National Women's Conference preview

MPR reporters Claudia Hampston, Kate Williams, and Janet Carter preview the concerns and issues that Minnesota representatives will take to the National Women's Conference in Houston, Texas.

Includes interviews and commentary discussing topics of discrimination, race, sexism, rural women, feminism, abortion, as well as the debate on delegate selection.

In the 1950s many American women spent their only nights away from home and family in the hospital having another baby just a decade ago. A woman might have left for a few days to visit her sister in the next eight or ten to class reunions, but only after anxious preparation assuring that no member of the family would be inconvenienced this week thousands of women are taking off for a destination that once would have been impossible to imagine. They're headed for Houston and the National Women's Conference.Lookout Houston, here we come. I'm going to Houston Houston Houston. I'm going to Houston. I'm going to Houston Houston to Houston. I'm going to hear and I'm going to Houston to Houston. I'm glad to hear send it to Euston. I'm going to Houston Houston Houston. I'm going to Houston to Houston. I'm looking forward to going to Houston.I'm Claudia hampsten and I'm Kate Williams the Resurgence of activism on behalf of women's rights that came in the wake of the civil rights movement and the sixties search for new forms of Consciousness has already influenced the course of history. The international women's here observance in 1975. It's Mexico City Gathering that year and the subsequent World plan of action for the next 10 years made the point that the struggle was Global and got to the business of tackling the problems in the United States Public Law, 94 - 167 recognize the value of the y, w y activities stating that the bicentennial what's an appropriate time for the country to recognize women's contributions. It mandated meetings of women in the individual states to be capped by a National Women's Conference.Think about it try to imagine any other ear off when such a law could have been written much less past such an act of Congress was in itself historic the intent of Congress began to be realized last summer as women's meetings were held in the various States though. It is doubtful. The legislators could have predicted the drama that surrounded those Gatherings across the country and here in Minnesota on the campus of Saint Cloud State University women confronted the fact that the differences between them were painful and deep keynote speaker Elizabeth Duncan Koontz direct location.It's unusual. It's unusual because For the First Time in our history women have had the initial backing of the Congress of the United States. To provide the funds that will allow us to cross organizational lines age lines raised lines religion lines. Geographic lines Name it. This money has made it possible. It has not concluded. But it will happen only you the women of this state may make that conclusion most of the women. They're admitted that for them biology had significantly influence Destiny and that fact gave them a lot to talk about and much work to do if maybe you and I can agree. But I don't have a right to impose my prejudices on you. And you don't have a right to impose yours on me. But maybe we do have a right to share our thinking with each other. That we can in some instances. Decide on a way of continuing our dialogue. So that we don't close the doors to each other. Maybe we can come to some consensus on some directions for action. Because if we don't give the direction others will and we all may have to suffer the consequences Gretchen quarter is an assistant professor of History coordinator of women's studies at st. Olaf College. She served on the planning committee for the state meeting in St. Cloud. I think all of us know that the Houston meeting is going to be very much a political convention. It's not going to be a love Feast any more than political conventions are even when it's a Convention of one-party somehow people manage to disagree and I think we're going to see a lot of disagreements at Houston. What I'm hoping is that that those disagreements will Mark will be temperate enough will demonstrate that people are very different views can come together and talk reasonably about their differences. I think one of the problems About the Houston meeting and about the whole Federal legislation that set up that meeting in the statements. Is this that on the one hand these meetings are supposed to be to promote women's equality and that's a feminist purpose and on the other hand. There is a sort of broad educational purpose. We want all women to come together and discuss their common concerns that we really have two things going at the same time. We saw that at Saint Cloud. I think we had the the kind of educational part of the meeting we had something like 200 workshops on all kinds of issues information and so on a concern to women we also because we were electing delegates. We had a political convention going on and the two things were very different as we know. What what was news was the political convention and well even beyond that. What was news was The disagreements that women had particularly over the most Lively issues and emotionally Laden issues today abortion birth control. I don't mean to put the whole burden of proof of my complaint app on the media because I think some of us in the women's