(WOMENSENEWS)–
Cheers
Sen. Barbara Mikulski, a Democrat from Maryland, will become the longest-serving female senator in U.S. history when she takes the oath of office on Jan. 5 for her fifth term, reported USA Today Dec. 29. In 1986, Mikulski became the first woman elected to the Senate whose husband or father did not serve in high office.
More News to Cheer This Week:
- MTV aired a special program entitled "No Easy Decision" about "16 and Pregnant" star Markai Durham’s decision to terminate her pregnancy, reported Fox News Dec. 28. A Dec. 29 review by Salon called the special "shockingly good."
Jeers
Erika Gandara, a 28-year-old law officer in Guadalupe, near the drug-war area of Ciudad Juarez, has gone missing after a dozen gunmen burned her house down, reported the Globe and Mail Dec. 28. She was the only law officer remaining after the 12 other cops she worked with were either killed or quit in the face of rising drug violence.
In Ciudad Juarez–where more than 3,100 murders have been committed this year–more women are entering the police force, with over 500 female police officers currently serving, reported Fox News Dec. 30.
More News to Jeer This Week:
- Former Israeli President Moshe Katsav was convicted of two counts of rape by a Tel Aviv court on Dec. 30, reported the New York Times.
- The Taliban have set up all-female suicide bomber squads to carry out deadly terror missions on both sides of the Afghan-Pakistani border, reported Daily News and Analysis Dec. 29.
- Women in the U.K. will bear the brunt of plans to cut back legal aid as funding for family law and divorce cases is cut, reported the Guardian Dec. 26.
