victims, three of them in the last three months, said Michelle Hannan of the Salvation Army. However, coalition participants estimate they encounter 13 to 21 new cases each month, Hannan said.
Ohio’s law was a challenge to get through the legislature but needs to be strengthened, said Sen. Fedor.
“I was just horrified about this situation. … These victims are suffering in silence. They’re drugged, beaten, starved and in some cases even chained and locked up.
“It’s an invisible crime. … They’re selling our children and women and making huge profits.”
Williamson, the Toledo trafficking expert, describes Ohio’s law as “bare bones.”
“It was so difficult to get the law passed, it was ridiculous,” she said. “We had to keep taking things out to satisfy other people.”
Columbus, Cincinnati and Cleveland may have the same problems as Toledo, but “don’t have the law enforcement tools,” she said.
“If you go to Atlanta or other hot spots, that’s where you’re going to find our kids. … We’re a hub in the country.”
Williamson said Ohio trafficking victims are frequently moved to other states, mostly large cities.
While the illegal sex business involves more than just a trafficker and victim, the customer — that vital link in the business — remains in the shadows.
“From federal law on down to the street level, the customer always stays invisible. When you are purchasing sex with children, you’re not a customer, you’re a sexual predator,” she said.
Attorney General Richard Cordray has invited representatives from law enforcement, social-service agencies, the courts, trafficking experts and victim advocates to serve on a human-trafficking commission to be established under the new state law.
“We don’t really have a handle on the scope of the problem,” Cordray said. “One of the things we’ll look at will be how do we quantify, identify, give some parameters to the problem. There’s a lot that is not understood.”
“You see the problem and realize that could be my son, my daughter,” he said. “You do feel it at a personal level. They’re reaching into our communities.”
Gone is the girl in the senior-year photo with the rose - colored skin, innocent smile and ambitious eyes. What’s left is a pale , anguished woman with hardened eyes. Almost a year removed from life on the str eets, Ashley’s body is fragile . Bu t what remains of her s p irit fend s off the demons when her mind wanders to the past.
“I have flashbacks, awful flashbacks,” she said. “I’m trying hard to be normal again, to have a decent life.”
There is hope. She was accepted into college and plans to attend classes in the fall.
There is also despair. She has been in and out of mental - health facilities, briefly turned back to crack cocaine, and once attempted suicide .
And there is still fear. Constant, vivid thoughts haunt her — that somehow, some way, one of her former pimps m ight find her.
“No matter what people think of girls like me, no matter if they see us as victims or not,” she said , “ t here are more still out there that need help.”
Women’s eNews: New Guidelines Issued for Granting Child Custody
Women Push to Change Family Courts’ Custody Rules
Women’s eNews
November 1, 2004
Women Push to Change Family Courts’ Custody
Rules
By Jennifer Friedlin – WeNews Correspondent
(WOMENSENEWS) – Karen Hartley-Nagle knows her chances of winning a seat in the
Delaware State Senate tomorrow are slim. But the Independent Party candidate says winning is
not her main objective.
Hartley-Nagle’s primary goal is to use her candidacy as a platform to educate people about how
she says the court system compromises the rights of abused children and their protective parents, in most cases the mother.
“When I was not getting the help I needed, I started researching child sexual abuse and I found
that this issue is not being adequately addressed by the courts. That’s when I decided to run for
office,” said Hartley-Nagle, who has spent years battling her ex-husband for custody of their
three children, two of whom she claims have been sexually abused by their father. Her exhusband, Thomas Hartley, denies the allegations.
Hartley-Nagle is one of a number of women across the United States using a personal experience
with the family court system as a springboard to advocate on behalf of children. Many women
like Hartley-Nagle say they were moved to action following a judge’s decision to place their
children in the hands of a father who was abusive towards them or their kids. These women say
they faced judges who were predisposed to siding with the father, dismissing their claims and
refusing to consider evidence.
In some cases, women say they were denied due process and were not included in ex parte
hearings, a legal term that refers to discussions between the professionals representing one party
and the judge assigned to the case, a practice widely considered unethical.
Preventing Custody to Batterers from Alaska to Arizona Paige Hodson of Anchorage successfully co-authored and lobbied for passage of HB 385, a new state law passed on July 1 that seeks to prevent batterers from gaining custody of their children.
