In Memoriam - Marilyn French

Famed feminist writer Marilyn French has died. I had an opportunity to hear her speak many years ago, while I was still living in Florida. She was promoting her book "Beyond Power" and I was simply amazed at the depth of research she had done to complete it. She spoke for more than an hour and her audience was simply mesmerized.

Marilyn French, a writer and feminist activist whose debut novel, “The Women’s Room,” propelled her into a leading role in the modern feminist movement, died on Saturday in Manhattan. She was 79 and lived in Manhattan.

The cause was heart failure, said her son, Robert.

With steely views about the treatment of woman and a gift for expressing them on the printed page, Ms. French transformed herself from an academic who quietly bristled at the expectations of married women in the post-World War II era to a leading, if controversial, opinionmaker on gender issues who decried the patriarchal society she saw around her. “My goal in life is to change the entire social and economic structure of Western civilization, to make it a feminist world,” she once declared.

Her first and best-known novel, “The Women’s Room,” released in 1977, traces a submissive housewife’s journey of self-discovery following her divorce in the 1950s, describing the lives of Mira Ward and her friends in graduate school at Harvard as they grow into independent women. The book was partly informed by her own experience of leaving an unhappy marriage and helping her daughter deal with the aftermath of being raped. Women all over the world seized on the book, which sold more than 20 million copies and was translated into 20 languages.

Gloria Steinem, a close friend, compared the impact of the book on the discussion surrounding women’s rights to the one that Ralph Ellison’s “Invisible Man” had had on racial equality 25 years earlier.

“It was about the lives of women who were supposed to live the lives of their husbands, supposed to marry an identity rather than become one themselves, to live secondary lives,” Ms. Steinem said in an interview Sunday. “It expressed the experience of a huge number of women and let them know that they were not alone and not crazy.” [...]

In 1992 Ms. French, a longtime smoker, was given a diagnosis of esophageal cancer and told she had just months to live. She chronicled her winning battle against the disease, which included a 10-day coma, in “Season in Hell: A Memoir” (1998).

“I cannot say I am happy I was sick,” she wrote. “But I am happy that sickness, if it had to happen, brought me to where I am now. It is a better place than I have been before.”

Nevertheless, the disease and its treatment took such a sharp physical toll that, friends said, for a while afterward she questioned whether she should have survived. “She was in pain for 15 years but she was extremely brave,” said Carol Jenkins, a friend who runs the Women’s Media Center, an advocacy group in New York. “She fought through it, she wrote through it and carried on her life. The printed word was a source of life for her.”

In the years since her supposed death sentence, Ms. French continued to publish prolifically; she has a novel scheduled for release this fall and was working on a memoir at the time of her death. Her most significant work since her illness was the four-volume “From Eve to Dawn: A History of Women,” published by Feminist Press and built around the premise that prevailing histories had denied women their past, present and future.

Despite carefully chronicling a long history of oppression, the last volume ends on an optimistic note, said Florence Howe, who recently retired as director of the publishing house. “For the first time women have history,” she said of Ms. French’s work. “The world changed and she helped change it.”

The world has changed,but we still have a long way to go to achieve equality. The 2008 presidential race illustrated that!

May you rest in peace Marilyn French. The challenge is now ours to "change the entire social and economic structure of Western civilization, to make it a feminist world."

Supreme Decision

My first day on the job at NOW, in 1990, we left the office that morning for a "Stop Souter" rally across from the Capitol. David Souter was an unknown, and women's groups didn't trust the first President Bush to do the right thing. How fortunate for us that we were so wrong.

President Obama announced this afternoon that Justice David H. Souter, the Republican-appointed New England jurist who has become a reliable member of the liberal bloc on the Supreme Court, is retiring and said he will nominate a replacement "who shares my respect for constitutional values on which this nation was founded."

Justice Souter has proven to be one of the more liberal members of the Court, and his departure probably won't mean much of a change IF President Obama nominates another liberal to take his place.

What Obama COULD do, however, is nominate a woman. We need another woman on the Court, and a few names have already surfaced.

