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Period Poverty In The United States, Katie Krumperman Feb 2023

Period Poverty In The United States, Katie Krumperman

Ballard Brief

Period poverty is the lack of access to menstrual products and inadequate education surrounding menstruation. Period poverty affects menstruators worldwide, including those in the United States. In a 2019 study, 64% of menstruators noted that they struggled to afford menstrual products within the last year. Stemming from the cost of products, stigmas, education, and the world pandemic, those who menstruate struggle to afford menstruation products and have adequate education on the subject. The effects of period poverty include effects on menstruators' physical and mental health as well as their productivity at work. Lawmakers are fighting to end period poverty with …


Inadequate Maternal Health Care For Women In The United States, Rebecca Stull Zundel May 2022

Inadequate Maternal Health Care For Women In The United States, Rebecca Stull Zundel

Ballard Brief

Although insufficient maternal health care has seen improvements in most developed countries, it is still a rising issue in the United States. This insufficiency may partly be due to the accessibility barriers that both rural and urban women face in reaching adequate care. Additionally, the expenses of maternal care or gender discrimination within medical establishments may dissuade women from seeking the care that they need. Women who receive inadequate care are at a higher risk for maternal mortality, the death of their unborn or newly born infant, and having a low-birth weight child, which comes with many issues of its …


Postpartum Depression Among Adolescent Mothers In The United States, Susan May May 2022

Postpartum Depression Among Adolescent Mothers In The United States, Susan May

Ballard Brief

Adolescent mothers are twice as likely to suffer from postpartum depression than adult mothers. In addition. teen moms are more likely to experience social stigma associated with teenage pregnancy and motherhood. Adolescent mothers also abuse substances at a higher rate than adult mothers, and teen dads are less likely to be involved in parenting responsibilities than adult fathers. These factors associated with teenage mothers cause an increased likelihood of teen moms developing postpartum depression. When mothers suffer from postpartum depression, their children are more at risk for child development problems. fathers are more likely to suffer from depression, and parents …


Violence Against Refugee Women In The Mena Region, Genevieve Cole, Harriet Huang Jan 2022

Violence Against Refugee Women In The Mena Region, Genevieve Cole, Harriet Huang

Ballard Brief

Refugee women of the Middle East North Africa (MENA) Region are exposed to violence in a variety of ways along their refugee journey. Once within refugee camps, refugee women face high risk spaces for violence, inhibited privacy, as well as unequal gender based power relations between themselves and predominantly male staff. Outside of refugee camps, lack of and improper implementation of cross-border policies allow trafficking networks, authority figures, and other perpetrators of GBV to harm refugee women without fear of repercussions. Victims of GBV can experience a variety of short and long term physical and mental health concerns that can …


Lack Of Access To Maternal Healthcare In Sub-Saharan Africa, Sierra Flake Jan 2022

Lack Of Access To Maternal Healthcare In Sub-Saharan Africa, Sierra Flake

Ballard Brief

Maternal healthcare provides essential care to keep women and newborns healthy during pre-birth visits, delivery, and after birth. In Sub-Saharan Africa, factors inhibiting women from receiving quality maternal care include distance, poverty, quality of maternal healthcare, family dynamics, and cultural beliefs. Lack of access to maternal healthcare has led to severe maternal and neonatal mortality, morbidity, and lack of family planning in Sub-Saharan Africa. Though lack of maternal healthcare is still an issue, significant improvement has been made since 2000 due to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Midwifery and mobile outreach services for family planning are prime examples of practices …


Intimate Partner Violence Against Women In Uganda, Mary Claire Eyre Sep 2021

Intimate Partner Violence Against Women In Uganda, Mary Claire Eyre

Ballard Brief

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a major issue in sub-Saharan Africa. particularly in the country of Uganda. Three major types of IPV have been identified in Uganda: intimate partner physical violence. intimate partner emotional violence. and intimate partner sexual violence. Sixty-five percent of women in Uganda report experiencing at least one of these types of IPV. The major contributing factors to IPV in Uganda include cultural attitudes about violence among both women and men and patriarchal behaviors among men. Bride price, or the exchange of goods for a bride. and male alcohol abuse also raise rates of IPV among women. …


