Category Archives: Progress

During the global COVID-19 pandemic, women have carried much of the unpaid emotional and domestic burden of caring for their families and communities, often simultaneously holding down paid jobs, many on reduced hours or salaries.

Women have also been disproportionately affected by job losses, particularly women of color and ethnic minorities. Worldwide, women lost more than 64 million jobs in 2020 alone, resulting in an estimated US$800 billion loss of income.

Mirroring these trends, women in Aotearoa New Zealand faced greater economic, social and health challenges than men. In 2020, women made up 90% of pandemic-related redundancies. In 2021, many more women were working in precarious jobs. Whine Mori and Pacific women, already facing greater inequalities, have been even harder hit by job losses.

During this time, rates of domestic violence against women and girls surged in New Zealand and around the world, prompting some to refer to a double pandemic or shadow pandemic. Womens physical and mental health has been heavily affected for both frontline workers and in the home.

As ongoing research by a cross-cultural team of feminist scholars has been documenting, New Zealand women have found different ways to cope through the various stages of the pandemic. But with the pandemic exacerbating gender inequalities in most areas of life, the fear is that decades of (albeit uneven) momentum towards gender equity is being lost.

While some governments have taken steps to address womens well-being during the pandemic, such as introducing shorter or flexible work hours, they remain the minority.

Organisations such as the United Nations and the OECD have identified the need to develop better support for women within pandemic recovery programmes. And some countries have advocated more progressive strategies, including prioritising local feminist and Indigenous knowledge. But the uptake of such initiatives has been minimal at best.

Read more: NZ Budget 2021: women left behind despite the focus on well-being

In Aotearoa New Zealand, the 2021 Wellbeing Budget sought to support into employment those most affected by COVID-19, including women. But the focus on male-dominated industries (such as construction and roading), and lack of initiatives aimed at women as primary carers, meant this was largely a missed opportunity.

While this general lack of gender-responsive policy has been troubling, women have been far from passive in their own responses, both individually and collectively.

As the stories of women from diverse backgrounds in Aotearoa New Zealand have shown in our own and others research, many have turned to their own cultures, social networks and religions to help them through the pandemic. Others have used sport and exercise, nature and digital technology to build a sense of belonging and support during difficult times

Read more: Working out at home works for women so well they might not go back to gyms

Such strategies have helped them manage unprecedented levels of stress in their own lives, and the lives of those around them. Women have been active and creative in the ways theyve found to care for themselves and others.

Yet these everyday acts of care by women for their families and communities are rarely seen, valued or acknowledged.

As the pandemic continues, women everywhere are suffering the hidden costs of caregiving. In Aotearoa New Zealand, as elsewhere, new COVID variants have seen them even busier caring for sick family members often while unwell themselves.

The effect has been to rethink priorities, who and what is most important, and to question the expectations shaping their lives.

Read more: Fewer than 1% of New Zealand men take paid parental leave would offering them more to stay at home help?

Some of the women in our studies have taken bold steps starting a new business, moving town, reorganising work-life balance, putting their own health first. Others have simply acknowledged their own vulnerability and need for community. As two of the women we interviewed said:

I think for me its been more of a reaffirmation that what I am doing is good enough [] Like I dont need to be all of these things. We put so much pressure on ourselves [] we spread ourselves too thin [] trying to be a whole bunch of other peoples ideas of being the best person.

You need to be real about how you are feeling and a little bit vulnerable, not hide things or bottle things up or try to be everything to everybody. I learned the power of being vulnerable, of people and community, and the importance of connection and the importance of kindness and being okay with whatever youve got in your mind.

The stress and mounting fatigue characteristic of life during COVID-19 are undoubtedly prompting many women in Aotearoa New Zealand and overseas to ask questions about the gendered economic and social systems that may no longer be working for them, and the infrastructures that are failing to support them.

Some are turning away from their busy working lives, opting instead to find a slower pace, to live more sustainably, and to give back to their communities in a range of ways.

