Quick Hits
- [Yawn] Tired of sexism? Researchers have found that in countries with higher gender empowerment indexes, all genders reported better quality of sleep. The Times
- In other health news, a new study has found that women who work 45+ hours a week face a 51 percent increased risk of diabetes compared to women who work 35-40 hours a week. The New York Times
- Lady Gaga’s new business venture, a cosmetics company called Haus Beauty, has secured Silicon Valley investors and funding. Recode
- But for people of color in the tech world, funding definitely doesn’t come as easily as it does for Gaga (no shade, no tea, we’re fans for sure). That’s why journalist Sherrell Dorsey created ThePLUG, a daily newsletter highlighting people of color in tech, and serving as a platform for their ventures. VICE
- President Trump has nominated Judge Brett Kavanaugh to replace Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy. Kennedy had historically been a key swing vote on many of the nation’s most contentious issues. Check out our analysis of Kavanaugh's past career decisions to see how he might vote on women’s and workers’ rights. He’s been a little all over the place. InHerSight
- We’re pretty used to hearing stories of capable women passed over for jobs in favor of a woefully under qualified male candidate. Our users tell us these stories all the time. Here’s another — Donald Trump intends to nominate a male Senate aide with zero space experience to be the deputy administrator of NASA instead of Dr. Janet Kavandi, an astronaut and respected leader in space research. Quartz
- Angela Ponce will become the first trans woman to participate in a Miss Universe pageant after winning Spain’s national beauty contest — and she’s looking to challenge traditional conceptions of gender and beauty while she’s doing it. The New York Times
- We’re well aware of the resiliency of women, but this shocking story about a young Oregon woman who survived for a week after her SUV plunged over a cliff will amaze you. CNN
Coming from Companies
Finally some Facebook news that actually doesn’t alarm us about an imminent digital nightmare dystopia for a change — according to the company’s latest diversity report, Facebook has increased its number of women employees by five times over the past five years, bringing total number of women at the company up to 36 percent. The company also reports moderate increases in POC employees. Economic Times
But, not to worry — we’ve still got some unsettling Black-Mirror like news for you, this time it’s just being done by Walmart. The retail giant has reportedly patented surveillance technology that would allow it to record conversations taking place in its stores. This could include conversations between an employee and a customer, or personal conversations between customers or amongst coworkers. Did somebody say Big Brother? On the flip side, maybe the new technology will help female employees on the safety and responsiveness front when they take issues to HR. CBS
In a partnership with Malala Yousafzai, Apple is working with Brazilian coding students to create digital tools to help reach female students in their country. CNN
Really, Forbes?
Last week, reality star and makeup mogul Kylie Jenner was featured in Forbes’s “America’s Women Billionaires” story, also gracing the magazine’s cover. Forbes estimated Jenner’s net-worth to be around $900 million and declared that she was on track to be “the youngest-ever self-made billionaire” at age 21. But, many have begged to disagree with that statement. Jenner, who was born into extreme wealth and fame, is exact OPPOSITE of self-made. Yes, it’s awesome that she started a makeup company — it’s always nice to see rich kids use their privilege for something rather than merely partying their parents’ money away. But her career was still built on just that: privilege. We’re not knocking Jenner, the Kardashians, or even one percenters (lord knows we wish we had some of that Kris Jenner managerial magic) but to call Kylie Jenner self-made is to ignore the severe barriers lack of wealth poses to the many intelligent, entrepreneurial individuals who will never make it to a magazine cover. Vox
Around the World
- The World Cup may be over, but we’re extending our celebration of soccer to the women in Zanzibar who love the sport but aren’t allowed to play. That certainly hasn’t stopped them from forming a league of their own, and playing in spite of the stigma. The New York Times
- India’s top court has started hearing a case that could strike down the country’s criminalization of homosexuality. Bloomberg
- Also in India: The Kerala government has announced that it will amend its labor laws to allow working women to sit. In many majority-female workshops, sitting or even leaning on a wall can be grounds for firing. The Guardian
- The Gurkhas, a section of the Nepalese army, has announced that it will allow women members for the first time. BBC
