Everything you missed at Ms. this week.
Ms. Weekly Digest | June 13, 2020

Dear John,

Here at Ms., when we work on our editorial calendars, we put a great deal of care and thought into how we can best keep our readers informed, empowered and ready to fight back. With this in mind, today I’d like to write a bit about a concept that is often ignored by mainstream media outlets, but is critical to engage with the news and understand what’s at stake in the elections this November—this concept is known as the gender gap.

Time and time again, we see women leading public opinion—making the difference on almost every top issue. The gender gap lies here, in the difference between where men and women land on issues and candidates. And in fact, this difference between men and women’s opinions has been widening so much over the years that, here at Ms., we’ve begun to refer to this gap as the gender gulf instead.

We saw the gender gap at play this week, as polls have found that women are leading public opinion on racial justice. Eighty three percent of women believe racial and ethnic discrimination are a big problem in this country—compared to just 63 percent of men. Some experts attribute this 20 percent gender gap to the fact that women—and especially women of color—personally understand the impacts of discrimination and inequalities more intensely than men do, leading women to take the issue of racial inequality and injustice more seriously.

And as protests continue in response to George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police more than two weeks ago, a robust debate has begun about how best to end police brutality. The Congress, state legislatures and local city councils across the country have begun to propose policing reforms, but in our reporting, we’ve found that an obvious question has been largely ignored: in addition to rethinking official “rules for policing,” should we not more fundamentally reconsider who we are hiring as police officers in this country to follow these rules?

Multiple studies spanning 50 years show that female police officers lead with de-escalation and communication, while male officers are more likely to lead with force and aggression. We must realize that ideas pushing for reform—for example, initiatives to train officers better or to implement new rules and regulations—will not work unless we fundamentally shift the makeup of police departments to reflect the communities they work for. Simply put, you cannot train the wrong person to do the right thing. Let’s start with women.

BY ETHEL KLEIN | A double-digit gender gulf persists, with women’s opinions making the difference on top issues. From racial inequality and peaceful protests, to health care (particularly with a pandemic raging on) and the economy—women are leading public opinion.

BY CARI SHANE | Multiple studies spanning 50 years show that female police officers lead with deescalation and communication, while male officers are more likely to lead with force and aggression.

BY THOMAS SMURTHWAITE | Faced with nationwide outrage in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder by Minneapolis police officers, President Trump reverted to what he does best—domination through abuse and religious posturing.

BY FEMINIST NEWSWIRE | Civil rights groups representing Black Lives Matter D.C. and individual protesters are filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration, for their violent dispelling of peaceful protesters for the President's photo op on last Monday.

BY SHANTA LEE GANDER | Gander introduces readers to "the Black women who are not always included in the history books or within these commemorative months. These entrepreneurs, self-stylers and rebels were erased by history’s greatest hits, misrepresented or forgotten—yet they created a way when carving one’s path could mean their life or freedom."

BY DR. TAWANNA JONES MORRISON | "Black girls live in the same homes, attend the same schools and are touched by the same experiences as Black boys. Because of the lack of media coverage and community, many do not understand the impact police violence has on the lives of Black women and girls."

BY CYNTHIA RICHIE TERRELL | Our friend, Cynthia Terrell, founder and executive director of RepresentWomen, is back with another installment of her weekly column, rounding up some of her favorite stories about women’s representation in the news this week.

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