Maternal Mortality Among Black Women In The United States, Joli Hunt May 2021

Maternal Mortality Among Black Women In The United States, Joli Hunt

Ballard Brief

The chance of a Black woman dying in the US due to complications relating to pregnancy or childbirth is 2 to 3 times more than a White woman in the US-a disparity large enough to cause the national maternal mortality rate to increase at a steady rate. Challenges influencing this problem include implicit racial bias within the healthcare system that causes negligence, a lack of standardized healthcare to provide quality care in all parts of the US, and the stress caused by systemic racism and its effect on Black female bodies. Maternal death has detrimental effects on Black families and …


Lack Of Female Representation In Peace Processes In The Mena Region, Mckenna Swindle Jan 2021

Lack Of Female Representation In Peace Processes In The Mena Region, Mckenna Swindle

Ballard Brief

Peace negotiations are used throughout the world to resolve interstate conflict and have been heralded as the most effective way to address armed conflict between countries. However, in the MENA region, women have sparsely been included in most peace processes. The cultural attitudes toward women in the region and their minor representation in both the political and workplace spheres hinder their involvement in these processes. Without women's inclusion. it is likely that the process of negotiation will be stalled, the agreements will be less effectively implemented, and the provisions will be less inclusive of women and other minority groups. Local …


Lack Of Menstrual Hygiene Management Among Women And Girls In East Africa, Lizzie Kearon Jan 2021

Lack Of Menstrual Hygiene Management Among Women And Girls In East Africa, Lizzie Kearon

Ballard Brief

Women and girls in East Africa, as well as many other parts of the world, live in a culture where menstruation and reproductive health are not discussed. This is because menstruation and anything related to it is considered taboo. Both women and girls often do not understand the reproductive cycle of their bodies or know how to manage their menstruation. Girls commonly miss or drop out of school because they do not understand what is happening to them or are unaware of how to hygienically manage their natural cycle. The issue is perpetuated by menstrual hygiene products being expensive and …


Sexual Violence Against Female College Students In The United States, Lauren Wolters, Macy Smith May 2020

Sexual Violence Against Female College Students In The United States, Lauren Wolters, Macy Smith

Ballard Brief

Sexual violence against female college students is a prevelant and deep-rooted issue across universities in the us. Despite an increase in attention from the federal government. it is predicted that 1 in 4 women will experience sexual violence as undergeradute students. A pattern of university negligence surrounding cases of sexual violence suggests that universities prioritize securing funding and protecting perpetrators over aiding victims and preventing sexual assault. Several other factors contribute to the occurence of sexual violence including dangerous fraternity traditions. extensive alcohol and drug use among college students, and vast normalization of sexual violence-but the only true cause of …


Gender-Based Violence Against Women In South Africa, Lacey George May 2020

Gender-Based Violence Against Women In South Africa, Lacey George

Ballard Brief

Dubbed the "rape capital of the world" by Human Rights Watch, South Africa has some of the highest rates of gender-based violence worldwide, including rape, female homicide. and domestic abuse. The women in South Africa are faced with pronounced challenges. stemming from a historical background of apartheid-era oppression, when it comes to equality. Some of the most significant challenges that contribute to South Africa's gender-based violence problem include a lack of government action in legal implementation, pervasive patriarchal cultural attitudes. and widespread poverty. Gender-based violence affects everyone in society-the women themselves, their children, and the men who perpetrate the crimes. …


Girls' Access To Education In Ghana, Harper Forsgren, Asia Haslam, Shelby Hunt, Nathan Heim, Andrew Wirkus Sep 2019

Girls' Access To Education In Ghana, Harper Forsgren, Asia Haslam, Shelby Hunt, Nathan Heim, Andrew Wirkus

