Must Read: Feminine Mistake by Leslie Bennetts
By jessie kornberg • April 24, 2007 •Balancing Private and Professional Life
Readers may know Leslie Bennetts from her reporting at The New York Times and Vanity Fair. Now Bennetts has a new book out, and it argues that women who opt-out of work in favor of family jeopardize their families' ultimate well-being by sacrificing their economic self-sufficiency. Now matter what you think about the "opt-out revolution" and issues of work-life balance, the factual research that supports Bennetts' work makes The Feminine Mistake a must read.
Men making more money than women…what’s new?
By Chicana • April 24, 2007 •Balancing Private and Professional Life
As I am sure many of you have seen on CNN and other news networks, there is a story on men making more money than women in the same jobs. While I deplore the way the story is presented, I am like that the story is out there. Now when I tell people about Ms. JD and women's issues in the work force, I can easily reference the inequalities that still exist yet seem to be of any major concern to most in this country. The problem that still exists is the way the issue is framed. As we have…
Courtrooms or Playpens: Choices of the Modern Female Attorney
By jthibault • April 23, 2007 •Other Career Issues
I am proudly graduating from law school in just a few weeks. Like many of us graduates, while I’m excited to conquer the legal world, I’m also fearful of the many choices that I’ll face now that I’ve a law degree. As a woman, I’m particularly concerned about the decision to have a family. It’s frustrating to face the reality that when we become mothers, our status at work will change. We will be forced to choose between staying at home or going part-time at work, meanwhile passing up promotions or a partnership track, or staying at work and not…
Congressional Babies!
By Kalo Kagathia • April 22, 2007 •Balancing Private and Professional Life
I am not the best when it comes to keeping up with news and politics - granted, I have become more informed and inquisitive as I get older - but I don't know the ins and outs of Washington and I certainly don't keep up with news on the players - but this article about Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers caught my attention and I thought I would mention it because, well, I thought it was a nice piece. McMorris Rodgers will be the 5th woman to give birth while serving a term in Congress - this number was higher than…
Team Players?
By Yes, Virginia • April 22, 2007 •Other Issues
This past week, in lieu of studying, I piled into my school’s gym with most of my law school to watch our basketball team go head-to-head with our rival law school’s. Since I’ve gone to city schools for college and law school (the same city school, in fact), this actually was the closest I’ve ever gotten to a post-high school sporting event. I’m happy to report that my school won narrowly, money was raised for charity, and we all had a much better time than we would have had outlining. But one part of the evening left me with a…
Challenging the Perpetual Debate
By Kalo Kagathia • April 20, 2007 •Sexism, Sexual Harassment, and Other Forms of Discrimination
When it comes to preparing for job interviews, I can’t help but notice that the initial concern of many (if not most) women is “what do I wear?” This apparent concern with appearances often baffles men. I can recall asking a group of men what their advice on the matter might be - and they seemed concerned with my priorities and advised me to worry about the interview questions and other matters relating to the “substance” of the interview. While this is, or at least it should be what matters in an interview, I challenge you to show me someone…
After-hours harassment
By Curious • April 20, 2007 •Sexism, Sexual Harassment, and Other Forms of Discrimination
I am the only young female associate at a small firm and further not married. After work, maybe once a week or every 2 weeks the other associates (all male, married and about 7-10 years older than me) go out to a bar together. It felt so great to be included with that group and I jumped at the chance to go out with them. When we would go out though they would talk about completely disgusting and inappropriate stuff in front of me. I thought, hey, I am a "cool" girl and I really want to be included so…
Racism v. Sexism
By Karen Sosa • April 15, 2007 •Sexism, Sexual Harassment, and Other Forms of Discrimination
For the past week it has been impossible to visit a news website or to watch CNN or MSNBC for more than 5 minutes without some comment on the Don Imus affair. Referring to a group of 18-22 year old black women as "nappy-headed hos" is of course offensive, even from a so-called "shock jock". But offensive statements and overtones abound in popular media and culture. What about rap music? The few times I have actually read the lyrics to certain rap songs, I have been literally shocked and often disgusted by the things being said. I still listen to…
Networking No-Nos?
By Kalo Kagathia • April 15, 2007 •Other Career Issues
I recently saw this article (The Case of the Pushy Lady by Liz Ryan) headlining my yahoo homepage and must admit that I was a bit disappointed when I read it. I suppose it isn't anyone's fault but my own - the headline said something about "Networking No-Nos", it was silly of me to expect the how-to guide that I continue to seek when it comes to the skill of networking... The article pointed out some of the things I have grappled with in other posts here on Ms. JD - the problem of being too pushy in our networking…