CWLU Herstory Blog

Historian This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it is writing a biography. No, not of Betty Friedan the author, but of The Feminine Mystique, a book: its history and influence.

Stephanie Coontz needs your help.If you are willing to talk about this, or can direct her to someone else who might, you can send her your memories directly, or you can correspond informally by e-mail, or she can send you a few survey questions, whichever is easiest. Please address correspondence to her at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . And if you have suggestions of other people for her to talk to, all such suggestions would be gratefully received.

She is eager to hear from several different groups of people as described by below:

1. People who read the book when it first came out, or whose mothers or grandmothers read it, and what the impact of that was. Some people have described the impact it had on their own lives; others have described the impact it had on their mothers, or that their mothers’ reactions to it had on them. For many, the effect was truly life-changing. For others, it was frightening or produced deep ambivalence. For still others, it didn't resonate at all. I am interested in hearing all these stories, or if you know people who have such stories, I’d appreciate your putting me in touch with them.
   
   
2. I am also interested in talking to people who read the book some time later, to find out how they came to do so and how it impacted them (or in some cases, disappointed them) then.
   
   
3. I am even interested in talking to people who did not read the book but knew of it, and what their impressions of it were. (I have found a surprising number of women who were young feminists in the 1960s and thought they had read the book, but when they went back to it realized that they had not; it was the title alone that confirmed ideas they had gained elsewhere.)
   

 

WBEZ radio here in Chicago conducted a phone interview with former "Jane" Judith Arcana on the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision. Jane was the nickname for the Abortion Counseling Service of Women's Liberation. Jane performed an estimated 11,000 illegal abortions in Chicago before Roe v. Wade legalized the procedure.

You may listen to the interview below. Judith's portion is preceded by a news story about an anti-abortion march down Chicago's Michigan Ave.

You should also check out Judith's pro-choice blogging feature at Words of Choice.

 

On the anniversary of Roe v.Wade, the Chicago Tribune ran an article about Gaylon Alcaraz and the Fund. For your convenience we have republished it below.

 

----------------

Roe vs. Wade made abortion legal;

Chicago Abortion Fund helps poor pay for services 35 years after Roe, group uses old spirit to get service for all

By Judy Peres
Tribune reporter
January 21, 2008

The voice on the other end of the phone line was soft but urgent.

"My daughter needs help," the woman said. "She's gotten herself into a situation."

Emelda Ortiz had heard the story before -- many times. Once a week for two hours, Ortiz staffs a hot line for women and girls desperate to terminate unwanted pregnancies but unable to afford the procedure.

Thirty-five years ago Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court said women have a constitutional right to choose abortion. Yet that right is difficult

In September of 2004 I lost a dear friend when Ruth Surgal died suddenly after attending a feminist conference. Ruth had been a leader of the Abortion Counseling Service of Women's Liberation, better known as Jane. You can read more about Jane on this website.

I was asked to speak at Ruth's funeral service, so today I'll share with you what I said on that sad day.

---------------------------------------------------------

I’m Estelle Carol from the CWLU Herstory Project. We are a network of people who are documenting the history of the women’s liberation movement in Chicago, the movement that Ruth Surgal worked so hard to advance. Ruth and I were both members of the Chicago Women’s Liberation Union in the 1970’s. This was a city-wide organization made up of many diverse projects and groups.

We didn’t know each other in those days. In a way, that it is a testament to the size and strength of the women’s liberation movement of that time. There were just too many of us to know one another personally.

Ruth was one of the leaders of the Abortion Counseling Service of Women’s Liberation, better known as “Jane”. At a time before Roe vrs. Wade, when abortion was illegal, Jane performed over 11,000 abortions. Jane became legendary on the streets of Chicago for the quality of it’s care and the dedication of its members.

Do have some cool NOW stories to tell?

