Malala Tops List; Spanish Police Beat Protestors

Credit: United Nations Information Centres on Flickr, under Creative Commons

(WOMENSENEWS)–

Cheers

The 10 women who shaped 2013 has been listed on CNN. The women of the year helped bring the economy back from the brink, worked against tyranny and championed equality, education and justice, CNN reported. Malala Yousafzai and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova of Pussy Riot are the top two of the list.

It was a big year for women in 2013, CNN reported Dec. 26, but amid this progress, a few of the year’s biggest missteps serve as powerful reminders of what not to do in 2014.

More News to Cheer This Week:

A Florida woman turned the table on her attacker by giving him a choice to either go to jail or hold a sign at a busy Tampa intersection that reads "I beat women. Honk if I’m a scumbag" and wear a dunce cap, ABC News reported Dec. 22.

Jeers

A video of Spanish police violently beating up a group of women during a demonstration has gone viral, Russia Today reported Dec. 24. The women were protesting a draft bill that restricts the right to abortion, only allowing the procedure in cases of rape and when there is a health risk.

More News to Jeer This Week:

A 20-year-old woman was gang raped on Christmas Eve in south India, the latest in a string of sexual attacks reported in the country, Singapore’s Straits Times reported Dec. 27. Reports of this latest assault came two days before India was due to mark the first anniversary of the death of a student who was gang raped on a bus in an attack that shocked the nation.

Although it’s supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year, it can also be the most overwhelming for women. A survey by the American Psychological Association found that more women than men feel stressed at Christmas, The Washington Post reported Dec. 23.

Noted:

A photo of a plus-size Barbie recently posted on Facebook by Plus-Size-Modeling.com has sparked an intense debate over the body image of women, The Huffington Post reported Dec. 23.