Election 2012, Law Schools, Women's Issues

What's Everyone's Favorite 'Slut' Up to These Days?(An Update on Georgetown Law's Sandra Fluke.)

Remember Sandra Fluke? Here's an update on everyone's favorite "slut"...

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Remember Sandra Fluke, the Georgetown Law student who testified before Congress about the need for insurance plans to cover birth control — and then received a verbal smackdown from conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh?

As if you needed a reminder, Limbaugh had the nerve to make the following remarks about Fluke over the airwaves: “What does it say about the college co-ed Sandra Fluke, who goes before a congressional committee and essentially says that she must be paid to have sex? What does that make her? It makes her a slut, right? It makes her a prostitute.”

Society was outraged, and even President Obama called Fluke to denounce Limbaugh’s comments. Limbaugh eventually issued an apology, but at that point, it was too late. Everyone had already rallied around Fluke as the new face of women’s issues in America.

So what’s Fluke up to these days? We’ve got all of the details for you….

At the time of the contraception controversy, Fluke was a 3L at Georgetown Law. Since then, she’s gotten engaged (to Adam Mutterperl, a comedy writer), graduated from law school, and moved back to Los Angeles to study for the California bar exam.

Fluke recently emerged from her studies to take an interview with the Los Angeles Times. During that interview, Fluke discussed how “Slutgate” changed her life — largely for the better — all thanks to Limbaugh’s hostile words. She’s a local celebrity, and she even gets recognized at the grocery store.

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But more importantly, Fluke is still speaking out about important women’s issues. From the L.A. Times piece:

I’m trying to use the opportunity to make sure as many people as possible hear about these really important questions we’re faced with right now – things like whether or not women really deserve the right to fair pay, and if we’re going to enact legislation that ensures that they are actually able to realize that promise.

And whether the issue is contraception or equal pay, at least someone is being bold enough to speak up for women’s rights in a time when law and policymakers have launched a so-called “War on Women.” Fluke, who admits that she’s always been an activist for women’s causes, says she’s “just trying to take [the Limbaugh ordeal] for what it was and use it in as positive of a way as possible.”

But will she try to harness that positivity and try to land a job doing campaign work for Election 2012?

I’m not committed to working on anybody’s campaign at this point, but I think it’s going to be a really important election that decides a lot of important questions and directions for our country, and I’m continuing to monitor it and think about ways in which I can have an impact.

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And while those on Limbaugh’s side of the fence would argue that the best way for Fluke to have an impact on the election would be for her to shut her mouth, others would rather cheer for her on the sidelines. Fluke deserves all of the praise that she’s received, and we wish her the best of luck on this summer’s bar exam.

Months after Limbaugh’s ‘slut’ remark, Fluke focused on election [Politics Now / Los Angeles Times]

Earlier: Why You Shouldn’t Call a Woman a ‘Slut’ on the Eve of Women’s History Month Because She Uses Contraceptives

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