Rita Henley's Latest Articles
Road to College Included Hitchhiking with Kids
Two young children and no car didn’t prevent Rita Henley Jensen from enrolling in Ohio State University. She caught a ride with a stranger and her family’s future was transformed, she says in this excerpt from the anthology “Nothing But The Truth So Help Me God.”
What If All Single Parents Received Child Support?
Amid all the 50-years-later press about LBJ’s war on poverty, a deafening silence surrounds government support for single heads of household. This program, known as welfare, was ransacked in 1996 and today’s single mothers are paying the price.
Women’s eNews Announces 21 Leaders for 21st Century 2014
The 21 Leaders advance the idea that women’s rights are human rights across the globe, carrying forward decades of activism and dramatically changing what the future holds for this generation of emerging women.
For Seasonal News Resonance; Check Story of Mary
The Judean desert was full of perils and hardship for a 9-month pregnant Jewish woman struggling to reach Bethlehem for the Roman census. We follow that same female trek of endurance in our watch over Syrian refugees in Jordan, U.S. women in maternity wards.
Two Events on U.S. Maternity Care Suggest a Trend
In a one-week period last month two major developments–both tied to Women’s eNews’ coverage–could signal a rousing from complacency. One was a New York hearing; the other was $6 million in funding by pharmaceutical giant Merck.
Testimony: NYC Needs More Data on Maternal Deaths
On Nov. 13 Rita Henley Jensen, Women’s eNews’ founder and editor in chief, appeared at the New York City Government Committee on Health hearing to share our findings on New York City’s high maternal mortality rates. This is a copy of her testimony.
Speakers: To Find Peace, End Domestic Violence
Blocks away from where the United Nations delegates gathered with Syria’s chemical weapons on top of their agenda, a simple ceremony in New York’s Central Park floated a new path for peace.
‘Baby-Friendly’ Hospitals Bypass Black Communities
Very few of the maternity wards that have won a seal of approval for providing breastfeeding support are located in communities with a significant population of African Americans, a Women’s eNews analysis finds.
Time to Honor Heroism of South African Women
Charlotte Maxeke, Lilian Ngoyi and Helen Joseph are some of the leaders extolled in a small exhibit at the Apartheid Museum that pays rare tribute to those who fought pass cards. Current-day leaders, meanwhile, are battling HIV, violence and fear.