Blog - Page 79 of 108 - Maureen F. Fitzgerald

Must watch the Invisible War

I just heard about the new documentary “Invisible War” about sexual assault and rape of women in the military. They found that since WWII an estimated 500,000 US military personnel have been sexually assaulted or raped. A female soldier in a combat zone is more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than

New law misses the opportunity to deal with RCMP harassment

Have you heard of window dressing? As you may know the RCMP are being sued by about 100 female officers for systemic discrimination. So what did the federal governmentt just do? It introduced a new law that gives senior RCMP managers even MORE power to discipline officers. Increase the power at the top. As an expert in

The V-Word still taboo in doctors offices

Recent research shows that Canadian women are reluctant to speak to their doctors about vaginal pain. Dr Rossella Nappi (Italy) found that women in Sweden and Finland are much more likely to speak openly to their doctors. On average women in Canada wait three years before mentioning their suffering. This is a terrible shame and

Couples don’t say sorry enough even though it works

Recent research shows that couples who say sorry more often tend to stick together. No surprise. Those couples that are willing to admit they did something wrong and apologized had stronger relationships. But Stanford researchers also discovered that forgiveness only followed the apology when the coupls were “highly satisfied” (eg in a trusting relationship). Sadly, appologies were

Kids are not so selfish afterall

I love it when research overturns a fundamental belief. it makes us question so much or what we do. Recent UBC research shows not only that adults feel good when doing good but so do infants under age two. Small children smiled bigger when giving than receiving. So why do we still think that the main motivator in life

Workers can now claim insurance for harassment and bullying

As lawyer, I was brought it to tackle situations of harrassment and bullying. All were painful. Now, rather than counting on a corporate anti-bully policy and a complex process, a new law in British Columbia allows workers who are harassed or bullied to seek Workers Compensation. In the past, this workers insurance only covered mental stress arising from

If I had done what Barclays did I would have been imprisoned

How is it that the three top executives at Barclay’s PLC (London) can resign after the bank was fined $455 million dollars for fraud? As a lawyer, if I committed fraud, I would no longer be allowed to practise law – ever. I would also be required by law to pay back all those I defrauded,

Nora Ephron was an amazing screenwriter

Nora Ephron who died recently was famous for writing movies that showed the real essence of women. Movies such as “Sleepless in Seattle”; “When Harry Met Sally” and “You’ve got Mail” come to mind as movies that were not only funny but celebrated the differences between men and women – bringing us together, not apart. It’s another reminder why we need

Please support feminist frequency

I listened to a disturbing interview on CBC radio yesterday about Feminist Frequency. A well known blogger posted a video about her decision to investigate sexism and dicrimination in the gaming industry. This is not really big news but the mass viral attack on her is! Many have criticized the huge-breasted-stupid-women stereotypes that fill the games that boys, girls, men and

Would you want your local police officer sexually degrading a woman?

I am shocked that someone (likely a lawyer) told the RCMP regulators that it “was fine” for one of its police officers to participate in sado-masochistic activities – not during work hours of course. This officer actually posted online videos of him tying up and slashing naked women. Later he said it was no issue because there was no victim. No