Read more: The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbates the pressures faced by women caregivers

Some even refer to the gendered effects of the pandemic economy as the great she-cession. But its clear we need to better understand the social, economic and cultural conditions prompting these changes.

What we can say, however, is that genuinely gender-responsive policies are urgently needed. The often used mantra of building back better must prioritise the knowledge of local women in all their diversity, and there is much we can learn by listening to womens everyday experiences of the pandemic.

Not doing so risks decades of gender equity work slipping away.

The rest is here:

The pandemics disproportionate impact on women is derailing decades of progress on gender equality - The Conversation Indonesia

Graham Harrell settling in with WVU offense ahead of Gold-Blue Spring Game

The expected influence of new offensive coordinator Graham Harrell on the West Virginia offense has been well-documented throughout this spring.

The hope is that Harrells arrival will spark the WVU offense, which will not only have a new starting running back, but a new starting quarterback, as well.

Harrell joined the Mountaineer coaching staff after a successful stint with USC, where his offenses were among the best in the Pac-12 Conference.

According to WVU head coach Neal Brown, one of the things that makes Harrell and his system successful is the way its easily grasped by those running it. But its equally hard to handle for those trying to stop it.

I think hes got answers. I think his teaching of the quarterback within the pass game, Ive been impressed with. Its simple for the offensive players, but its complex defensively, Brown said Tuesday. Hes done a really good job making rules within it.

Harrell, who graduated from Texas Tech as one of the most-prolific passers in college football history, has continued to excel in the passing game as a coordinator.

USCs offense led the Pac-12 Conference each of the past two seasons in passing yards per game.

Harrell, 36, now looks to do the same with WVU. For Brown, that success begins with communication.

Its his way of teaching the staff, and the staff teaching the players, has been productive, said the fourth-year head coach. We havent had very many missed assignments. And you know, when introducing a new offense, thats something thats not usually the case.

West Virginia isnt planning to announce its Week 1 starter this spring. That will happen later, likely after the arrival of transfer JT Daniels, who has been added to a three-headed quarterback battle between Garrett Greene, Nicco Marchiol, and Will Goose Crowder.

While Harrells input will be seen all over the passing game this fall, his touch in the running attack may be more subtle.

Within the run game, I think hes done a nice job of, formationally, getting us some advantages, said Brown.

The head coach added the Mountaineers will continue to do things in the running game that they were doing prior to Harrells arrival.

I think hes grown as well with some things that weve done here in the past well, as far as RPOs, and some things in the screen game, Brown added. I dont want to speak until we get all 15 [practices] done, but I like the progress were making.

When it comes to the offensive line, whose job it is to protect Harrells quarterback and create lanes and space for the running backs, not much has changed.

Not only do the same five starting linemen return for this season, but Harrell has left a number of calls regarding the line of scrimmage the same.

To Brown that showed humility from the new offensive coordinator, deciding to learn from the experienced offensive line, rather than making them learn his verbiage. Thats something that Harrell said he was going to do early in his tenure with WVU, and he has followed suit.

While Harrell has followed the lead of the line, at least from a communication stand point, it remains to be seen if the offense, as a whole, will follow his lead, and continue the success hes had in recent seasons.

Fans will get their first glimpse of the new offense on Saturday during the annual Gold-Blue Spring Game, which begins at 1 p.m. ET at Milan Puskar Stadium.

More information on the game can be found here.

Excerpt from:

Brown on offense under Harrell: I like the progress were making - WBOY.com

April 19, 2022 Daily Update, 9:00AM

Highlights: Suppression efforts increased containment of the fire to 81%. Firefighters continued to focus their efforts on the northeast flank of the fire and will keep working in that area today. Crews are working on the containment lines for suppression repair. Evacuation levels have been decreased, and firefighter and public safety remain our number one priority as residents repopulate the area.