Hodson said she was moved to write the bill after her harrowing experience as an abused mother
fighting for custody of her two children in family court. She said that in Alaska statutes were
Women Push to Change Family Courts’ Custody Rules written in a way that inadvertently penalized the victim. For instance, the “Friendly Parent” provision stated that the more cooperative parent was to be afforded more weight in a custody
dispute. This meant that women who, like Hodson, accused their ex-husbands of abuse would be
seen as less friendly than the abusive parent.
“I was appalled at the way the victims were put on trial,” said Hodson, who received custody of
her two kids but is still fighting to modify the terms of the custody arrangement, which permit
her ex-husband to have unsupervised visits.
Tammy Searle leveraged her experience in the Tennessee court system to convince legislators in
Nashville to pass the Protective Parent Reform Act this spring.
Domestic violence survivor Searle says she lost custody of her daughter Alexis after a Tennessee
judge decided in a closed hearing to give custody to the father. Searle, currently of San Diego,
says she has not had contact with her daughter for nearly 15 months after a child psychologist
determined that telephone conversations would adversely affect Alexis.
“If I killed someone I’d get to see her and talk to my daughter two times a week,” Searle said.
“I’ve done nothing and they won’t let me speak to her.”
Tennessee Juvenile Court Judge Lonnie Hoover did not return calls for comment.
The Protective Parent Reform Act that passed in Tennessee will now require family court
proceedings to become more open and transparent by making sure that ex parte contacts are
prohibited. The law also seeks to institute additional safeguards – from providing timely access
to mental health evaluations to requiring that all admissible evidence of abuse be considered – to ensure that children do not wind up in the hands of an abusive parent.
In other states, including Michigan, Illinois, Arizona, California and North Carolina, women are
also working to get versions of the Protective Parent Reform Act passed. And child welfare
advocates are simultaneously promoting legislation at the federal level. In a related decision,
New York State’s highest court recently ruled that child welfare authorities are not allowed to
remove children from their parents merely because they have been exposed to domestic violence
at home.
Contested Custody
Although few studies have been done to quantify the number of parents who abuse either their
spouse or their children that gain full or partial custody, some groups, including California
National Organization of Women, have found strong evidence that court systems tend to favor
abusers in child custody cases.
A 2002 California NOW report based on surveys of more than 200 mothers who claimed to have
problems in California family court found that in 76 percent of the cases the father had hurt the
children. In 50 percent of those cases, police reports had been filed. Yet, in 69 percent of the
Women Push to Change Family Courts’ Custody Rules cases, the offender was given unsupervised contact or custody of the child despite evidence of
the abuse.
Richard Ducote, a lawyer based in New Orleans who has tried custody cases in 40 states and
authored the Protective Parent Reform Act, said the problem is pervasive.
Ducote said that over the past 20 years, the emphasis in custody cases has been on making sure
that children were able to maintain contact with both parents. He said that even in cases
involving domestic violence, child abuse, sexual abuse, substance abuse and mental illness
judges often fail to make exceptions.
“The courts are either all or nothing,” said Ducote.
Ingrained Sexism
Add to this ingrained sexism and the “vindictive bitch” theory – that a woman who says a child
needs to be protected is really trying to stop the father from having any relationship with the
child – and women often find themselves on the losing end of a judge’s ruling, Ducote said.
On the procedural side, women also face a mountain of obstacles. Ducote said he has seen
numerous cases where judges hold ex parte contacts with guardians ad litem (the people
appointed to act in the best interest of the child), mediators and mental health professionals
involved in the case and then fail to disclose the content of these meetings to the mother or her
attorney.
And, some experts say that in some cases the guardians ad litem are often not as objective as
they should be.
“In one case, it turned out that the guardian ad litem was in a business relationship with the dad’s
attorney and together they had donated money to the judge’s campaign,” said Robert Geffner, a
psychologist and the founder and president of the Family Violence and Sexual Assault Institute,
a training institute in San Diego.
Geffner said that such unethical relationships are not uncommon.
Other Say Problems Not Pervasive
Some experts, however, say that such problems are not pervasive and that the court system is
doing an effective job at protecting children.