The vacancy gives Obama his first chance to begin reshaping the court but would not likely change the dynamic on a bench that is split fairly evenly between the liberal and conservative blocs, with moderate conservative Justice Anthony M. Kennedy often holding the pivotal role.

Although Obama's choice would probably be far different from the 69-year-old intellectual bachelor from New Hampshire, the replacement will almost surely have a similar ideological outlook. Most court observers also believe Obama would be likely to choose a woman as his first appointment, since Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is the lone female among the nine justices.

Most often mentioned as possibilities are two appeals judges, Sonia Sotomayor of New York and Diane P. Wood of Chicago, along with Obama's new solicitor general, Elena Kagan. Vice President Biden has been charged with drawing up a list of possible nominees, according to the source close to the court.

Replacement Speculation Begins

Those often mentioned as possibilities are, in no particular order:

Judge Sonia Sotomayor (born 1954), U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit. Sotomayor was nominated to the bench by President George H.W. Bush in a deal with New York senators in 1991 and elevated to the appeals court in 1998 by President Bill Clinton. She could become the first Hispanic on the Supreme Court. Conservatives have raised questions about her role in upholding a decision by the city of New Haven, Conn., to throw out a firefighter promotions test because no African Americans qualified. The case is now before the Supreme Court.

Judge Diane Wood (born 1950), U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit. Wood worked at the antitrust division of the Justice Department during the Clinton administration, and she was nominated to the appeals court by Clinton in 1995. She knows Obama from her days as a professor at the University of Chicago law school, where he also taught. Wood, who will turn 60 next year, is the oldest of the candidates frequently mentioned for the court, where the trend has been toward younger justices who would serve for years in the lifetime appointment.

Judge Kim McLane Wardlaw (born 1954), U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. Wardlaw worked for the Clinton Justice Department transition team and was nominated by Clinton as a federal judge in 1995, then elevated to the appeals court in 1998. She is a liberal judge on the nation's most liberal appeals court, and she also had a role in a case now before the Supreme Court. She wrote the appeals court decision that said Arizona school officials violated the constitutional rights of a 13-year-old middle school student who was strip-searched in an unsuccessful effort to find drugs.

Solicitor General Elena Kagan (born 1960). Kagan was confirmed by the Senate to her new job in March on a 61-31 vote and has yet to argue a case at the court. Her confirmation process was more difficult than some had predicted, as Republican senators accused her of avoiding their questions. In the background was the thought that Kagan might be Obama's first nominee to the court. She is the former dean of the Harvard Law School, worked in the Clinton administration and worked with Obama, although not closely, at the University of Chicago.

Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Leah Ward Sears (born 1955). Sears was appointed by then-governor Zell Miller in 1992 and later became the first woman elected in a contested statewide race there. In 2005, she became chief justice, and in the process, became the first African-American woman in the nation to head a state supreme court. Although her current term runs until the end of 2010, Sears has announced she will step down from the job at the end of June.

Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm (born 1959). Granholm (D) has encountered political trouble in her state because of the collapsing economy but was seen as a rising Democratic star. Born in Canada, Granholm is a Harvard Law graduate who served as attorney general before winning election as governor in 2002. She frequently campaigned with Obama during the presidential campaign.

And the list goes on.

The End of Taxation Without Representation in DC

The Senate passed a bill today giving the District a House vote. Finally, more than half a million people might actually have representation in our federal government. All I can say is "it's about damn time!" The only down side was an amendment regarding gun control.

The Senate today passed a bill that for the first time would give the District a full voting member of the House of Representatives. But senators managed to attach an amendment that would scrap most of the District's local gun-control laws.

The 61-37 vote marked the first time in 31 years that the Senate had approved a D.C. voting-rights bill. The addition of the gun language could complicate the bill's passage into law, however, since it will be necessary to reconcile the Senate version of the legislation with the companion bill in the House. Voting-rights supporters hope the gun amendment can be removed in those negotiations.

The House is expected to approve the D.C. vote bill next week, and President Obama has indicated he will sign it into law. [...]

