Diddy witness goes missing, lack of female medical trials, Fiona Apple releases protest song for jailed mothers, and more

Issue #29

May 13, 2025

Hi everyone

In the UK this week: new data has shown that there is a lack of female-only medical trials; and the Women and Equalities Committee has launched an inquiry into misogyny with a particular focus to online sexism.

With the conclave there came a new Pope, but also a reckoning about the role of women in the Catholic Church - a group of activists released pink smoke in protest for more female representation. Across the pond, Sean P Diddy’s trial into sex trafficking has begun, but one of the key witnesses has gone missing.

And Fiona Apple has released a new song to raise awareness of the ‘cash-bail’ system in the United States and how it unfairly impacts women (specifically black women).

We also have some news in brief for you, as well as some of our favourite long-reads too.

Thanks for reading and please share us with your friends and family <3

Women and Equalities Committee launches inquiry into online misogyny

The Women and Equalities Committee has launched an inquiry into misogyny, looking at the ‘manosphere’ and online content. The Committee, formed by MPs across the parties, will examine evidence of rising misogyny among young men and boys. It will look at how the online communities and social media spaces that form 'the ‘manosphere’ contribute towards violence against women and girls. Social media companies will also be scrutinised to see what policies they have in place for deplatforming and demonetising such content.

The Committee is encouraging people to answer the call for evidence about their experiences and ideas to help share the report and its recommendations.

International

Key witness goes missing in Sean ‘Diddy’ Comb trial

The prosecution in the trial against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs has been unable to make contact with one of the key witnesses just days before opening statements began. A total of five women were expected to testify against the disgraced rapper, including the missing witness (identified as Victim-3) and Cassie Ventura, his ex-partner of eleven years. Ms Ventura has previously alleged that Diddy raped and abused her, although he has now claimed that she was abusive towards him. There is video evidence of Combs physically attacking Ventura. The defendant is facing five federal charges, including sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and transporting individuals for prostitution. He denies all the charges; if found guilty he could spend the rest of his life in prison.

Activists protest for female inclusion in Catholic Church ahead of pope selection

A few days prior to the conclave last Thursday, activists in Rome protested the lack of female representation in the Catholic Church by releasing pink smoke into the air behind the Vatican. The smoke was symbolic of the white smoke that signals the election of the new pope. Kate McElwee, the Executive Director of Women’s Ordination Conference (WOC) said: ‘Women should be included in every aspect of the life of the church … A woman’s place is in the conclave’. WOC is an organisation that works to ordain women as priests, deacons, and bishops. Another protestor, Miriam Duignan, said the cardinals ‘cannot keep ignoring fifty percent of the catholic population.’

Health

Data shows lack of female medical trials in the UK

Health experts have expressed concern on the under-representation of women’s health issues in medical trials. The data shows that there are 67% more male-only trails than female-only, despite the fact that there are more female-only diseases. The research is particularly scarce for women’s reproductive and maternity health, which is causing them to miss out on beneficial treatments, and doctors have to make decisions with insufficient evidence. According to The Guardian, some areas of research are dominated by men at all levels – funders, researchers, consultants and patients. Experts are calling for this gender health gap to be addressed urgently.

Entertainment and culture

Fiona Apple releases protest song for jailed mothers who cannot afford bail

Fiona Apple has released a new song highlighting the plight that jailed mothers who cannot afford bail face when awaiting trial. The Grammy-award-winning singer penned the song after witnessing the impact of a system that separates mothers from their children when awaiting trial if they cannot afford bail. ‘Pretrial (Let Her Go Home)’ is Apple’s first original song in five years and she has spent much of that time ‘court-watching’ with the Free Black Mamas DMV bailout in Maryland. In doing so, Apple noted the disproportionate effect of the carceral system on black women and released the song ‘in friendship and respect to all who have experienced the pain of pretrial detention’.

She has set up a website alongside the song so people can learn about about the incarceration of women and girls in the United States, and donate to local bail cases.

News in brief

🤳It has been alleged that Facebook detected when teenage girls deleted selfies so it could serve them beauty adverts.
🇯🇵A Japanese ‘trend’ in which women are ‘body slammed’ by strangers has gone made mainstream news and raised concerns it may be spreading across the UK