OnLine With Zoe

An Iconic Event

There is a very interesting post on Feministing.com asking readers to vote on feminist icons.  And they ask the question, do we even want icons?   Do they serve a purpose in this vast ocean of information we swim through every day?  I sat and really thought about whose picture on the cover of a magazine would instantly relay to me that this is a feminist and a champion of feminism.  From Magdalene to Ginsberg, from Sappho to diFranco, from Gentileschi to Kahlo, Cleopatra to Maloney - I have hundreds in mind whose lives advanced gender equality whether they meant to or not. 

But today I think it is not icons we need but an iconic event.  We need to shift the expectation of inequality; the natural acceptance of less pay, less respect, injustice, poor education, diminishing reproductive freedom, sexism in all its forms.  We need to admit that it is both an impossibility and unreasonable request to put this all on a single human being or even a group of people.  Yes, it can begin with a small group of people but now we are tilting at a tipping point.   

Feminism has reached as far as it can on the shoulders of individuals and now we must, as a collective consciousness, call for all genders, in all its variations of expression, to offer our services to Mother Earth and manifest equality.  Our minds must hold full pictures of the world as we want it to be.  As we travel, work and simply live ~ we must posit equality in each step, each action, each intention. 

You may recall that Gandhi believed that the will of millions of Indians could not be permanently neutralized by 100,000 British soldiers.  His teachings are that when enough injustices had been made visible, imperialism would lose its strangle hold.  As the British oppression became increasing intolerable, Indians' belief shifted, they reclaimed their autonomy in their minds and, ultimately, the British walked out of India.

So let us all agree today ~ enough is enough.  I am going create a world of equality through my will, my mind, my intention.  Breeches will be instantly recognizable because they clash with my direct belief.  Lets start each day expecting justice, holding the intention by saying, "I am grateful that today there will be more justice in the world."      

Nothing's Changed, Actually ~ Tho I had hoped It Would

For many months now, I have been thinking about the Hillary sticker on my car window.  It is as if the longer it would be there, the more assured her presidency.  Do I have to look for a razor blade today?  I suppose.  I am the, THE demographic; a white woman, college graduate, in a nice neighborhood, a reasonable car and almost 60.  In my imagination, people will look and think I am addlepated leaving it on when, in fact, I am resistant and conscious of what might have been. 

And now I am faced with having to make a switch.  I feel like someone is asking me to be straight.  After years as a lesbian and many more identifying as a bi-sexual, how can they be asking me to be straight again?  I am a bigot; I want women to run the world.  Yes, progressive women, to be sure, but women nonetheless.  It was so close, here in the most violent country on earth, where we need it more than ever. 

My personal history was that I awoke to the civil rights movement before the women’s movement.  I am thinking that I am going to have to reach deep into my heart-story and remember who I was in 1968, protesting, marching, booing George Wallace, wearing a Humphrey button, the DNC in Chicago, Kent State, etc.  The Democratic nominee being a Black man would have been revolutionary, exciting and a dream come true.  It would have been before reading Friedan, before De Beauvoir, before Abbott & Love, before Sisterhood Bookstore, before Roe, before my first abortion, before my first lesbian kiss, before joining NOW, before truly understanding what it means that women are not in the US Constitution, before Houston, before Beijing – before I became me really.
 
So I will scrape the Hillary sticker off my Honda.  I will vote for the Democratic nominee and I will get back to work and do what I do everyday; everything and anything I can do to be of service to the American Women’s Movement.   

As I wrote a year ago ~

For me, tomorrow, nothing is going to change.
Tomorrow I will do what I do everyday.

I wake up, I get out of bed and work to advance women.
I do it with my blog
I do it with demonstrations
I do it promoting the ERA
I do it protesting oppression

Tomorrow I will do what I do everyday.

I will buy and read every book I can afford on feminism.
I will crawl the web for every item that is by ~ for or about women.
I will encourage every female to be all she can be and to exceed even her own expectation.

Tomorrow I will do what I do everyday.

Fundamentally, for me, tomorrow nothing is going to change.
Tomorrow I will do what I do everyday.

Information for Non-believers

Just in case you need something to show those people in your life who think we are just complaining for no good reason -

Sexism - shudda been retired by now (NOW).