Marjory D. Fields, a former judge of the Family Court and Supreme Court of the State of New
York, said that in New York, at least, judges take domestic violence and sexual abuse allegations
very seriously and seek to protect children from winding up in the hands of a potentially
dangerous parent.
“There may be some problem places, but this is not a universal problem,” said Fields.
Women Push to Change Family Courts’ Custody Rules
Ronald Isaacs, the founder of the Fathers Rights Foundation in Baton Rouge, La., said that 80
percent of women’s allegations of abuse are later found to be false. He declined to provide
studies to back up that assertion.
But others, such as Judge Sol Gothard of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana, said that
he was dismayed by the number of judges who continue to cling to negative stereotypes of
women and who employ those stereotypes as the basis for their decisions to turn over a child to
an abusive parent.
“I see an alarming number of cases in which custody is granted for the wrong reasons,” he said.
Jennifer Friedlin is a writer based in New York.
For more information:
Women’s eNews: New Guidelines Issued for Granting Child Custody – Run date: 12/17/02 -
http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/1148
Custody Preparation for Moms: http://www.custodyprepformoms.org
Fathers’ Rights Foundation: http://www.fathers-rights.com
Note: Women’s eNews is not responsible for the content of external Internet sites and the
contents of Web pages we link to may change without notice.
________________________________________________________________
For any comments about this and any other story, please send a letter to the editors at
http://pub.alxnet.com/guestbook?id=2014438
Copyright © 2004 Women’s eNews.
The poster child of the Iranian protest: Lovely Neda
“I am sitting here enjoying my freedom while women are dying for theirs around the world.” ~ Bobbi Miller-Moro
As a woman, I have a responsibility to speak for other women, and the example of what happened to a precious beautiful 26 year old philosophy student Iranian woman while protesting is unspeakable. Allegedly shot in the chest by a sniper Basij militia while she was standing with her father. He knelt down and begged his dying daughter, “Do not be afraid” as she bled to death. Heart-wrenching. Here is the Facebook fans page set up for her.
Facts: Her fiance Makan, said she had been in a car in central Tehran with her music teacher when they were caught in a traffic jam. He said the pair had left the car to escape the heat. It was when she was walking down Karegar Street talking on her phone that the shot rang out.
Motivational Speaker Leatrice Naylor invites women to workshop: “How To Manufacture Your Dreams.”
Leatrice Naylor is announcing the launching of her new venture “Billionaire Mom…Why Not?” Included are nationwide workshop seminars “How To Manufacture Your Billionaire Idea.” She is President of Menzies™, and Motivational Speaker.
Motivational Speaker Leatrice Naylor
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Out of that journey she discovered a new dream idea, an invention of a product that has not been seen on the marketplace. A feminine undergarment for menstruation that would ultimately help her daughter, and what she discovered later-for every single women in any age group. She patented her product and made the prototype, eventually meeting with a manufacturer and launching Menzies ™ in the marketplace world-wide.
Her charisma, intellect and compassion has brought her to the place where she can now provide her valuable hard-earned lessons in how she brought her idea to manufacturing, to all mothers and women (and men too!) who need to grasp the step-by-step process of bringing their idea to product in the stores. The US Military, Women’s groups, church organizations and peers have shown great interest, and support for her new product. Leatrice’s passion for other women succeeding is evident in her drive and determination that women can create the life they want, and make the money they want fulfilling their dreams by sharing her expertise.
Leatrice’s workshops are a one evening event with hands-on expert advice, answering questions, and a walk through of the step-by-step process of manufacturing, marketing and balancing a family. You will be able to obtain an Exclusive Marketing Package with her personal third party affiliates, attorney’s, marketing experts and sponsors to help you kick start your idea into high gear right away. Be inspired, motivated and educated on how you can have it all as a woman, mother, product inventor and President of your own company.
Next Event:
Date: July 13, 2009
Cost: $30 advance/$35 door
$2 parking
Location: George Mason University Campus
Satellite Campus
Prince William Campus
10900 University Boulevard
Mabassas, VA 20110
Seminar Room 110H in the Occoquan Bldg
TO PURCHASE TICKETS GO TO: http://TheBillionaireMom.com
# # #
BAC Marketing Solutions is the source for Leatrice Naylor’s ventures in
speaking, coaching and events. BAC works exclusively with INDIE Marketing Genius (http://indiemarketinggenius.com), a creative marketing and PR media company.