Ballard Brief

Lack of access to education negatively impacts a person's development in a number of ways and leads to fewer opportunities and increased risks for the individual. Females are disproportionately affected by the lack of gender equality in Ghana's educational system. This inequality comes as a result of practices such as child marriage, child labor, inadequate training of teachers. the inability to accommodate for girls' menstruation cycles at school, and hidden costs of sending children to school. All of these factors are confounded by social norms that tend to see female education as less valuable and thus more disposable than male …


Female Genital Cutting In Africa, Chloe Jensen, Evie Friedbaum Jan 2018

Female Genital Cutting In Africa, Chloe Jensen, Evie Friedbaum

Ballard Brief

Female Genital Cutting (FGC) is the partial or complete removal of a female's external genitalia. Though it is practiced all over the world. FGC is particularly prevalent on the African continent. This procedure is most commonly done to girls at a young age; FGC creates negative physical health effects for the rest of their lives, and often causes trauma. Because of these negative consequences, the United Nations has officially stated that FGC violates basic human rights. However, many communities continue to practice female genital cutting for social and cultural reasons.


Half The Sky, Or Half A Lie? Unfulfilled Promises To Women In Republican China, Rachel Finlayson Jan 2018

Half The Sky, Or Half A Lie? Unfulfilled Promises To Women In Republican China, Rachel Finlayson

BYU Asian Studies Journal

When the Qing dynasty fell in 1912, Chinese nationalist and communist forces fought to gain power. Both groups looked to build their base of support among the socially repressed, which included women and peasants. Thus, women’s emancipation became a central issue, and it remained primary until 1924, during an era known as the May Fourth Movement (Lan and Fong 1999, p. ix). Nationalist and communist forces both promised women better lives, in terms of education, love in marriage, value in family life, a role in the revolution and social activism, and emancipation. Mao Zedong summarized the enthusiasm of the time …


Sexual Assault Against Women In India, Chloe Haderlie Sep 2017

Sexual Assault Against Women In India, Chloe Haderlie

Ballard Brief

In India millions of women's lives are negatively impacted by sexual violence. Gender and cast discrimination combine to make marginalized women most likely to be affected by sexual violence. The criminal justice system struggles to both try and convict perpetrators. Practices that are most effective at changing attitudes toward gender norms target both genders, with a particular focus on males. Effective victim support provides ways for victims to reassume valuable, contributing roles in their community.


Look Before You Leap: 4 Questions Every Woman Should Ask While Job Searching, Hannah Y. Olvera Apr 2017

Look Before You Leap: 4 Questions Every Woman Should Ask While Job Searching, Hannah Y. Olvera

Marriott Student Review

Despite women’s preparation and effort during the job searching process, women are disproportionately dissatisfied with their employers. According to a Crain’s Report conducted in 2016, 42 percent of women left because they “didn’t feel recognized and didn’t see opportunities for advancement,” 43.6 percent believe their compensation is less compared to their male peers, and only 50.4 percent believe their companies have a fair family leave policy. To overcome these challenges, women must ask various questions to lead them to their ideal career from an equal opportunity employer. As women become more assertive in their job searching, they will create a …


Legislating Women: The Relationship Between Women In Parliament And Trafficking Of Women, Caroline Black, Donna Lee Bowen Feb 2016

Legislating Women: The Relationship Between Women In Parliament And Trafficking Of Women, Caroline Black, Donna Lee Bowen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Pervasive, complex, and often little-­‐understood, trafficking of women is a worldwide epidemic. Although many acknowledge the problem that trafficking of women, hereafter known simply as trafficking, is, the large dark numbers associated with it make trafficking hard to fully track. Many studies have previously focused on trafficking victims and their experiences with the intent of understanding what demographic factors influence the likelihood of someone becoming a trafficking victim. However, there is little to no research on the macro causes of trafficking. This paper will focus on those macro causes, which are the percentage of women in parliament and women’s political …