Council Member Helen Rosenthal (photo: John McCarten/City Council)

The City Council is set to pass a bill requiring more reporting from mayoral agencies “on efforts to prevent and address sex- and gender-based discrimination and harassment.” The bill, which passed the Council’s Committee on Women and Gender Equity Tuesday and is likely to pass the full Council on Thursday, deals with the city’s Commission on Gender Equity (CGE) and the Department of Education.

According to Council Member Helen Rosenthal, a Manhattan Democrat who chairs the

Council Member Rosenthal (photo: John McCarten/City Council)

The New York City Council’s Committee on Women and Gender Equity and Committee on the Justice System held a joint hearing on Wednesday to examine the effectiveness of the city’s programs meant to reduce domestic violence by holding abusive partners accountable through treatment and rehabilitation. But representatives of the de Blasio administration could not provide metrics about how many programs there are currently in place across the city or how they are working. And even as the city is exploring new

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams

Tampons. Periods. Breastfeeding. Hot flashes.

These terms, and others relevant to women’s health, have traditionally been considered taboo — inappropriate for polite conversation and therefore left unmentioned. That silence has had serious consequences for women and girls, who are denied access to feminine hygiene products, charged more at the cash register for “women’s” versions of household items, and made to feel ashamed about their bodies.

This taboo extends to sexual health, with terrible costs for young

Council Members Rosenthal (front) and Cumbo (photo: William Alatriste)

Access to reproductive health care is generally viewed as a “women’s issue,” a label that some say excludes men and more specific impacted groups from a variety of important conversations, and can make it more difficult for so-labeled issues to get the attention they deserve from public policy-makers. While closing the wage gap, securing paid family leave, combatting sexual assault and domestic violence, and protecting and improving access to reproductive health care impact everyone, not just

City Coucil Member Laurie Cumbo leads a press conference (photo: William Alatriste)

Reported rapes are on the rise in New York City. Despite an overall downward trend in felony crime, 2015 saw a 6.3 percent increase in the number of rapes reported, up to 1,439 from 1,354. Police Commissioner Bill Bratton and others have attributed this

Council Member Cumbo at a Women's History Month celebration (photo: Ben Max)

On Monday, March 30, the New York City Council will host a Women's History Month celebration at City Hall. Council members will likely celebrate women heroes of city government, past and present, and acknowledge the history-making leadership of both Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, the first Latina to hold the position, and Public Advocate Letitia James, a former council member who is