Great PARENTAL ALIENATION RESOURCES / Amy JL Baker
PARENTAL ALIENATION RESOURCES AT WWW.AMYJLBAKER.COM
Adult Children of Parental Alienation Syndrome: Breaking the Ties that Bind. 330+ page book about what happens to children who grow up alienated from one parent by the other, available for $32.00 from Amazon.
Beyond the High Road: Responding to 17 Parental Alienation Strategies Without Compromising Your Morals or Harming Your Child. 25 page e-paper designed to give targeted parents concrete tools for dealing with an alienating ex. Available for $9.95 from website.
I Don’t Want to Choose: How Middle School Kids Can Avoid Choosing One Parent Over the Other. 56-page book for middle school children, available for $9.95 from website and Amazon.
I Don’t Want to Choose: A Kids Workbook Companion. An 80+page e-workbook filled with activities designed to help kids apply the lessons in the book to their own life. Available for $12.95 from website.
Smart Car Offers Drivers New High MPG Option, Top Crash Rating
01/20/2008
Those who have followed the development of Daimler AG’s tiny and trendy microcar, the smart (lower case intentional), have surely wondered about this vehicle’s safety. Now they need wonder no more. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) recently crash tested the 2008 smart for two and found it performed so well it earned the Institute’s best ratings for front and side crash protection. Plus, its rear crash worthiness was rated as “acceptable,” the Institute’s second-highest rating.
Driving the smart fortwo in the United States, which we did recently in Northern California, serves as a clear reminder of just how different the smart really is. Like the VW New Beetle and Mini Cooper before it, the smart elicits looks: Our test drive became the subject of countless cell phone camera snapshots as we passed through downtown Palo Alto and San Jose. But unlike those cars, which reinvigorated an existing vehicle segment through nostalgia-laden styling, the smart is so small and so new that, to American eyes at least, it’s unlike anything else on the road.
Read more here: http://www.greencar.com/articles/smart-car-offers-drivers-new-high-mpg-option-top-crash-rating.php
And for those bio-desiel people (We will be) Ford is a head of the game:
(Is Ford just kicking ass or what?)
Ford Hybrid is 300% more
efficient than Toyota Prius.
2009 Ford Escape Hybrid –$1500 Federal Tax Credit
http://www.fordvehicles.com/suvs/escapehybrid/index.asp
Green Vehicles
CLEVER & Carver’s Tilt Cars
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The New Obsession…Hair Extensions!
By Bobbi Miller-Moro
Thanks to the likes of Beyonce, Jessica Simpson, Jennifer Aniston and Tyra Banks hair extensions have gained Celebrity status in their own right. No longer acceptable are the applications of hot damaging bonding glue, stripping metal and dangerous toxic chemicals of the past.
Hair extensions come in various forms; 100% real human hair, 100% synthetic hair or a mixture of human, synthetic and animal hair. They can be applied by bonding, clipping, braiding, link or loc systems, and hot gluing. The keratin ‘bond’ adhere the hair extension to your real hair. Keratin is a protein found within your hair shaft. Once removed, it is used to create a “bond,” but it is simply an ingredient in glue. It provides no protection against hair damage. Pliers are needed to crack through the bond and harsh chemicals are applied to dissolve the “keratin-glue” completely damaging the hair in the process.
The demand for higher quality, beautiful, soft, all-natural human hair is at its peak. PURE™ Extensions is at the forefront of this worldwide obsession for gorgeous hair. PURE™ Extensions has revolutionized the hair extension industry with its eco-friendly cold bond, non-damaging system. Developed by stylists for stylists, their extensions are made of 100% REMY hair and last up to three times longer than traditional hair extension systems. Also, a full head of hair only takes about two hours to apply, compared to the 4-6 hour application process for traditional extensions.
There are no harsh chemical applications with PURE™ Extensions hair. Michael Burchard, president of PURE™ Extensions takes pride in being committed to being socially conscience, and is considered the number one source of eco-friendly hair extensions in the beauty salon industry. “PURE’s cold bond application is completely free of heat, waxes and glue, so the client and environment are happy and healthy.”