The D.C. vote bill would expand the House permanently by two seats. One would go to the strongly Democratic District, while the other would go to the next state in line to pick up a seat based on population count. For two years, that seat would be Republican-leaning Utah. It would then pass to whichever state qualified based on Census results. [...]

The gun amendment is similar to a sweeping measure approved by the House last year that was fiercely opposed by the D.C. government. It would limit the District's authority to restrict firearms, repeal the D.C. semiautomatic gun ban and remove gun-registration requirements. It drew bipartisan support. Among those supporting the amendment were Virginia's Democratic senators, Mark Warner and Jim Webb.

Opponents denounced it on the Senate floor.

"It's reckless, it's irresponsible, it will lead to more violence," charged Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.). She said that approval of the amendment would be "the first step to removing all common-sense gun regulation all over this land."

I agree!

Eric Holder Confirmed as Attorney General

Another milestone was reached today with the confirmation of Eric Holder as the nation's first African American Attorney General.

The Senate this evening confirmed Eric H. Holder Jr. as the nation's first African American Attorney General in a vote of 75 to 21, opening a new chapter for a Justice Department that had suffered under allegations of improper political influence and controversial policy decisions on wiretapping and harsh interrogation practices.

Holder, 58, will arrive at the Justice Department headquarters in Washington tomorrow for a swearing in ceremony and to greet some of the department's 110,000 employees.

"The need for new leadership at the Department of Justice is as critical today as it's ever been," said Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), the Judiciary Committee chairman, on the Senate floor this afternoon. "This confirmation is going to do a great deal to restore the morale and the purpose throughout the department."

So what's up with Republicans? Clearly, raising the obstructionist bar three fold during the previous Congressional term wasn't enough. Glad they weren't successful.

On the road again ...

As mentioned earlier I'm in Denver, what I didn't tell you is that I'm here attending the Creating Change conference. Celebrating 21 years, Creating Change is the largest gathering of LGBT activists in the country. More than 2,000 are expected.

The conference theme is "Power is sexy" and "Action is HOT" and the opening plenary was certainly hot, hot, hot.

MC Kate Clinton warmed up the crowd by leading a group cleansing to rid the country of any bad energy left behind from eight years of Bush & Co. Kate then introduced a true champion of grassroots organizing, Dolores Huerta. If you are not familiar with her work, I strong suggest you Google her name and check it out!

Dolores has worked for more than four decades to make this a better country. She, along with Cesar Chavez, organized the United Farm Workers Union, and Dolores has been involved in many civil rights movements over the years, the most recent to try and defeat California's Prop 8.

In a lighter moment Dolores talked about her first meeting with candidate Barack Obama, where he mentioned that he had stolen her signature line (and one she coined a few decades ago) "Yes We Can." Her responds to him was: "Yes.You.Did!"

I've known Dolores for nearly 20 years, and she never ceases to amaze me every time I hear her speak.

This is my eighth Creating Change, so it's also fun to reconnect with friends from around the country -- and make new friends. More later.

Call In Gay!

I was just listening to Sean Hetherington on "Culture Shocks with Barry Lynn" talk about an action taking place all across the country tomorrow. Sean is encouraging people to "Call in Gay!"

We've reacted to anti-gay ballot initiatives in California, Arizona, Florida, and Arkansas with anger, with resolve, and with courage. NOW, it's time to show America and the world how we love.

Gay people and our allies are compassionate, sensitive, caring, mobilized, and programmed for success. A day without gays would be tragic because it would be a day without love.

On December 10, 2008 the gay community will take a historic stance against hatred by donating love to a variety of different causes.

On December 10, you are encouraged not to call in sick to work. You are encouraged to call in "gay"--and donate your time to service!

December 10, 2008 is International Human Rights Day. CLICK HERE to join us, and search or add to the list of human rights organizations that need our help RIGHT NOW.

Hey, you don't have to be gay to call in gay ... go for it!

