Gender Justice Blog

Submitted by ADonahue on
Group of nurses in march holding signs "Union women are powerful women"

We won’t let them ban our stories

When future students read about the Covid-19 pandemic, nurses want our stories to be emblazoned on those pages. We want our grandchildren to understand the righteous anger we felt, rushing between far too many patients at once — some of them our own dying colleagues — while our employers cut corners on staffing and posted record profits.

February 24, 2024

Graphic of pride flag colored raised fists

For Pride Month, trans and non-binary nurses share the power of solidarity

This Pride Month, National Nurses United is honored to celebrate the history of organized, collective resistance embodied in the LGBTQIA+ liberation movement.

National Nurses United
June 6, 2023

Mother holding baby on her shoulder

Honoring Mothers Day: In pursuit of reproductive health care justice

The grief of watching eight of her children die before they reached age 7 led Ann Reeves Jarvis to reach out to other women in her poor Appalachian community in the 1850s to organize mothers’ clubs

National Nurses United
May 12, 2023

Large group of nurses inside hospital hold signs "Health care is a human right" with raised fists

How a nurse rallied her union to fight for gender-affirming care

To honor International Transgender Day of Visibility, National Nurses United is proud to share this story from nurse-member Dara Tep, RN, and her colleagues.

National Nurses United
March 30, 2023

Striking women workers in 1909

International Working Women’s Day honors a union on strike

International Women’s Day is important. But to truly honor this day and its goals, we must revisit the story of International Working Women’s Day, of thousands of fed-up workers boiling over into the streets of New York.

Bonnie Castillo, RN, Executive Director of National Nurses United
March 8, 2023

Mawata Kamara, RN

The Labor of Labor: Forced Birth Is Forced Work

Nurses know firsthand just how much work goes into giving birth for our patients, especially if we’re labor and delivery nurses or parents ourselves. I’m an emergency room nurse, but I’m also a mom, so I know that the miracle of birth isn’t always so miraculous in the moment. Yes, there’s joy and celebration, but there’s also a lot of pain and hard work.

Mawata Kamara, RN
September 2, 2022

"Caring with Pride" raised fists graphic

Caring with pride

As Pride month comes to a close, we recognize a critical aspect of the work that registered nurses do throughout the year to support LGBTQ+ health: allowing patients to wholly be themselves.

National Nurses United
November 16, 2021

Graphic "Gender Justice" with NNU logo

As Covid cases continues to surge, nurses fight gender bias in California labor law

Nurses often have to jump through hoops — while sick or hurt — to receive paid time off for work-related illnesses or injuries. And after all that effort, nurses can be denied coverage.

Bonnie Castillo, Executive Director of National Nurses United
November 15, 2021

At this weekend’s women’s marches

Nurses are marching for change

Unionism and feminism go hand in hand. Just ask union nurses. Our women-dominated profession stands up against a billion-dollar health care industry every single day, and using our collective power, we win critical protections in our union contract — from fair wages and benefits, to protection from workplace harassment and violence.

Bonnie Castillo, Executive Director of National Nurses United
January 21, 2020

RN in El Paso

Answering the call — Registered Nurses provide critical care to migrant families

Registered Nurse Response Network volunteers spent three days at Casa Alitas, a Catholic Community Services shelter in Tucson, Ariz., providing medical care to migrant families and asylum seekers recently released from federal detention.

RN Response Network
April 2, 2019