WASHINGTON D.C. — Today, Independent Women’s Forum (IWF), Independent Women’s Voice (IWV), and Independent Women’s Law Center (IWLC) applaud the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee for its pro-woman vote to block the nomination of Judge Sarah Netburn to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. In 2022, as a magistrate judge, Netburn recommended that a trans-identifying male convicted of multiple rape and child molestation charges be transferred to a women’s federal prison, subjecting many women who have been victims of sexual abuse and assault to risk further.
IWF’s exclusive docu-series, Cruel & Unusual Punishment: The Male Takeover of Female Prisons, exposes the ugly fallout of such policies that allow males to self-identify into women’s prisons, as told by current and formerly incarcerated women and whistleblowers from inside the correctional world.
Amie Ichikawa, Independent Women’s Forum ambassador and former inmate at Central California Women’s Facility, said, “Today was a monumental win, but it was just by one vote. This is where we step in and make sure our legislators are fully educated on the fact that women’s rights do not end if and when she is convicted and sent to prison.”
May Mailman, Independent Women’s Law Center Director, said, “Thank you the Senate Judiciary Committee for listening to the American public, which does not want activists parading as judges. Any judge who forces men into women’s prisons, claiming the Constitution mandates it, needs to have her brain examined, not steer the future of our Republic.”
Read May Mailman’s June op-ed on the Netburn nomination in the Washington Examiner HERE. In the piece, she stated in part: “Netburn is absolutely disqualified to be a federal judge, starting with her inability to read the Constitution. Our founding document obviously does not demand that male rapists have unlimited access to women. Any judge who finds otherwise cannot read or reason, both necessary skills for judging.”
Policy experts from IWF, IWV, and IWLC issued earlier letters opposing Netburn’s nomination to Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The letters can be read HERE.
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Independent Women’s Forum is dedicated to developing and advancing policies that aren’t just well intended, but actually enhance people’s freedom, choices, and opportunities.
Independent Women’s Forum is dedicated to developing and advancing policies that aren’t just well intended but actually enhance people’s freedom, choices, and opportunities.
Independent Women’s Law Center advocates for equal opportunity, individual liberty, and respect for the American constitutional order.