9 must-read stories about gender

Welcome to your weekly digest of stories about gender – you can subscribe here to receive this by email.

If women built cities. “There aren’t many women who think, my ideal project would be a massive tower.” (Guardian)

How sexism stifles creativity. Asking people to be “politically correct” doesn’t quash original ideas – it leads to more of them. (The Atlantic)

Female athletes in Pakistan defy expectations. Women beat men at their own games. (Foreign Policy)

“Boardroom quotas are a distraction at best.” A sceptical view, as Germany prepares to pass a new law. (New York Times)

Crunching the numbers on equality. Women face fewer barriers than they used to in mathematical sciences. (Research Digest)

Poverty and ideology both stop girls going to school. Different problems, so there is no one-size-fits-all solution. (The Daily Beast)

Why US mothers are quitting the workforce. Inflexible employers, social pressure and a lack of childcare all weigh. (World Economic Forum)

Next year, Saudi women can vote in council elections. It’s part of a gradual softening of restrictions. (World Post)

What it feels like to be a female breadwinner in the UK. “My mother has hinted she wishes I’d found someone to protect me.” (Telegraph)

Statistic of the Week

The percentage of women in the American work force peaked in 1999, at 74% for women between 25 and 54.

It has fallen since, to 69% today, with difficult work hours and a lack of affordable childcare partly to blame.

Quote of the Week

“My daughter will never be cut. It stops with me.”

Jaha Dukureh, who campaigns against Female Genital Mutilation.

Author: Ceri Parker, Associate Director, Forum Blog.

Image: A woman looks at paintings behind a sculpture by the architect Zaha Hadid. REUTERS/Andrew Winning