Operations: Firefighters hiked to the top of Hermits Peak and camped there last night. Suppression operations will focus on the two hot spots on the peak to make sure they are extinguished. Due to the remoteness of the area, helicopter crews ensured there was a safe landing zone to be able to access the area safely. Crews continued to patrol the perimeter Monday, increasing containment to 81%. Todays focus will be on the northeastern edge of the fire, building and reinforcing containment lines. Fire activity has moderated due to suppression efforts, and ground resources will continue to monitor the fire line, looking for any signs of heat or smoke. Light cleanup and repair of the area is ongoing. The southern edge of the fire continued to hold, and crews will be actively repairing dozer lines. Resources are focused on suppressing the Hermits Peak Fire as quickly and safely as possible, protecting nearby communities.

Evacuations: The San Miguel County Sheriffs Office has reduced evacuation orders, and no communities remain in GO status. Entrance into the communities remains restricted to residents only. The Sheriffs Office continues to evaluate the situation orders using the Ready, Set, Go! system. More information and details on evacuation orders are available on the San Miguel County Sheriffs Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/smcso.nm.

Weather: Today brings the return of a Red Flag warning with warmer temperatures and increasing winds into the afternoon and evening. Wind speeds are expected to ramp up to 20-25 mph with gusts in the afternoon reaching 45 mph. These dry, strong winds will continue into Saturday. After a lull on Wednesday, winds will ramp back up again on Thursday and hit their peak on Friday, where gusts to 70 mph will be possible in the afternoon.

Restrictions: The Santa Fe National Forest has issued a closure order to protect public health and safety during fire operations on the Hermits Peak Fire. The full closure order and map are available at https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/santafe/home. A temporary flight restriction (TFR) is in place over the area, which includes unmanned aircraft, or drones. More information on the dangers drones pose to wildland firefighting aircraft and personnel on the ground can be found at: http://www.nifc.gov/drones.

Smoke: Smoke from the Hermits Peak Fire may be visible from Gallinas, El Porvenir, San Pablo, Mineral Hill, San Geronimo, Gascon, Pendaries, Rociada, Mora, Ledoux, Las Vegas, and along the I-25 corridor. Smoke-sensitive individuals and people with respiratory problems or heart disease are encouraged to take precautionary measures. An interactive smoke map at https://fire.airnow.gov/ allows you to zoom into your area to see the latest smoke conditions. Future Fire Information: The Hermits Peak Fire Information office hours are 8:00 AM 8:00 PM. The phone number is 505-663-6334 and email address is 2022.hermitspeak@firenet.gov. Future fire information will continue to be posted on Inciweb, the SFNF Facebook and Twitter, SFNF website, and New Mexico Fire Information website.

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Continued progress on Hermits Peak Fire - nmfireinfo.com

The NOAA Fisheries Climate Science Strategy (NCSS) was published in 2015 to increase the production, delivery, and use of the climate-related information needed to fulfill the agencys mandates in a changing climate. The NCSS identifies a suite of objectives and specific actions focused on supporting infrastructure, tracking change, understanding mechanisms, projecting future conditions, and informing and supporting management. NOAA Fisheries worked with partners in each region to develop seven Regional Action Plans (RAPs) to implement the NCSS over a 3-5 year period. In 2020, NOAA Fisheries conducted an assessment of progress to implement the NCSS over the five years since its release.

This five year progress report highlights the goals, activities, and accomplishments of the seven RAPs and national efforts from 2016-2020. Chapters are devoted to each region and provide summaries of the progress made to date to implement the NCSS. The chapters also provide recommendations for future focus areas and actions for continued progress towards achieving the NCSS objectives in each region.

Since 2016, progress has been made in several areas including tracking changes in ecosystem conditions, understanding impacts, projecting future conditions and assessing the vulnerability of fish stocks, protected resources and fishery-dependent communities in a changing climate.

There is still much to be done - NOAA Fisheries is committed to addressing the high and growing need for climate-related information to help safeguard the nations valuable living marine resources and the many people, businesses and communities that depend on them. Please visit this site for more information on current and future actions.

NOAA Fisheries Climate Science Strategy Five Year Progress Report

Table of Contents

The rest is here:

NOAA Fisheries Climate Science Strategy 5-yr Progress Report | NOAA Fisheries - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (.gov)

By VERNON ROBISON

The Progress

A youngster is very excited to get started on the 2022 Moapa Egg Hunt which was held in the Moapa Park on Wednesday morning last week.

