Wednesday 28 December 2011

News-Worthy Women of 2011

The BBC have published a list of noteable news-worthy women from 2011.  As you scroll through this list you might notice that the majority of them are brides, victims or -- well -- pandas.  And of these women, I only actually remember reading news stories about three of them (One was the panda!).  But as we all know, there have been loads of women doing awesome things in the news this year.  I've compiled a list, but please add your own!
(Disclaimer: Describing these women as news-worthy does not mean that I agree with them.  I'm looking at you, Nadine Dorries.)

January 2011
Sian Massey – Referee Official subjected to sexist criticism by (male) Sky Sports commentators
February 2011
Hillary Clinton – Speaks out against ‘internet repression’

March 2011
Wajeha Huwaider – Makes protest video to campaign to legalise women driving in Saudi Arabia
April 2011
Atifete Jahjaga – Elected first female president of Kosovo

May 2011
Angela Merkel – Phases out use of Nuclear Power in Germany

June 2011
Christine Lagarde – Named IMF chief
July 2011
Louise Mensch - Participates (understatement) in the phone-hacking Inquiry

August 2011
Aung San Suu Kyi – Ongoing establishment of democracy in Burma

September 2011
Nadine Dorries – Attempts to reform Abortion Legislation

October 2011
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Leymah Gbowee & Tawakkol Karman -- Winners of the Nobel Peace Prize


November 2011
Dilma Rousseff – Becomes Brazil’s first female leader

December 2011
Adele – Named biggest selling artist of 2011

Honorable Mention


Caroline Lucas – Couldn’t fit her in anywhere else, but holds the title of having the most questions answered by PM in the Commons!

6 comments:

  1. Sorry to be pedantic but Nadine Dorries (of whom I am a critic) did not attempt to drastically alter abortion law. She was not campaigning for a change in the time limit nor even for compulsory counselling. Her (muddled) amendment was concerned with recognizing the conflict of interest inherent in abortion providers who stand to gain financially from an abortion, being involved in counselling a woman who may be undecided. It did not take away a woman's choice to use a provider for counselling, nor impose counselling on anyone,

    Therefore its rather hyperbolic to talk about drastic changes.

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  2. The BBC article on Caroline Lucas isn't on "whether she's actually an MP or not" but on that she is the first green.
    Also that Angela Merkel is phasing out use of Nuclear Power in Germany is 'awesome' in the old fashioned inspiring fear or dread sense.

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  3. Have removed 'drastically', how that improves it for you :)

    Also edited the commentary on Caroline Lucas. Regarding Merkel, you might not have read the Disclaimer at the top?

    NEED to add in Sarah Millican, who won this year's People's Choice at Comedy Awards and also has become the best-selling female comedian ever. Alas, I cannot find a BBC article :(

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  4. I did read the disclaimer I was just commenting, this being the comments section :-)

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  5. Like this list a lot more than the BBC's effort- apart from anything else, how they felt it appropriate to omit Christine Lagarde is beyond me.

    I'd also nominate Pauline Pearce, the 'Hackney Heroine' -she stood up to the rioters but in subsequent interviews refused to endorse the 'mindless criminality' view, despite repeated invitations to do so. A class act.

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  6. Oh. Aren't I quite the 'was too busy being outraged to read the thing properly' idiot?

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