“Mansplaining” and Political Voice

Guest author Ben White worked for WomanStats at BYU as an intern in 2016, and graduated in 2018 with a BA in Political Science. Now, as a graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin, his research explores how gender shapes our interactions with American politics. In recent years, "mansplaining", the phenomenon of a …

Little Old Ladies in Tennis Shoes: My Experiences as a Woman in Local Government

Originally from Chicagoland, guest author Chelsea Bakaitis worked for the WomanStats Project from 2012-2014 while earning a Bachelor of Science in Geography and a minor in Women’s Studies from Brigham Young University. After leaving Utah she made Gainesville, Florida her home along with her husband, dog, two cats, and many house plants. Currently she is …

The “Queen Sacrifice”: It’s Just Business

Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit enraptured millions when it was released in late 2020. The show, named after a well-known chess opening move, follows the life of Beth Harmon, an orphaned chess prodigy. Though utterly brilliant and able to quickly rise through the ranks of the elite chess players, she finds herself constantly embattled by drug …

How Gender Norms Affect Women Running for Office

We live in an era where more women are entering the workforce, yet there are still inequitable ratios of women to men in some arenas. The United States government, for example, has been male dominated since its establishment over 230 years ago. Of course, women have always participated in government and politics, but not at …

Women, War & Peace II

If you are unfamiliar with the PBS documentary series Women, War & Peace, we invite you to learn more about this excellent source of insight and information at their website: https://www.pbs.org/wnet/women-war-and-peace/ This series tells the previously untold “stories of women who risked their lives for peace, changing history in the process.” The second part of …

Womanism: The Potential of Feminism Further Explored

Womanism: “Having or expressing a belief in or respect for women and their talents and abilities beyond the boundaries of race and class; exhibiting feminism that is inclusive especially of Black American Culture.”[1]            The term “womanism” was first used in 1983 by a poet who sought to include her fellow women of color in the …

Breaking Barriers: Women Win Big in U.S. Midterm Election

The United States Supreme Court nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the nation’s highest court amid multiple sexual assault allegations has left many American women feeling uncertain about their legal security. President Donald Trump’s verbal attacks against women’s rights have caused anxiety for women from the executive branch as well. The concern is that these men’s …

Political Glass Ceiling: Women in Brazil

The original post, in Spanish, can be found here: https://womanstatslatina.wordpress.com/2018/10/31/el-techo-politico-de-cristal-la-mujeres-en-brasil/  This English translations was graciously provided by the authors, CC and JVSM  Considering the pending* results of the presidential election in Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro has a high level of support from a significant proportion of the population in Brazil. This support has been obvious since …

Women in Rwanda: The Truth about Gender Equality

There is only one parliament in the world where women outnumber men—and it’s in Africa. Women make up 64 percent of the Rwandan parliament (LBHO-DATA-1). To put that in perspective, Sweden’s parliament is 44 percent women, and the United States’ national legislature is 19 percent women. [1] The path to gender parity in Rwanda was …

Working as a Woman in National Security

Henry Kissinger. Colin Powell. Brent Scowcroft. These are names closely associated with the U.S. national security field. There are extraordinary women included in this list – such as Madeleine Albright and Condoleezza Rice – that have their contributions to national security sometimes overlooked because they are women. Although women have made incredible strides in the …