The Easter Bunny clearly had been hard at work early on Wednesday morning, April 13 at Moapa Park. The green lawn was strewn with literally thousands of colorful plastic eggs; each one filled with a special springtime surprise of some kind.

Lined up on the edge of the grass were more than 100 eager kids, divided into four different age groups. The field had been market with boundary lines that the various age groups could not cross. But there were plenty of eggs inside those boundaries for all groups to find.

Clutched in their hands the children had baskets, buckets, bags and a myriad of other containers which would make it easier for them to claim their share of this vast harvest of Easter eggs.

Moapa mom Jennifer Farnsworth had brought her youngster bright and early for the annual egg hunt event. He was looking over the lawn with a gaze of excitement.We love this event every year, Jennifer said. Especially this year. We are just so glad to be able to be out and do this stuff again!

Egg hunt participants in the youngest division get together to consider this interesting and colorful tradition at the Moapa Park last week. PHOTO BY VERNON ROBISON/The Progress

The start time of the hunt had been clearly publicized as 10:00 am. And it was no later than that when local Parks and Rec coordinator Elmer Lopez spoke over a sound system welcoming everyone to the activity.

Lopez gave a countdown from 10 to allow any latecomers still in the parking lot to hustle up and join the starting line. Then he gave the key word: Go! And the crowd of kids was off.It didnt take long. Within eight minutes the entire field had been cleared of eggs.

Then both kids and parents sat in the grass together and sorted through their spoils. Each of the three Barnes children of Logandale including Britney, 7; Luke, 4; and Ryan, 17 months had reaped buckets that were full to the brim with eggs. Luke was already cracking his eggs open revealing contents of candy, stickers and small toys.

The Jauregui kids of Moapa were also in attendance for the annual festivities. They included Jaime, 9; Rosa, 7; and Salvador, 5. Their baskets were also full to overflowing.

In all of the melee, young Salvador had managed to find one of the coveted prize eggs. These eggs are affixed with a number that corresponds to a special toy item which can be claimed after the hunt at the prize table. Salvador was happy with his prize which was a toy baseball and bat.

Local Parks and Rec coordinator Lauralyn Robison was pleased with the event. She revealed that the field of eggs had NOT actually been set by the Easter Bunny at all. Rather it was her and about a half dozen staffers who showed up early to do it. It took this crew about 20 minutes to scatter the 6,000 eggs that had been provided by Clark County Parks and Rec Department for the activity.

As usual, it took less than half the time it takes to hide the eggs for the kids to gather them all up, Robison said. It is that way every year. But it is all in good fun and everyone has a great time.

Read the original:

An 8-Minute Egg...Hunt - The Progress - mvprogress

By BOBBIE GREEN

The Progress

The Mesquite Chamber of Commerce held its monthly luncheon poolside last week at the Casablanca Resort. PHOTO COURTESY OF KRIS ZURBAS

It was a beautiful spring day for the Mesquite Chamber of Commerce Luncheon held at the picturesque poolside of the Casablanca Resort on Wednesday, April 13.

Chamber members and their guests enjoyed a scrumptious lunch of chicken, beef kabobs, coconut shrimp, an array of salads and mouthwatering deserts all while enjoying the perfect poolside weather.

Attendees were also treated to a mini fashion show put on by a new Chamber business member: local boutique retailer Juniper Outpost. The fashions were for the young, and the young at heart, male and female, modeled by store staff and family of Juniper Outpost owner Charlotte Sirignni.

There was a brief talk from Lindsey Poston, new Community Health Manager (P.A.C.T) at the Salvation Army offices. She will help connect people to needed resources.

The main speaker of the day was Anthony Curtis, Professional Gambler and publisher. Curtis told the audience his story of how he came to be a professional gambler. It had been his intended career since he was a teenager.