Would you like to sweep up the shards from that glass ceiling you broke and tell the world how you did it? How about that time you went to the big feminist demonstration and you were sure that the next day the walls of discrimination would come tumbling down? OK, maybe they just crumbled a little, but it sure felt good didn't it? What was your "Aha!" moment when you realized that being female was more than just sugar and spice and everything nice? How about the box of old leaflets and NOW chapter notes that you just can't throw away, but is starting to smell a little funny in your basement?

The NOW Oral History Project wants you.

UPDATE FRIDAY, February 8, 2008 : A very, very quiet day. Trudy isn't speaking much anymore and ice chip consumption has lessened.

We have sad news about Trudy Pax, one of our CWLU sisters. We received this information from Caring Bridge, which connects critically ill people to their friends, family, and associates around the world.

Several months ago, Trudy was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Almost immediately, Trudy made plans to go to Europe to visit some close friends. Upon her return, she started chemotherapy. Although there is no 'cure' for pancreatic cancer, chemo treatments can help shrink the tumor, which can reduce pain, increase appetite, etc.

Please visit Trudy's own Caring Bridge webpage . You can read her journal, browse photos and leave guestbook tributes.

Trudy has a verse that she likes read to her before she goes to sleep at night.

On January 22, the 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, NARALPro-Choice America is asking pro-choice bloggers to join them for Blog for Choice Day!

Blog for Choice Day provides us with an opportunity to raise the profile of reproductive rights in the blogosphere and the media, while celebrating Roe's 35th anniversary. Plus, it's a great way to let your readers and the mainstream media know that a woman's right to choose is a core progressive value that must be protected.

This year's topic: tell us, and your readers, why it's important to vote pro-choice. For more info, visit the Blog for Choice page.

 

Call for contributions for an edited essay collection on Marjane Satrapi’s works (film, literature, and art).

Satrapi's autobiographical graphic novel, Persepolis, was an instant success in France and the U.S. It has garnered numerous book prizes, and the animated film version was awarded the Grand Prize of the Jury at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. Satrapi's other texts, including children's books, have been translated into numerous languages and published worldwide.

The proposed collection aims to examine Satrapi's works as literature, art, film and cultural phenomena, bringing diverse ideological and theoretical perspectives to bear on the intellectual and political issues that they raise.

Interdisciplinary essays as well as analyses rooted in disciplinary approaches are invited,including but not limited to the following topics:

• interplays of intimate/public politics,
• genre (graphic novel, comedy, film, autobiography, children’s literature, etc.),
• relation of text and graphics,
• representations of East and West,
• teaching approaches,
• audiences (local and global),
• immigration, boundaries, and border crossings (physical, cultural, psychological, and spiritual),
• intersections of gender, sexuality, class, age, and nationality,
• censorship,
• imprisonment, detention, and/or containment,
• Iranian cultures, history, and politics,
• U.S. foreign policies and their affect on Iran,
• Iran’s foreign policies and their local/global effects,
• resistance to and collusion with norms governing micro- and macro- social institutions,
• translation,
• hospitality and food, and
• drug use and addictions.

 

Non-U.S. based scholars are strongly encouraged to submit proposals. Whenever possible, assistance with translation and formatting conventions will be provided.

By August 31, 2008 (or before) submit double-spaced, two-page abstracts to

Some of you may remember when the Herstory Project was contacted about being on the ABC TV show Wife Swap, when moms get to change families. They wanted a "feminist" and we politely ignored them.

Well apparently they found their feminist if the season premiere is any indication. For the terminally curious, you can see a preview here. It's feminist mom vrs. spoiled teenage beauty pageant princess.

Oh joy.

I'm reminded of what Gandhi once said about Western Civilization,"I think it would be a good idea."

Labor singer Anne Feeney would love to finish her new CD "Dump the Bosses Off Your Back", but is still short of $$$. If you can help, send $100 to Anne Feeney, 2240 Milligan Ave, Pittsburgh, PA. She'll put your name on the liner notes as a TY.

Anne will be leading 3 music/history/politics and poetry tours of western Ireland in 2008 and there are still seats available. Check out Anne's website for more trip info as well as news about her life and music. She has some great audio clips for your listening enjoyment.