movement have also perhaps exaggerated some of the conflict producing circumstance. For example one here's a great deal about the possibilities of a right-wing a kind of right-wing conspiracy that's supposed to happen at Houston that the Nazis in the Ku Klux Klan and the Mormon Elders have somehow formed an Unholy Alliance and duped women into going to Houston and standing up for home and motherhood. Well, I think there are a great many women who don't need the Nazi party or the Ku Klux Klan to make them fearful of the women's movement. And that is what they are. They are fearful of the women's movement. I frequently recall with pleasure. Rosalie walls remarks at the Saint Cloud conference room TV wall who is now the first woman member of the state supreme court in Minnesota, and she said men are not the enemy. Men are our brothers our fathers our husband's our son our friends. The enemy is fear. Beer that by being all of what we are by realizing our full potential that we will somehow jeopardize what little security we've obtained for ourselves and our children. Well firme hold some women's aspirations in check. It can mobilize others a successful conference in Houston can mean a national effort to attack some of the fears that have been plaguing women for Generations. Educational and institutional barriers practices which perpetuates sexism and racism not only in the workplace but in our schools and in our communities all educational facilities open women equal equal access to education do scholarships and grants illiteracy is greatest among women and girls special programs for girls who left school to early if nobody was going to give me the first job. Well, that's the way women get their Catch 22. We call it institutionalized sexism. Because this system has not accommodated placing women in the pipelines so that they get the training as interns as those on-the-job Learners and yet we expect them to have the same kind of equipment experience and know-how as those who've been allowed in Lake Berryessa the battered women really right. Now, there isn't any place for them to go all the way the police treat them and how women themselves are afraid to turn in their husbands because they have no place to go to have no one to take care of them and they have to think of their children and themselves that they can't support them two women who don't know that in spite of the law. 10 women who work in maintenance? I'm not paid the same as men who work in maintenance. I've even had women to tell me. Well, I don't think that they are to get paid the same because men have to do more of the hardware and then when I ask them what word is if they have to tend to the furnace and I say yeah and I can go down into that furnace or somebody will teach me how to read that neither our society still imposes a doctrine of inequality in our mind opening up all professions two women equal a discriminatory of Employment Practices as partners in every culture women in rural areas. The Woman's Work in the home must be value that I have to let it go barriers women still have a long struggle. I had to attain an equal voice in public affairs all kinds of remanence of legal discrimination. Is important for all of equal ability to get credit cards welfare recipients poor women kind of issue child care services child attitudes and barriers maternity leave. There's one commercial that I think about when someone Tell me about progress for women in the cigarette commercial. You've come a long way baby. And I think we have not come a long way and we're not babies. And of all the issues feminist will wrestle to promote in Houston the most insistent burning vital one for the survival of the cause is the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment Gloria Steinem address that matter in a recent talk in the Twin Cities. Of course, I understand that. We are not necessarily considered a really big priority buy some pho Who shall be nameless? I mean a big priority like the Panama Canal? If only we could raise women to the level of the Panama Canal and then ask. We are certainly not at the level of the energy crisis even although it seems to me that we represent a remedy to an extreme energy crisis in this country, which is the result of having chosen our leadership by eliminating all the women first of every race and then all the minority men and then everybody who hasn't been able to go out and purchase a college degree. We did this mathematically wants in the magazine. We figured out that we are now choosing our government and business leadership from 4% of the country at most no wonder we are in such trouble desperate for its talent to come to the top and without the talent and the energy of 50% of the population is just not going to happen. Certainly that is at least as important as the energy crisis. There are some perfectly rational arguments against the Equal Rights Amendment and they are generally made they are generally there to they fall into two groups and sometimes they are made by the same person. The first argument is that the Equal Rights Amendment will cause the integration of bathrooms for swimming out of the home and to the battlefield and generally destroy western civilization and the family as we know it. The second argument is that we don't need it because we already have all those things. Anyway, we already have all the legislation we either it will do we can't have it because it will destroy