Women This Week: Melinda Gates to Spend $1 Billion to Advance Women’s Issues

Effort Aimed at Closing the Philanthropic Gender Gap 

Melinda French Gates has announced that she will be committing $1 billion by 2026 to people and organizations working to advance women’s issues, including reproductive rights. Recipient organizations include the National Women’s Law Center, the National Domestic Workers Alliance, the Center for Reproductive Rights, and others. Gates emphasized that less than 2 percent of philanthropic funding in the United States goes toward issues directly targeting women and girls. “For too long, a lack of money has forced organizations fighting for women’s rights into a defensive posture while the enemies of progress play offense. I want to help even the match,” she wrote in The New York Times.  

Louisiana to Criminalize Possession of Abortion Pills 

Louisiana is poised to become the first state to impose prison sentences and heavy fines on people who possess abortion pills, including mifepristone and misoprostol, without a prescription. The bill—passed by the House of Representatives by a margin of sixty-three to twenty-nine—would categorize these pills as Schedule IV drugs, along with Xanax and Ativan, which have some potential for abuse and dependence. This contradicts the federal Food and Drug Administration’s classification of these pills, based on years of research, as safe with no potential for abuse or dependence. Those charged could face fines reaching thousands of dollars or up to five years in jail. Pregnant women would be exempt from these charges. A spokeswoman for an anti-abortion group behind the measure said the bill gives “law enforcement more authority to stop the abuse of distribution of the pills on the streets and online.” However, opponents are concerned that the new classification may discourage women from using the drugs over fears they may be dangerous.  

Australia Announces Position Focused on Men’s Behavior Change to Address Gender-Based Violence 

The Australian state of Victoria has announced the appointment of a new parliamentary secretary in charge of “Men’s Behavior Change” to address rising cases of violence against women. The Premier of Victoria, Jacinta Allan, appointed Tim Richardson, a lawmaker, to focus on improving attitudes toward women online. Richardson said that his position will focus on making the state “a safer place for women and children and work to end the tragedy of deaths of Victorian women at the hands of men.” This initiative comes after thirty-one women were killed in acts of gender-based violence in the first five months of this year. One in four women report experiencing violence in Australia. “A woman has been killed every four days so far this year,” said Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.