Modern Salon Magazine featured PURE™ Extensions on their April cover. PURE had 10 pages detailing their part in our environmentally conscious community and their eco-friendly hair technology. The April issue highlighted the beauty industry “Going Green” and PURE™ Extensions is leading the way.
My Personal Story
When I was in my 20’s I became obsessed with hair extensions. I found out where I could buy natural human hair and sew on my own ‘wefts’. I would apply them myself, after I responded to a professional looking ad, where a so-called ‘stylist’ hot glued on various colors of old, obviously used hair extensions. I should have become weary when I saw she was working out of her roommates’ apartment. She burned off a small portion of my hair, and had burned my skin; in less then three weeks the hair extensions had all fallen off to my relief.
Because I knew no one else who could apply them for me, and wouldn’t charge me an unseen amount of money- I had settled by not going to reputable place. I tried applying it myself, by using adhesive hot glue sticks resulting in spending hundred’s of dollars in maintaining those seemingly natural long locks. I applied them at home, and burned my fingers and hair; and was exhausted after 6 hours.
Not only that, I was allergic to the glue, and would be scratching my red, irritated, inflamed scalp that had heavy weight pulling from it, I was just miserable. My scalp was sore; I had lost bits and pieces everywhere of my real hair and had atrocious matting and glue in my hair as a result. Out of the hair I couldn’t save; I would cut inches of my hair off to remove the matting it was so bad. The damage underneath to my own hair was harrowing.
I gave up using glue, until I heard about the metal locking application process. So I purchased brand-new Italian, long dark hair and applied them one at a time, 250 individual strands to my shoulder length hair with metal pliers.
“I would collect these tiny copper
“links” as if it were gold. There were
never enough, so I would go back
and buy more every week.”
At one point I think I had over 500 individual strands on my head at once. It looked the best I thought at 23 inches long; but the weight was unbearable. My scalp and neck was always sore, and the hair strands would fall out so often, I would carry wire cutters in my purse so I could re-apply them anywhere I was when they fell out, including in my car. Talk about ghetto.
All of the links, locs or tubes, left me dissatisfied and exhausted. After keeping up this hair Olympics I gave up about 6 months into it, my hair extensions were my owner and I was its slave. Not only that, this was a very expensive obsession. I had tried braiding, but I couldn’t stand the first week, where my scalp was pulled so tight I had to sleep sitting up due to the pain of resting my knotted head on a pillow. Little did I know all I had to is go to a PURE™ Extensions certified salon and I would not have had to go through any of this.
Some people need the extra length, or boost, or want celebrity looking, gorgeous hair. I understand. Alternate methods to PURE™ Extensions hair are too risky, and they include hair that has been processed with a series of chemicals to get it straight, wave, or curl. Instead of taking care, time and energy to align the cuticles of the hair correctly, unscrupulous hair companies use a high-tech silicon coating process that produces a beautiful shine simulating the appearance of healthy hair. After a few weeks, the silicon wears off producing a dry, fake looking matt of hair.
What’s worse, if your hair falls out with these dangerous applications, you could develop Traction Alopecia, a type of hair loss that is caused by pulling on hair. If your follicles were permanently damaged, there’s not much you can do in growing your hair back. There is no known medical treatment for late-stage Traction Alopecia
With PURE™ Extensions, they’re desirable high-quality hair allows you to be able to treat your hair extensions just like your natural hair. Avoiding the dangers of losing your hair, and the horrors of the alternate systems, you can color and style your hair as usual. Using hair tools like hairdryers, flat irons, curling irons, and curlers as you normally would. With the versatility that 100% REMY natural human hair offers, celebrities and their stylists prefer using the PURE™ Extensions technique. PURE™ Extensions eco-friendly cold-bond application requires no harsh chemicals, glues, or waxes, leaving clients’ hair and the environment gorgeous and healthy.
Giving Back
PURE™ Extensions is committed to giving the look that clients have always wanted but could never get with traditional extensions, without sacrificing valuable time, hair, and our sensitive environment. They are committed to being the best hair extension company on the planet, leaving no damage behind! PURE™ Extensions is a completely eco-friendly product; everything from their hair to the packaging is recycled or recyclable.
Furthermore PURE Extensions is collaborating with Matter of Trust to support the Hair For Oil Spills Program. They recycle hair to soak up oil spills. Last year over 2,600 oil spills occurred in the world. They weren’t all are high profile, but all had an impact on the environment.