Western Civilization or from the very same people. We don't need it because we already have all this legislation. Anyway. Logic is not the strong point of our opposition. I'm afraid that we were somewhat naive even those of us who have been involved in many other political struggles because we thought that if we got to the place where a majority of Americans supported the Equal Rights Amendment, we would have it ratified and that has not been true. We have only to look at any state. Look at Florida where the week before it was defeated. All the public opinion polls showed the citizens of Florida to be 3 to 1 in favor of Equal Rights Amendment and it was defeated. Anyway, why was it defeated because there were two committee chairs at stake. There were some importance of political futures of the three or four people who were the swing votes. There was one man who is reputed to have been let off and ethics charge of providing that he vote against the Equal Rights Amendment. It was some very heavy internal political wheeling and dealing by the conservative forces, which she had we have finally begun to understand often in States control those legislators. We have had some very bitter and sober and lessons and we have come to understand where the power is where the control is and how badly we need. Political experts people who really understand how the system works. In fact, we met and some cases have to elect people who are so devoted to democracy that if voting the majority is political suicide in their state they're willing to be one term legislators. We may have to do that because the pressure is against this change and this sweetly reasonable simple logical reform. It's so logical in the Equal Rights Amendment. I think part of the reason that we perhaps did not work forcefully enough in the beginning is because we couldn't believe it would be defeated. It is simple Justice. But we are not radicals. The problem is that the system is radically wrong and the Equal Rights Amendment is in fact. It really is a commitment to equality that is going long-term to cause a considerable redistribution of the wealth. And that has a lot to do with its opposition. It is a part of a much larger struggle, of course, not just in this country, but in the whole world a struggle, which is the biggest and the deepest and the most important struggle in every country now, which is that struggle to allow human Futures to exist and be free of the labels of sex and a brace all the anti-colonial struggles all the struggles for Independence. All the feminine struggles around the world are all part of this larger fight for individual rights and the Equal Rights Amendment is part of that, too. But this is our battle and unless we Elevate this at least to the level of the Panama Canal. At least to the level of oil depletion allowances in Energy prices. If we are if we cannot get ourselves in our party and our state legislators to elevate this to the at least that level we cannot win and if we do not win, I suggest you something else is going to happen. We are going to see that for the first time in the history of the country of the majority of Americans will not vote. We are very close to that at this moment. Women are one of the few Insurgent groups with Hope and Faith in the system trying to make the system work as we were told that it should and then it could but if we sink back because we have lost faith that any social change can be made through the system. It really will be the turning point and it really will be a downhill slide. It is not the Equal Rights Amendment. That is the problem here. It is our Democratic process. Carol Flynn and Sue Rock Me are delegates to the National Women's Conference. Carol is a labor union woman Sue who co-chairs the Minnesota delegation is a politician and professional volunteer Claudia talk with him about the agenda for the Houston meeting. She'll become full and equal Partners in the society economically educationally in terms of health care terms of any opportunity. Whatever is available shall be determined according to individual abilities and not according to sex and that's my summer. I guess it where it is. And of course also reflects Congress is intent when I created that used to meeting on the state meeting was to find out where we were and how far we still had to go with what still to do until the car reflects on what we shall do to continue to wage the war against the inequalities that exist. And there was no intent is Arie that legislation to talk of turning back or standing still but Congress was asking what shall we do now women tell us what we should do next to say that we do accomplish the task of making equal. Full Partners the winner of the United States looking for a visible kinds of things one of the final proposals is that of a cabinet-level womens department and that maybe the visible if we have a you know, a United kind of meeting and and it's agreed that this is it an appropriate vehicle. I guess I think they might do something like that. My other gut feeling is at the other things before that might be a lot more important. But again if we're looking for your what's going to be the outcome, that's the kind of thing that one could identify as a as a check post were created perhaps if that definition job description it might assist us in doing something about inheritance laws Social Security some of the other economic issues that seem to have a little difficult