Curtis told of funny and odd occurrences that happened along the way in his career. He told of all the odd jobs he did in Las Vegas to pay the rent, until he really learned the skill and knack of the table games.

He also gave the audience some gambling advice. Curtis dispelled some popular beliefs about gambling.One example is the inaccurate feeling, held by many, that if you play a slot machine for a long time, walk away and another person sits down and wins a jackpot on the machine, that it should be your jackpot that they won. Curtis explained how the mechanism in the machines work. He said th at the odds of you hitting the button at the exact same moment the new player did was like winning the Powerball lottery.

By their reaction, it made players in the audience feel better.Curtis said that he has publishing company that does well. I publish gambling books and family reading material, he said.

The company also publishes the Las Vegas Advisor magazine, he said.My father was happy to see me become a publisher, Curtis said. It is a career other than gambling.Curtis said that he has been a consultant for many films having to do with gaming and Las Vegas. He gave insights into some of the movies.

Because of Easter, there were special prize drawings to conclude the luncheon. Everyone received a plastic egg which were all opened at the same time. Most were filled with candy. But one egg, which happened to be received by Mesquite Mayor Al Litman, had a piece of paper saying Golden Egg. Other eggs contained a paper with numbers on them.

The Golden Egg recipient then drew numbers for prizes that went to the people that had received eggs with numbers. All this was in addition to the regular door prize drawings and the 50/50 drawing.

It was a fun time for all at this special luncheon. President/CEO Carol Kolson did her job well as always, greeted arriving members and promoted local businesses.

Read more from the original source:

Mesquite Chamber Revels In Spring Festivities - The Progress - mvprogress

The Russian Federation has a list of members of Congress who are now banned from the country, something that some of those representatives say is a badge of honor.

"That feeling that I must be doing something right, to be honest," said U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, a Democrat who represents Berks and Chester counties.

All three of Berks County's members of Congress are on the list of nearly 400 representatives sanctioned by Russia after publicly opposing Russia's aggression in Ukraine. Democrat U.S. Rep. Madeleine Dean was included in the long list along with Republican U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser.

For Houlahan, it hits home. Her father was born in the city of Lviv.

"What Putin has done is upset the great progress we've been making since World War II through the UN and other agencies," said Andy Jampoler, Houlahan's father. "I view [the sanction] as a seal of good housekeeping. It's a distinction she should be proud of. How can you do better than be sanctioned by a tyrant who is upsetting and inflicting catastrophe in the world?"

"We have to have hope," said Houlahan. "We have to believe we can make a difference."

Read the rest here:

Lviv native, father of Rep. Houlahan: Ukraine war has 'upset great progress' - 69News WFMZ-TV

Young people are not passive victims of technology or helpless addicts. They are technology creators and agents with diverse backgrounds and interests.

When people hear that I study digital youth culture, I often get asked, Is technology good or bad for kids? My first struggle is to reframe the question. The question assumes technology is one thing, and all kids use technology the same way. Technology is made and shaped by us and we have the power to make it good or bad. I prefer the question, How can we support young people in harnessing technology for progress? Young people are not passive victims of technology or helpless addicts. They are technology creators and agents with diverse backgrounds and interests.

Ive been researching teens use of technology in both Japan and the U.S. for almost three decades, and have seen similar intergenerational dynamics play out with every new wave of technology that teens adopt and make their own. Adults worry, teens experiment and adopt new ways of using technology, and eventually, adults start embracing digital culture teens created.

We celebrate tech titans who started their empires while still in college. What gets less appreciation are everyday examples of young people around the world harnessing technology in innovative, self-actualizing, and progressive ways. The optimism and creativity of youth is like solar energy constantly renewed, and largely untapped. If we can recognize their diverse needs and strengths, we can support youth as innovators, learners, and change makers.

In the late nineties, I sat on subways and wandered the streets of Tokyo observing how teens were using mobile phones. My research team at Keio University gathered detailed logs of text message and voice communications of high school students. They shared insights about how they used text messages, emoji, camera phones, and the mobile Internet. The rest of the world was skeptical that the mobile Internet would take off beyond Japan. It would be almost a decade before text messaging was widespread in the US. I never would have dreamed that people of all ages around the world would be communicating with emoji and smartphone photos 20 years later.

