The Activista

More and more women are opting to take their partners’ last name.

The Boston Globe thinks this is something public opinion should make sense on: “ A recent poll of US men and women by researchers from Indiana University and the University of Utah found that 71 percent of those surveyed agreed, either strongly or somewhat, that it was beneficial for a woman to take her husband’s name. About half of those polled felt so strongly about it that they said the government should force women to take their husband’s name.”

I’ve made the decision already not to do so if I was ever to marry. One woman in the article claims her name was “her brand,” while another claims taking her husband’s name made the coupling more “concrete.” So, what is it then? What makes women take someone else’s name, someone else’s family history, as their own?

It seems simple enough- the last name as a sign of who you are. After all, our names are important parts of our identities.

So why not have one for ourselves?

“On the evening of Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2010, GWPD received a report of a forcible fondling that occurred in Gelman Library on Sunday, Feb. 14, 2010, at approximately 11:30pm. The victim reported that she was assisting the suspect when he unexpectedly put his hands down her pants and up her shirt. The victim pulled away and fled the area and the suspect left the library.

SUBJECT DESCRIPTION: Black male, 6′ 3″- 6′ 7″, 265 lbs., 35 to 45 years old, wearing a white sweater.”

The New Hampshire House is considering a bill which would allow prosecutors to charge people who kill a fetus with murder, manslaughter and negligent homicide.

Supporters say the bill is in response to a 2006 case where a speeding driver hit a cab driven by a pregnant woman. The passenger was killed, and the seven-month-old fetus was born not breathing. The fetus died after briefly being on life support. However, a judge ruled that, under the law, the speeder couldn’t be convicted for the death of the fetus; under current law, a fetus is not considered a person unless the baby shows evidence of life.

Opponents say the bill is an attempt to give unborn children legal rights. However the bill does include an exemption for abortion and doesn’t look to infringe on a woman’s right to choose.

WCAX News