perhaps we could help. I will look for any Source within the system that can assist us in fact that system. Lorea denies Scott is Sue Rockne's co-equal. She is in urban community coordinator in St. Paul with particular interest in adequate childcare and the problems of women of color. She believes that last Summer's meeting in St. Cloud had some value even and it's controversy Kate Williams talk with her. I think if the meeting didn't accomplish anything other than getting women together. And allowing a mechanism for them to began to openly discuss concerns and problems and issues which affected them that that was important as far as I was concerned there was controversy and in the meeting but I think that's good too because that's part of the real world and I guess I was pleased because it was the first time women of color. IEC Hispanic black American Indian and Asian had ever coalesce together and United and trying to address issues which pertain to women of color. There are a number of important issues that will be addressed as a conference. I specifically concerned about childcare. I think that if women are to become actively involved in the workforce that there need to be adequate child care to ensure that their children are getting the same quality of services that they would get if their mothers were at home or the father's word, huh. I'm also concerned about equity and employment. I think that before women can be completely equal in terms of politics and social issues that they really will have to be come equal economically because as we know our system is becoming a system where to be elected into a political seat. Do you have to have Financial backing and I think women have got to realize that another thing that I very much concerned about is that all the issues that are addressed in Houston. have specific emphasis on women of color because there is a double jeopardy when you're a woman of color you have the Bernal Sexism and racism and as you know in terms of employment the standing is that white man on top black man, come second and turns of employment white women 3rd and women of color last. So we we have a lot of work to do Mormon of color left the st. Cloud meeting someone on satisfied with what happened. Why what would an satisfied about I think everybody left unsatisfied just as they left satisfied. I think that perhaps the dissatisfaction with women of color. Was probably that. It took some educating on our parts. To help people become aware of some particular concerns that we had and even though and going to the conference. I don't think most women considered racism as an issue in regard to sexism and actually is because it's difficult for us as a color. To fight to eliminate sexism when we would have to fight racism alone. And if we are really talking about Sisterhood, then that also means helping us fight this other problem that we have and white women are in a position to do that. How do you feel about the progress of women over the last couple of years? I think the last couple of years have been and Awakening process for women. And also I think we may not have made as many political games if we as we have in the past 5 years, I do think that we have publicize the plight of women. and I think for that reason we can still say that we're progressing in terms of the women in Minnesota. I think that women have more of an opportunity here to get involved in the political process because we have a governor who says that he is ready and willing to appoint more women to positions of power. We have a Secretary of State who is woman. And we have a judge who was recently appointed which is another position which we can definitely use in terms of making laws more Equitable to women. So I guess I'm hopeful that things will improve but I'm relatively pleased with the progress that has happened over the last 2 years, but it's still not enough. What do you think women getting more politically involved and becoming a more solid group that's going to do to the country. I think the conference will Hopefully give people some female perspective. The women's movement is not intended to usurp. The male power is simply to share in that I consider sexism humanism. I consider racism a humanism issue. I think that whenever you have the power other country concentrated in the hands of one sex that you will never have the overall perspective of what makes up our population and I think that's that is what the women's movement is all about and hopefully Getting more involved in this will give women a means of learning some of the political tools at man of already learned. I think women getting politically involved in this movement will help ensure that they will feel more comfortable and getting involved in politics on other levels whether the local state or national I think women getting involved politically in this movement will help man to realize that we are concerned. We do want to say and how our lives are run men determine. Basically what the salary is it going to be men determine basically what the laws are going to be men determine basically how women should control their bodies and I think when women get more politically involved we then we'll have an equal say and how our lives are run. Another group, which was a significant minority in St. Cloud and will likely prove to be equally significant at the National Women's Conference is represented by delegate to Houston Betty hilimire