Back then, older folks would shake their heads when they saw teens walking while texting. They labelled them nagara zoku (the multitasking tribe) and oyayubi zoku (thumb tribe). Mobile phones in the hands of teens became a symbol of the decline of culture and social norms. Teens, on the other hand, were annoyed by adults who failed to put their phone on silent mode and fumbled through their pockets while it rang. Ever since street smart high school girls used pagers to send text messages to each other in the early nineties, Japanese teens were innovating in mobile communication. Japanese phone providers capitalized on these teen innovations by creating new technologies including varied texting services, emoji, camera phones, and the mobile Internet.

Teens also created new social norms as they took to new technology. For example, they found the older practice of placing a voice call unannounced to be invasive. They quickly developed a new social norm to knock before entering. When they wanted to talk, they would send a text message first to check availability. Their friend might be on public transit, in class, or some other setting where a voice call will be disruptive. They recognized that just picking up the phone and calling someone when it was convenient for the caller was inconsiderate to the person receiving the call.

When young people are experimenting, mobilizing, and innovating, they are also learning and developing new skills. When my daughter was in middle school and high school, she was involved in online fandoms for some popular bands. She took to social media and blogging to connect with fellow fans, and quickly amassed followers. During a particularly busy week of school, we were problem solving together about how to manage time. I think I should take a week off of blogging, she suggested while I nodded. When I checked in on her a few hours later I saw her on her blog, and started in on a gentle scolding. Mom, she interrupted, with a sigh, Im queuing up the posts so I dont lose followers during the week I take off. Somehow, she had become more adept at social media management than her mom who fancies herself a digitally fluent public intellectual.

These kinds of communication and networking skills are just one of many competencies that young people gain through interest-driven and socially connected learning with technology. We call this connected learning when young people are learning as a by-product of geeking-out, creating, and organizing together with fellow enthusiasts. Whether it is fan fiction writers creating new narratives together, gamers strategizing and sharing tips, or dancers sharing and learning from online video, online affinity groups continue to fuel learning in ways that are social and passion-driven.

When young people are learning and organizing together online, its not all fun and games. Their digital skills have fueled world-changing social movements. In college, my daughter went on to join the Percentage Project, which uses social media to raise awareness about the experience of underrepresented groups in computer science programs. She also helped start an online video series, Decrypted By Us, highlighting the expertise and perspectives of women and minorities in tech. After the school shootings at Stoneman Douglas High School, we saw a multi-racial coalition of teens fuel the March for Our Lives movement. Adults were stunned by their media savvy, and their snappy comebacks at politicians and detractors on social media. Young people wielding social and mobile media have been at the heart of so many progressive movements whether it is Black Lives Matter, Dreamers, or climate activism.

These progressive uses of technology dont just happen on their own. Behind all of these positive examples are powerful platforms that enable them to connect, create, and communicate. Also essential are the caring adults, organizations, and coalitions that have given young people the space and support to amplify their optimism and progressive potential.

Many years ago, I co-founded a nonprofit, Connected Camps, that is dedicated to supporting college students to mentor children through popular digital gaming platforms. We are just one of a growing legion of organizations supporting youth leadership in making positive change. We believe that mentorship centered around shared causes and interests can change lives and the world. Whether you are a parent, an educator, an employer, or a fellow enthusiast, we all have a role to play in nurturing the power and potential of young people.

Dr. Mimi Ito, cultural anthropologist, Director of the Connected Learning Lab at the University of California, Irvine

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How can we support young people in harnessing technology for progress? - We Live Security

By BOBBIE GREEN

The Progress

Mark your calendars for Saturday, April 30! On that day, the Mesquite Republican Women will be holding an outdoor Spring Festival at the Mesquite Recreation Center field from 10am-4pm.