Stylist Only
Not only do they offer a superb hair product, they have a great following on all the major social networking sites including Facebook, My Space, and Twitter. Your invited to come by and share your before & after stories of you wearing PURE™ Extensions.
PURE™ Extensions are a salon only product. You must be certified by their education team in order to sell and apply their hair, their one-day master class provides all the tools and knowledge necessary to apply, cut, and color hair.
HairDesignerTV.com and PURE™ Extensions has teamed up to offer online classes that takes training out of the salons and allows the stylist to become certified in the comfort of their own space. Classes begin June 29th on http://HairDesignerTV.com and Vivienne Mackinder teams up with PURE for a Free Interactive Live Web TV Show.
HairDesignerTV.com and PURE™ Extensions has teamed up to offer online classes that takes training out of the salons and allows the stylist to become certified in the comfort of their own space.
Classes begin June 29th on http://HairDesignerTV.com and Vivienne Mackinder teams up with PURE for a Free Interactive Live Web TV Show.
Contact info:
info@pureextensions.com
Website:
Office:
310 295 9800
Location:
Santa Monica, CA 90403
Powered by http://IndieMarketingGenius.com
We need your help right now to remove unnecessary and dangerous fire retardant chemicals from baby products
Dear Bobbi,
I was floored when I learned that baby and children’s products in California are being laced with toxic chemicals. What’s going on!? A current California flammability standard has led to all baby and children’s products containing foam (such as nursing pillows and strollers) being treated with fire retardant chemicals which have been repeatedly shown in testing to be toxic. This simply makes no sense and is the equivalent of lacing children’s products with toxic chemicals.
Further, the National Fire Protection Association has stated that they don’t have any evidence to show that the use of these toxic flame retardants has reduced fire deaths in California.
We can change this! The California State Senate will vote on revising this requirement this week!
http://momsrisingaction.org/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=27111
Today, we have an exciting opportunity to advocate for a simple change that will make our children, and our world, healthier, without compromising their safety. We need your help right now to remove unnecessary and dangerous fire retardant chemicals from baby products like breastfeeding pillows, high chair cushions, strollers, car seats, and changing table pads.
As a community, together we have already successfully increased lead standards for toys, and worked to remove dangerous chemicals like phthalates and BPA from children’s products. Now, we need your help with this very important piece of child safety legislation right here in California, SB 772.
Your State Senator needs to hear from you TODAY.
http://momsrisingaction.org/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=27111
There is no evidence from either the Consumer Product Safety Commission or the California Bureau of Home Furnishings that these products actually pose a fire hazard. This legislation will exempt children’s products we use every day from a regulation that leads to this unnecessary and hazardous treatment with fire retardants. These chemicals are dangerous, particularly for young children. They are associated with numerous health problems, including cancer, birth defects, thyroid disruption, reproductive, and neurological disorders such as hyperactivity and mental retardation.
Please send a letter to your Senator today!
– Joan, Ariana, Ashley, Anita, Julia and the whole MomsRising.org Team
P.S. For suggestions on how to reduce the toxic chemicals in your home visit: http://www.greensciencepolicy.org/consumer-information/
Your State Senator can take action to make baby products safer. Please send a letter today!
Thank you! Let’s keep this momentum going!
Thank you for sending a letter to your Senator urging them to support SB 772, legislation that would remove toxic chemicals in baby products.
We have just a few days to convince our Senators to support this important legislation. Do you have any friends, neighbors, or colleagues in California who would be willing to send a letter, too? Use the easy tool below to send them a note about this campaign, and how they can help right now!
Thank you!
Blogger: Bobbi Miller-Moro
Courtesy of: Angela dreams
Bobbi at Moro Films.com
Join this FaceBook group and help support the end to the 45 year old ban on US trade with the state of Cuba and its people. By banning trade with Cuba and its people, the United States only hurts the Cuban people while giving Fidel Castro something to blame for the shortages and poverty that plague the nation of Cuba. We, at End the US Trade Embargo on Cuba, do not support ending the ban on trade with Cuba because we condone the human rights abuses of the Castro regime. Rather, we support an end to the US trade embargo on Cuba to help the Cuban people while, at the same time, providing them with an oppertunity to choose their own government.
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