The Week in Patriarchy is a weekly roundup of what’s happening in the world of feminism and sexism. If you’re not already receiving it by email, make sure to subscribe.

Republicans abhor abortions – unless it’s for their mistress, of course

Meet Scott Lloyd, the head of the Office of Refugee Resettlement; in theory he’s responsible for supporting refugees build a better life in America by providing them with financial and medical assistance. Under previous administrations, this included abortion services. But we live in a God-fearing America now, and Lloyd has made it his mission to ensure refugee women, including unaccompanied minors, don’t get abortions. He even blocked a 17-year-old-girl who had been raped from having an abortion. “The child – the one who is destroyed – is not an aggressor,” he argued in a report. No Scott, the child isn’t an aggressor; you are.

As Mother Jones reported this week, despite his patronizing proselytizing, Lloyd doesn’t always practice what he preaches. As a young man he drove an ex-girlfriend to get an abortion and paid for half of it.

Lloyd joins an illustrious list of Republicans whose stance on abortion is basically: “It’s OK for me; evil for thee.” Earlier this year, for example, it emerged that Elliot Broidy, the former RNC deputy finance chairman paid $1.6m to a Playboy Playmate he had an affair with, after she aborted his child.

Then there is Tim Murphy, the pro-life Pennsylvania Republican who resigned last year after it was revealed he had urged his mistress to consider an abortion. And let’s not forget the charming Scott DesJarlais. According to testimony during his divorce trial, the Tennessee congressman supported his ex-wife's decision to get two abortions before their marriage. The former doctor also allegedly pressured a 24-year-old patient he was having an affair with to get an abortion. Even after all that information came out DesJarlais still had the gall to vote for anti-abortion bills and boast of having a “100% pro-life voting record."

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Hessah al-Ajaji drives her car down the capital’s busy Tahlia Street after midnight for the first time, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Photograph: Nariman El-Mofty/AP

Saudi Arabia set to execute a woman’s rights activist

Saudi Arabia lifted the ban of women driving earlier this year, amid much fanfare. So is the repressive kingdom finally embracing women’s rights? Absolutely not. In fact, the kingdom is on the verge of executing Israa al-Ghomgham, a female political activist. She is one of many jailed women’s rights activists and may face execution with a sword for participating in anti-government protests. Saudi Arabia cut ties with Canada earlier this year after the country urged it to release these activists. Meanwhile, the American government is keeping deafeningly silent. No doubt Trump would love to jail women’s rights activists himself.

Meet the new queen of Tinder

Last Sunday Natasha Aponte, a New York-based model, set up a mass date with hundreds of guys from Tinder. When they had all arrived at Union Square, for what they thought was a one-on-one date, she told the gaggle of guys that dating apps were “difficult”, so she had decided to “bring everyone in person and see how that goes”. Forget ghosting – is “crowding” now going to become all the rage?

The geography of sexism

A new index of sexist attitude developed by economists ranks Arkansas as the most sexist state in the US, and New Hampshire as the least. If you want more info on why that is, I suggest you find a man from Arkansas to explain it to you.

Some good statue news

Alice Dunnigan, the first black woman accredited to cover the White House, is getting her own statue at the Newseum in Washington.

Rest in Purgatory, ivankatrump.com

No doubt it was a sad week for America’s hardest-working feminist: Ivanka Trump. The first daughter announced she would shut down her fashion brand last month, following months of scandals and flailing sales; this week her website officially shut down. Perhaps now she’s no longer combining politics with product placement, Ivanka will have more time to devote to pretending to empower women.