Sixty booths have been reserved for the event. Many of the booths will feature local artists, crafters and businesses offering services to the public. In addition many candidates in the upcoming primary election will have booth. Most of them will be on hand to meet, greet and answer questions. Food Trucks will also be in attendance.

The candidates will take the stage throughout the day, alternating with the live entertainment: DJ and Tammy.

There will also be a bake sale offering wrapped goodies to take home. Prize drawings will be held for donated gifts.

It is sure to be a fun time in the park. For more information about the event contact Melissa at Melissah@rconnects.com.

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MRW To Hold Spring Festival - The Progress - mvprogress

On January 22, 1973, the national conversation on abortion was supposed to end. Hailed as a landmark legal decision, Roe v. Wade sought to guarantee a womans right to abortion, ruling that a pregnant woman has a right to privacy in her decision on whether to bear a child.

However, in the five decades that followed, the debate over abortion has persisted and polarized the nation. In case after case, restrictive laws slowly chipped away at Roe, leaving abortion rights in peril. From 1973 to 2019, states passed over 1200 abortion restrictions. This summer, the Supreme Court may even overturn Roe v. Wade, despite the fact that most Americans would oppose such a move.

Interestingly, the American story of an endless back-and-forth over abortion may be the exception, not the rule. Canada and the United Kingdom did exactly what Roe was supposed to accomplish, but never could. They settled the debate.

How did three liberal democracies, beginning at relatively similar starting points in the late 20th century, end up in such different places on the issue of abortion?

Let us begin with the United States.

The defining feature of Roe is that it was an attempt at judicial, rather than legislative, change. And its disappointing legacy has led some to lose faith in the power of the courts as vehicles for social change. In his groundbreaking book, The Hollow Hope, Gerald N. Rosenberg argues that significant social progress cannot be achieved through litigation. He argues that the court is constrained by a variety of factors and thus unable to accomplish social reform. For instance, the Supreme Court lacks the power of implementation and therefore relies on cooperation from the other two branches of government.

This is paradoxical because the Supreme Court appears all-mighty, so much so that the U.S. is often referred to as a model of judicial supremacy. Indeed, judicial review allows five justices to yield power over a whole government and overturn democratically approved legislation. While the judiciary appears to rule supreme in the United States, this perception stems primarily from its ability to overturn laws rather than meaningfully change the status-quo on its own. While the judiciary is powerful, it is not powerful in the way that the pro-choice movement would hope.

Rosenbergs controversial findings on the limitations of the judiciary have been debated for three decades now. Critics have raised counterexamples of social reform through the judiciary, such as the Supreme Court case of Obergefell v. Hodges which mandated that states license and recognize same-sex marriage. Rosenberg, in turn, has responded by showing that his theory still holds true and that his critics have overstated the importance of the courts even when it appears as though they have achieved great victories. I weigh in on this ongoing debate through a different comparative perspective. Instead of comparing outcomes on different social issues in the same country, I look at the same issue across different countries, arguing that the experiences of the United Kingdom and Canada are consistent with Rosenbergs contention. Courts can rarely catalyze long-lasting social change.

The United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, there was no Roe v. Wade equivalent no famous legal battle, no nine men in robes ruling on womens rights and, ironically, no ambitious attempt to speak the final word on abortion.

Instead, after debate in the legislature, there was the Abortion Act of 1967, a parliamentary act providing a framework for legal abortions, amending but not replacing the Offences Against the Person Law which criminalized abortion in 1861.

Oddly enough, abortion is still technically a criminal offense in the United Kingdom by virtue of parliaments failure to overturn the Victorian law of 1861. But the Abortion Act of 1967 provided legal exceptions under which women can receive an abortion with the authorization of two doctors. In practice, access to safe and legal abortions in the U.K. far exceeds that in the U.S.

Canada

If the U.K. is a clear case of parliamentary supremacy, and the U.S. one of judicial supremacy, Canada falls somewhere in between. It is also much more complicated.

While independence in the U.S. came about through revolution, Canadian independence came through a much more gradual process of negotiation and transfer of power from Britain. As a consequence, Canada inherited many foundational principles in British law, namely the principle of parliamentary sovereignty.