hilimire lives in rural. Olivia is firmly anti-abortion and though she was on the planning committee for the Minnesota meeting. She was made of Houston delegate through Extraordinary Measures. National Commissioners elected selected me as a pro-life people elected to run 1% of women are pro-life. and as well, as long as no one was elected wife or selected and we're really were not to well-represented either because over half the state has real women to so that was another brownie Point tell me what are some of the special problems of rural women. Well, I think one of one of the worst problems they were faced with right now is not. I think possibly I would say that the sort of put down that we get from the people serving people as to how well-educated we are and how much we know about the issues. I had a real strong feeling at the Minnesota state don't like the real women were not as well-informed as they should have been and I thought that they were playing well and they were very unsophisticated in the art of political maneuvering. Why do you think no pro-life or was nominated as a delegate about electing someone or selecting someone even what do you feel about the outcome of that Saint Cloud meeting? I know several women win. Working on the with workshops and putting it all together and it was so much to offer and when the women got there they were so uptight about what it happened that they didn't take advantage of the beautiful things that were there. How do you think that's going to affect Houston bathroom National Convention in San Antonio and the backlash from the iwa meetings all over the United States is unbelievable. What happened to Minnesota happened across the United States own any morsel? In some states actually we had less confrontation and they had him most days. I'm just going really really dreading it and I think a lot of our Minnesota Minnesota delegation is going with anti-catholic. Mega trees with sister is me and little what kinds of deep-seated biases. I'm not going to Houston with any of those kinds of feelings are by I'm going with completely open and praying and my whole organization is going to be praying for the success of Houston the whole time we're down there because you know, we women have got to get her act together, you know, if we can agree how do we expect to get any kind of cooperation from government or anybody else? But the truth is women can't simply agree indeed. They have many good reasons. Why not? Give me a ride from someone else ideas and lesbian rights. I can find me identify with the black people of our land and see how they have felt for years and years and years. We just had a small taste of it now the last few weeks. I feel bad that there are people walking around here with pink buttons and yellow rectangles for me and immediate I barrier as I woke up to each other. We did not have a single man. Here are none schedule for tomorrow that represents the America adult Millet soda Americans told me I'm sad and angry and already mixed up. I don't know what I think of politics politics polarized. What do you mean dominated by the whites so that the minorities are third world people were totally left out. What's very little voice very little consideration given to them became more of a pro-abortion are anti-abortion them a real conference to discuss issues pertaining to everybody. They said no we are not letting the other side be heard. I was told I had the wrong attitude the right attitude was pro-choice. It was not conciliation. I can't say they're all socialist or Rosemary ruether tonight where she ran down the free enterprise system the capitalist Society. She slammed Anita Bryant she slammed the door and I think old Minnesota women who cheated not necessarily just the particular groups that were deliberately excluded but also the fact the other women who came here one part of all the infighting between pro-life groups and have fun playing cards for being left out, but the window came here thinking that they were going to hear a fair representation of all ideas Mildred Jefferson was available tonight. She was not allowed to go on to the platform at all. Any Workshop or any speaker had to be there was a lot of paperwork involved. This kind of things credentials are fine, but they had a system where we first of all if there were someone out of state so they had to be really worked with she understands from Boston and she should what you should have done. It was excellent idea. But what you should have done is brought her here to conduct a workshop van also, We are one we asked I don't know about the types. I don't know about that. But the general feeling in chest discussion being one of the people just wandering around here. We felt that it would have been fine to hear her. But at the last minute they have her walk in while we were boating and ask to speak was just in tirely on order for who represented a point of view that you agree with was allowed to know that I know I know I know her I'm in her legislative district. You don't know where I am here by boycotting entire conference and historian Gretchen kreutter had these Reflections and I think that that's absolutely right and that there are a lot of women who have who are going to Hughes Conservative women who do not believe in women's equality not because they are evil or because they are the unwitting tools of evil men. But because they have some real fear is that that they're special what