Melanie Breault

Bio

Melanie Breault just returned from teaching English in Seoul, South Korea. She now works for a women's nonprofit in Downtown NYC. She earned her bachelor's degree in economic and political journalism from Ithaca College in upstate New York. She likes to tackle issues facing marginalized workers and struggling students in her free time.
Military Sexual Assault is a Growing Problem, But We're Not Doing Anything About It
By Melanie Breault
A jury decided to acquit the former head of the Air Force Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office after a woman accused him of grabbing her buttocks. After two days of testimony in Arlington County Circuit Court last week, the jury dismissed…
Is Obama Approval Rating Making Him As Politically Toxic As Bush?
By Melanie Breault
President Obama stopped by Texas last Wednesday to smooth over the national disappointment with the glitches in the new HealthCare.gov website. As reported by the Wall Street Journal, he brought with him some volunteers to help consumers become more…
ENDA: A Landmark Gay Rights Bill is Set to Pass — If Republicans Would Listen to Their Constituents
By Melanie Breault
The Employment Non-Discrimination Act is up for a vote on Monday evening and will likely pass the Senate with the 60 votes needed to avoid a filibuster, according to the Huffington Post. As of last Thursday, 59 senators publicly support the bill,…
5 Reasons College is Not Right For Everyone
By Melanie Breault
We know there are plenty of young entrepreneurs out there who didn’t finish college — Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, and David Geffen, just to name a few. And with the ridiculous cost of education these days — $30,094 in tuition and fees for a private…
Virginia Gay Marriage Ban Will Be Struck Down, If Millennials Have Their Way
By Melanie Breault
The same Virginians who voted 57% in favor of ratifying a constitutional amendment defining marriage as “between one man and one woman” in 2006 now believe it should be legal for gay couples to get married. According to Virginia’s statewide election…
New Jersey Gay Marriage is the Beginning Of a Marriage Equality Trend
By Melanie Breault
Over the next two weeks, we may see some serious changes to the political and legislative landscape of the U.S. in favor of marriage equality. The day the Supreme Court ruled to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act, the president of the Human…
Debt Ceiling 2013: Start Caring, Millennials, Or We'll Pay the Price
By Melanie Breault
Congress has until this Thursday to make a decision about the debt ceiling, whether they will increase the nation’s borrowing authority or cause the U.S. to default on its loans. Progress was made during the Columbus Day weekend, but a final budget…
Janet Yellen, Mary Jo White, and Christine Lagarde Shatter Gender Stereotypes
By Melanie Breault
With the nomination of Janet Yellen to head the Federal Reserve, Mary Jo White chairing the SEC, Christine Lagarde as the managing director for the International Monetary Fund and Angela Merkel as the "dominant Eurozone leader," according to…
Revenge Porn Illegal? New Laws May Not Be Vengeful Enough
By Melanie Breault
As of last week, it is illegal to post nude photos or videos of someone online without his or her permission, a practice termed, “revenge porn.” California Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law Senate Bill 255, which penalizes those who intend to cause…
What Obamacare Means For Me: Prevention and Peace Of Mind
By Melanie Breault
As Monday's events showed, Obamacare is the Republicans’ Moby Dick and they will not concede until they catch their whale (or in this case, destroy it). The House attempted to delay the Affordable Care Act by one year and cut a tax on medical…
This Study Confirms Everything You Thought About Lesbian Parents
By Melanie Breault
The kids are just fine, thank you very much. Actually, they're better than your kids. The Williams Institute found pre-teen Dutch children raised by female same-sex parents to have more democratic attitudes about society than their peers from…
Company Accused of Allowing Prison Rape, Now Charged With Investigating It
By Melanie Breault
As the “oldest and largest international correctional association in the world,” the American Correctional Association (ACA) must have a very impressive record of professional development, accreditation, and oversight. However, this may not be the…
Is Your State Fighting to Protect These Puppies?
By Melanie Breault
You can’t go one block in New York City without seeing at least three furry friends strolling along with their owners. Some of those cuties could be from a shelter upstate, some from a pet store on 5th Avenue, and some could be from an illegal pet…
Why Malala Yousafzai Deserves the Nobel Peace Prize, Not Just the Kiddie Version
By Melanie Breault
Follow @policymic On Thursday, education activist and Taliban shooting survivor Malala Yousafzai was handed the 2013 International Children's Peace Prize. Yemeni Nobel Peace Prize laureate Tawakkol Karman presented Yousafzai the award in The Hague,…
The 5 People You Should Be Thanking On Labor Day
By Melanie Breault
As we say goodbye to the end of summer with our final barbecues dressed in white pants and tank tops, we must also remember what Labor Day is really supposed to represent.  Every year, we observe the first Monday in September as the "creation of the…
Fast Food Workers Deserve a Living Wage, So Let's Give It to Them
By Melanie Breault
You might be waiting a long time for your fast food this Thursday, as nationwide walkouts are anticipated in eight major cities including New York. Employees from food chains such as KFC, McDonald's, Burger King, and Wendy's are rallying together to…
5 Reasons Everyone's Talking About Malala Yousafzai's New Book
By Melanie Breault
There’s been a lot of talk in the news about education recently. With President Obama’s tour of Northeast college campuses, the approaching climax of the student loan debate in Congress, and the New York City mayoral candidates debating new…
This is What College Would Look Like If It Were Founded By Elon Musk
By Melanie Breault
Let’s imagine a classroom. There are maybe 40 students from all different backgrounds studying mathematics. There’s a professor using the latest technology to flash fractions and equations across a giant screen. I forgot to mention that they’re…
Is This What the End Of Freedom Of the Press Looks Like?
By Melanie Breault
Anyone who has been through an intro to journalism class or a politics lecture will know the idea of the Fourth Estate. This is the notion that the press “plays a central role in the management and maintenance of a representative democracy.” A…
The Dismal State Of the Global Middle Class, In One Chart
By Melanie Breault
If you search the phrase “economic inequality in the U.S.” and look at the images that come up, you will find an abundance of graphs and charts that show just how skewed income distribution is in this country. One of the first images to appear is…