The power of the judiciary is therefore much more limited in Canada than in the United States. While the introduction of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms expanded the role of the judiciary to weigh in on clashes between individual rights and democratically approved legislation, the judiciary remains far more deferential to parliament in Canada. The case of abortion was no exception.

Until 1988, Section 251 of the Canadian Criminal Code held that a woman seeking an abortion must apply to an abortion committee which would allow an abortion only if the continuation of pregnancy would threaten her life or health. In hearing the case of Dr. Henry Morgentaler, a physician who performed an abortion in violation of Section 251, the Supreme Court overturned the Section on the grounds of a right to receive medical care. Notably, they did not rule on the basis of a right to abortion per se. The judiciary explicitly delegated the broader moral debate over abortion to parliament. Thus, rather than seeking (as Roe did) to terminate political dialogue over abortion, the Supreme Court of Canada in Morgentaler actually invited future political dialogue on the balancing of womens rights and any rights that parliament may find fetuses to hold.

The Canadian parliament never passed any legislation on abortion. It joined China as the only countries with no law governing abortion. In practice, the consequence was legal abortions at all stages of pregnancy.

Explaining the Divergence

The United States was the only one of the three countries that experienced a ruling on abortion seeking to finalize the issue. And yet, it is the country where divisions on the matter are strongest.

One could chalk this up to cultural differences; perhaps the religious right is more prominent in the U.S. than in Canada and the U.K. But there may also be an institutional explanation lurking beneath the complex histories of abortion rights in the three countries: The model of parliamentary supremacy in U.K. and Canada as opposed to the judicial supremacy of the United States seems to have been more effective in achieving stable abortion protections.

First, legislative change tends to result in compromise, while change through the courts is zero-sum. While Roe attempted to define winners and losers in a perpetual tug-of-war, the Abortion Act of 1967 in the U.K. struck a compromise: no formal legality, but far greater access to abortion. The unique capacity of legislatures for negotiation and compromise may lead more people to be satisfied with the end outcome.

Second, legislatures garner a certain procedural legitimacy that is thoroughly lacking in the courts. Perhaps the never-ending fierce debate over abortion in the U.S. can be explained not only by peoples dissatisfaction with the content and morality of Roe, but also the procedure underlying it: Americans may be frustrated with the undemocratic process through which abortion was legalized and thus view it as a fundamentally unjust outcome. This is consistent with Rosenbergs finding that, prior to 1973, there was little organized political opposition to abortion. Professor Jennifer Holland, a gender and sexuality historian, notes that Roe changed the direction of the pro-life movement. Now facing a definitive ruling on abortion that applies nationally, the movement was incentivized to became broader, better organized and more powerful. The fact that this movement was successful in doing so can be partially explained by a feeling of injustice among many in the face of an undemocratic ruling. In contrast, policies passed by majoritarian systems are more likely to gain enduring support because, even if there is disagreement, such policies have the democratic consent of the populations political representatives. This holds even when the outcome of democratic debate is no policy at all, as in the case of Canada.

Finally, regardless of where one stands on the issue of abortion, a system of parliamentary supremacy is more consistent with fundamental democratic principles and thus more morally legitimate. Governments yield immense coercive power over the lives of their citizens. They can take their property, force them to abide by restrictive laws and even hold the right to put them behind bars. In return, citizens deserve a reciprocal right to have input into the way they are governed. While antimajoritarian institutions may have an important role in liberal democracies, we should generally default to the decisions of democratic legislatures, especially on important moral issues that welcome rigorous public debate.

In the words of Abraham Lincoln, if government policies on vital issues are to be irrevocably fixed by the Supreme Courtthe people will have ceased to be their own rulers. Instead, we should welcome the power of the legislature to pass policies through a fair procedure that respects the democratic consent of citizens.

Image by Colin Lloyd licensed by Unsplash

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Does Judicial Supremacy Limit Social Progress? A Comparative Analysis of Abortion Rights in the US, Canada, and the UK - Harvard Political Review