they see is their special position is going to be taken away from them if they if they support women's equality if the Equal Rights Amendment is passed and someone but no matter how different their perceptions on the meeting and events surrounding it there seems to be General agreement among participants that the news coverage of the Minnesota women's meeting. God was not very good some believe it was awful. One of the one of the interesting things that interesting conversations. I had it at st. Cloud was with a reporter from I think one of the Twin Cities newspapers and several of us were complaining that She had reported only a very was disagreement that have gone out in one of the workshops. That was what her whole article on the st. Cloud meeting consisted of and she said that was my assignment my assignment from my editor was go to St. Cloud and cover the country the abortion controversy. And that was what was news and she said I don't do that that then I don't I don't keep my job and I that's that's perfectly understandable. We all understand that that what is news is the is the most vigorous especially for television show that the more motion there is no better you better news. It is in the more it's worth covering. So if you got to March or if you got a lot of people waving their hands in the air, then that's much better news than people sitting around a table talking but I think beside beyond that there is that there's a question of the valuation that we put on that disagreement and I and I do think we have a double standard it work. Hear in the media do in their judgment of these kinds of disagreements and it missed very relevant significant hearts of the conference. And that was bothersome to me the diversity of the women there how they were bringing such exciting individual kinds of stories to that conference that that didn't get covered the fact that they were 4500 women together in one place with a smorgasbord of 135, workshops and said that was dealing with exciting issues and people were giving and taking at those workshops and that abortion was an issue but it wasn't the only issue that was going on up there. It was the end of the same Cloud meeting what happened to whom and why that stimulated most of the criticism of news coverage that the meeting did not end in unanimity. Is true but Joan growe who co-chaired the meeting Coordinating Committee says that there was no attempt to make resolutions adopted in an ad hoc session following the walk out of women of color and anti-abortion forces appear to have been regular convention business. She told Kate Williams what happened on that early June Sunday in St. Cloud on Sunday, and there was a call for a quorum. It was determined. There was no coram-selden Minnesota women's meeting was officially adjourned there were many women there who wanted to continue as an ad hoc group to discuss various resolutions that had come out of the workshops. There was General agreement to continue as an ad hoc committee. It was the charge of the Coordinating Committee to send a report to Washington after a meeting. We had to report on such things as who would who were the delegates were what resolutions were passed how many people attended Ash? Balance sheet as to how the funds were used in a general report about the meeting. There was a suit filed that said that the activities that took place on Sunday should not be said onto Washington because they were not a part of the official action there had never been any intention to send the actions of Sunday onto Washington because everyone was aware that that was simply an ad hoc group. So the activities that took place up until the meeting was adjourned. We're sand onto Washington. So the suit was just dropped the Minnesota delegation expects to be a strong force the women have school themselves and each other and political preparedness now, they're waiting to see what happens Houston mean in Practical terms. Do you think it portends real change in this Society? This being the first time since 1848 that there has been a meeting of women in the United States to do. Their own planning if it goes well and reasonably and people during a majority opinion on what plan of action should be submitted to Congress. It's another step another building block that says here we are. This is where we need to go and this is how we do it. I would actually turns out with what kinds of results we come out with we can get to protect but if that if it would goes well I see it definitely is part of the history that perhaps our grandchildren will look back and say it happened. And this was one of the reasons that it did happen is the Congressional intent that some papers will come out of this conference and implementation will begin and end that it and it's some very visible things will occur by the end of the decade that Carol I don't know what you're feeling is I don't feel that they were that specific they were looking for implementation not necessarily with a time frame they are asking whether or not we wish to have this kind of a meeting reconvene at a time has five years away. I were to decide that but I think they also feel that some things have been done some implementation is underway. It is not been if we're not starting from zero, but they are looking for what we should do further. I think when you see more people taking part in government and in policy-setting whether it's at the local the state of the national