Must Read: Why we need an ERA

Why We Need an ERA
The Gender Gap Runs Deep in American Law

By Martha Burk and Eleanor Smeal
Friday, April 27, 2007
The Washington Post

Some members of Congress are looking to do something long overdue: pass the Equal Rights Amendment. Recently renamed the Women's Equality Amendment and introduced by its chief sponsors, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), the amendment would grant equal constitutional rights to women -- something we have yet to achieve. This simple concept had the blessing of both political parties until the Republicans struck it from their platform in 1980, with the Democrats following suit in 2004.

Why is the amendment needed? Twenty-three countries -- including Sri Lanka and Moldova -- have smaller gender gaps in education, politics and health than the United States, according to the World Economic Forum. We are 68th in the world in women's participation in national legislatures. On average, a woman working full time and year-round still makes only 77 cents to a man's dollar. Women hold 98 percent of the low-paying "women's" jobs and fewer than 15 percent of the board seats at major corporations. Because their private pensions -- if they have them at all -- are lower and because Social Security puts working women at a disadvantage and grants no credit for years spent at home caring for children or aging parents, three-quarters of the elderly in poverty are women. And in every state except Montana, women still pay higher rates than similarly situated men for almost all kinds of insurance. All that could change if we put equal rights for women in our Constitution.

Some say action isn't needed because the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment already guarantees rights for women. It would be great if that were so. But courts have failed to hold sex discrimination to the same level of scrutiny under the 14th Amendment as is applied, for example, to race discrimination, meaning that many discriminatory practices -- barring women from certain military jobs, establishing boys-only public classrooms and schools, and open discrimination against women in insurance programs, to name a few -- are still legal.

Yes, we have laws outlawing sex discrimination. But a law is only as strong as the next Congress and president. Laws and regulations guaranteeing protection against sex discrimination can be overturned by a simple majority in Congress or by the president. Courts have narrowed protections originally guaranteed by statute, resulting in women having to campaign constantly to restore these rights when they're taken away or weakened. What's more, federal laws have usually been narrowly crafted and don't reach into many areas in which state laws discriminate against women and girls.

The history of Title IX, the law guaranteeing equal educational opportunities for girls and women, is an instructive example. Passed in 1972, it opened colleges, law schools, medical schools and athletic opportunities to women at institutions receiving federal funds. Opponents fought its implementation from the beginning, and in 1984 they succeeded in gutting the law. The Supreme Court's decision in Grove City v. Bell declared that only individual programs receiving federal funds were subject to the law, not institutions as a whole. Women's groups had to mount a four-year fight to pass legislation overturning Grove City and restoring the original intent of Title IX. With a patchwork of state and federal laws that provide only statutory guarantees and many loopholes, the job is never done. The Bush administration has also weakened Title IX through a backdoor provision in the No Child Left Behind Act that permits the creation of sex-segregated public schools for little or no reason.

The ERA was ratified by 35 states before the time limit contained in its preamble was reached. Even though it has been reintroduced in every congressional session since, there has been no action since the 1980s -- until now.

Whether the Women's Equality Amendment must be passed with a new drive for 38 states, as opponents declare, or by merely adding three states to the 35 that have already ratified the amendment (the women's movement is pursuing both avenues) is irrelevant to the central truth: We need women's constitutional equality in this country. Women are not, and cannot be, legally equal to men without it. The United States must declare that women are equal under the law, no matter which state we live in, without reservation.

Ninety percent of Americans believe that the Constitution should make it clear that women and men have equal rights, according to a 2001 poll, and it won't cost taxpayers a dime. It will benefit not only the women of the United States but also the men, in this and all generations to come. That would be a real legacy for the new Congress.

Martha Burk directs the Corporate Accountability Project for the National Council of Women's Organizations. Eleanor Smeal is president of the Feminist Majority.

Children, teach your parents well

What I like most about this story is that it was the kids at Taylor County High School who decided they'd had enough of segregation. They decided they no longer wanted a "white" prom and a "black" prom.

In the photo included here the students are working together to get ready for their prom. How cool is that!