level, I think that speaks well for that country or state we have problems to solve and I don't think anyone will disagree with that statement and it seems to me if we really examine those crucial problem that we're going to face in the next few years that we have to be aware of the fact that we're going to need all our resources that we have to even suggest. Solutions and I believe that the most important resource we have is our human resource and I think we have to remember that over half of the human resources in this country are women so that if we don't use the talent and the ability and the expertise and the concern of all of the population, I think that we're only going to lose out as a people the president and the Congress have 90 days in which act upon the resolutions which we send to them. I would hope that after the meeting number one that you full rights amendment is passed. I know that some women are fearful of that happening with the Equal Rights Amendment is not to take away rights is to give right. I would hope that women are viewed in a different light. I think that women basically are still looked upon as sex objects and some choose to be so but I do not feel that that should be the overall opinion and I think it basically is I would hope that this would be an educational process for women themselves. If they choose not to become involved Beyond this conference. That's okay. This is an historic event, and I would hope that this conference could be a consciousness-raising for for all people and lastly I would hope that we can begin to Look at a person with a different gender and A different race as having. Some of the same concerns as men do I do not see the women's movement as having so many different concerns as men. I would hope that the conference will educate man to realizing. that women simply want an equal say in how their lives are run and that maybe a very ambitious statement, but I am an eternal optimist and I'm I'm pretty hopeful that those kinds of things might happen not over a short. Of time, but over there the long run if Everything that happens is bad news, if they're a lot of confrontations and all that we get bad, press Corps suppressants and not going to be good. No matter what they're not really but it's going to be it's going to be conscious raising good long-term effects. People who really never realized it was that important are going to become more politically active and you know, maybe even go to links to become articulate enough so they can get up on your feet and say hey, I don't like that or yes, I like that or how come this is. But Houston has meaning women know on another level to Minnesota poet meridel Le Sueur suggest the deeper the spiritual significance in this reading. We are the vine cat stuck to the ground spilled. We are great Greenery of seeds Mashburn. We are guaranteed flight of we are faced out of bone years of Labour been the bone and back down the route of Conquest. Our bodies received the inside receive a thousand blows F's of ovum and child Meadows of dead and ruined women. There is no abstract death or deaths at a distance our bodies extend into the body of all every moment is significant in our solidarity. Eyes of the boots on your throat is my own I saw the guns pointed at us. He was the gun was used on my sister women of the earth day of the week of the daring Us Down In Too Deep to blow up word from the dark from the Moon from the abyss of blood from the injured scream From Below. We glow and Rise singing I saw the women of the Earth Rising on Horizons of nitrogen. I saw the women of the earth coming toward each other with praise and he without reservations of space shining and a like in solidarity transforming the wound into bread and children in a new abundance a global summer tall and crying out in songs. We arise in Max Meadows. We will run to the living Hills without seed we will redeem all hostages Cebu of life. We will light singing across of seize the residence of the song of women lifted green alive in the solidarity of the, you know, the love I'm covering the illumined fruit the frying pan in the size of gold and bees we bring to you of Fire. We pledge to you I'll fight against the Predators we come with thunder lightning on our skin roaring Rouge singing. I was just singing Carissa's of millions singing. If women can get past the limitations of status race religion and geography they will find the spiritual bond that links them together as sisters. That's the potential of Houston. I'm Claudia capstan, and I'm Kate Williams program production by Claudia hamston, Kate Williams and Janet Carter and Technical Direction by Janet Carter. marching onward theme from the Scott Joplin Opera treemonisha

Transcripts

text | pdf |

CLAUDIA HAMPSTON: In the 1950s, many American women spent their only nights away from home and family in the hospital having another baby.

KATE WILLIAMS: Just a decade ago, a woman might have left for a few days to visit her sister in the next state or attend a class reunion, but only after anxious preparation, assuring that no member of the family would be inconvenienced.

CLAUDIA HAMPSTON: This week, thousands of women are taking off for a destination that once would have been impossible to imagine. They're headed for Houston and the National Women's Conference.

[CHORAL MUSIC] Marching to that lovely tune

Marching onward

Happy as--

SPEAKER: Look out, Houston.

SPEAKER: Here we come.