Nearly 15 years before Gerica McCrary was born, recently integrated Taylor County High School stopped sponsoring a prom. Parents and students set up their own -- one for blacks and one for whites.

The tradition continued for 31 springs in this rural county of 8,800 midway between Columbus and Macon in central Georgia until McCrary asked her fellow juniors to "stand for what is right" and vote to hold one prom for students of all races.

"In the beginning, the students were afraid of change," the black 17-year-old said. "But the kids got together. The students tore down the Berlin Wall. Both sides were tired of it.

Now, if they can just share this view with their parents ... and ALL parents ... imagine how the country might change.

Taylor County High School has 420 students, 226 of them black. Nearly 75 percent of the juniors and seniors supported McCrary's proposal for one prom.

The decision upset a few parents, but only because they have a hard time adjusting to change, said Steve Smith, a high school algebra teacher who attended Taylor County schools during desegregation. He and his wife are assisting the junior class on behalf of their daughter and niece, both Taylor County students.

Public schools in the rural South ignored federal orders to desegregate for decades. Taylor County did not allow blacks and whites to sit in the same classrooms until 16 years after the 1954 Supreme Court ruling in Brown vs. the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, which declared segregated schools unconstitutional.

The president of the Georgia Association of Educators, Ralph Noble, said the decision "truly shows that children are wiser than adults many times."

McCrary, who has a 4.0 average and participates in several extracurricular activities, said she was inspired by a classroom slogan that said: "Stand for what is right, or stand alone."

"At first, I was standing alone," she said. "Some thought it was absurd. I wanted unity, diversity, equality. Now, when I walk through the school, people congratulate me."

Good for you Gerica! Hopefully, others will follow your example.

Women's Equality - Women's Lives

March 8 is International Women's Day. The fact that it's just one day should give you a clue about the status of women in the US and internationally.

The information below was provided by the National Council for Research on Women, (www.ncrw.org) and the Girls, Women & Media Project (www.mediaandwomen.org).

• Missing inaction: the Bush administration continues to engage in a pattern of omission, distortion, and spin when it comes to information about women and girls. (Is anyone surprised?) Data on the Department of Labor website has gone missing and the FDA continues to block approval of Emergency Contraception despite research findings that support its use.
  
• Buddy can you spare a dime: Women earn only 77 cents to every dollar earned by men. (Former MA democratic Lt. Gov. Evelyn Murphy is doin great things to shake this up…check out www.womenaregettingeven.org) Are 1 million women against WalMart be hallucinating? I doubt it!
  
• It's not rocket science: Despite substantial gains in the number of women pursuing graduate degrees in the sciences, women are still massively underrepresented. Women currently earn only 20% of all PhDs in computer science, less than 27% in physics, and only 17% in engineering.
  
• Ivy league discrimination: There are too few female tenured professors. Despite the fact that women have been at least half of all college undergraduates since 1978, women represent only 36% of all tenured faculty nationwide, and only 13% of doctoral granting universities boast women presidents.
  
• A seat at the table: Women are underrepresented in corporate leadership. Women have made up more than 40% of the workforce since 1977, and are currently almost 50%, yet only 9 women are CEOs of Fortune 500 companies.
  
• Courting discrimination: Too few women lawyers make partner. Women have been 40% of all law school students since 1995, and over half since 2001, but are only 15% of partners in law firms nationwide.
  
• And that's the way it is: Men dominate the airwaves, music industry, and film industry. Women comprise only 11% of the Sunday morning political talk show experts. No major record label is headed by a woman. Most major film studios are headed by men, and nine out of ten music videos are produced by men. Women direct only 5 - 7 % of major Hollywood films.
  
• Absolute poverty: Women constitute about 70% of the world’s absolute poor – those living on less than a dollar a day. In the United States in 2004, there were 20.1 million women living below the poverty level. Worldwide, women’s access to resources and education still lags behind men and boys.
  
• SOLD: Estimates range from 800,000 to nearly 4 million people trafficked (bought and sold as property) every year. The majority are women and girls.

You know my mantra ... don't agonize, organize!