What a way to start a Monday morning.  Attachment is a struggle, particularly when it is to something so right.  Today I am speaking on Equal Rights again.  I figured by now it would only be for nostaligia - sort of like rolling out the old one to hear good ole stories.  And yet, Ledbetter Fair Pay is stalled in the Senate (What is Feinstien thinking?). 

If you do only one thing - one thing for the ERA - Call 850 488-1450 to clog the office lines of FL House Speaker Rubio's office for THE NEXT 10 DAYS.  HE is the obstacle to ERA now.  SPEAK to or leave a message for ONLY the Speaker OR Bob Ward his Chief of Staff .  SAY: "I am calling to urge the Speaker to put his power and weight behind calendaring the ERA bill in the House right away." We KNOW that he can. He said for TV that he is for equality as he has 2 daughters. He needs to stand up for them now.

Watch this video, if you dare.  Attachment is mine.  I hope it is yours.

My Evening with Candi

I just cannot resist telling  you about my evening at UCLA.   The freeway was shut due to a mudslide and the Bruins were winning a basketball game home court - enough said about my commute.  I was invited to speak at the annual Daisy Day celebration for Women's History Month.  I was scheduled between Japanese Drumming and a women's chorus.  This was not my finest hour.  As Nellie Mckay says, "feminists have a tumor on their funny bone" and I was not able to translate my fire and brimstone delivery about women's lib in that particular moment.  I knew I was out of sync ~ to put it mildly. 

But following all of that was Candis Cayne of ABC's Dirty Sexy Money.  She was spectacular.  In the course of her humor, glamor and ease, she spoke about what baggage came along with beginning to live in a female body as an adult. The story she shared was the thrill of her first cat-calling whistle some strange guy sent her way.  She was happy and it seemed to be fun.   He continued, "hey baby, look over here."  She continued on her path without turning around.  He escalated into aggression and anger - "How about I put my *&^%%$ in your $%^&#!!"  Suddenly, and I mean suddenly, Candi found out what those of us lucky enough to be born with both a female soul and female body knew very early on ~ all that kind of attention ain't any fun. 

When I spoke with her after, I held her hand, wanting to say how sorry I am that she ever had to know (as I would tell her 6 year old niece who just got the news) but all I could say was how proud I am of her and that the transition must have been a lot more difficult than she had let on during her happy and bright presentation. 

Candis will be speaking at the CA NOW State Conference.  I hope you can make it.  And Helen Reddy!  It is going to be a great day - Saturday, April 19 - more on that later. 

I Got Attached & I Blame Dave

I've gone and done something really irritating.  I have gone and gotten all attached to Hillary Clinton being the next President of the United States.  It could be because I spent $48.00 on an Ann Hand rhinestone pin, "Hillary2008," but I really want to blame it on Dave.  I was fairly settled on Edwards until I had dinner with friends and Dave said women will never have full equality in the U.S. until a woman is president.  I dismissed it at the moment and then it started sprouting.  In a few days, it was full grown and now I want nothing less. 

I like O'Bama, though I wish he had closed the deal with the ERA in Illinois while he was there.  He is inspiring and may very well win but then I play out a daydream of his appointing a woman as a running mate and I am mad all over again because it feels like dinner scraps, like left-overs when I could have had the main course. 

So now I am attached.  This activist heart of mine now dreams about possibility.  And what is popping up is so irresistible; women going to Texas, emails from women I admire, amazing sites like Hillary Speaks for Me and Feminists for Clinton and this fantastic video.   

It was easier when I didn't care so much but easy ain't all its cracked up to be.  I am not very good at easy.  As Tina says, "We don't always do things nice and easy."

Love with the Proper Stranger

If you were born before 1956, chances are you know a woman who had an illegal abortion; maybe even a woman who died from a botched abortion.  I do.  And if you were born after 1972 it is just so much nostalgia unless, of course, you live in a state that has no providers, or you have no money, or you have to work, or you can't tell your family, or you are afraid of protesters, or you believe in a god that tracks and punishes such things.  Oh, and then there is Minister Huckabee who wants to lift the US Constitution to "God's standards."  His god really disturbs me.

I have been having this reoccurring daymare (not nightmare) that the Right to Life leaders have decided to infiltrate the US Media.  First they made, Knocked Up, a fun light romantic comedy with a star from Gray's Anatomy.  Recently they made Juno which extols the pivotal insight that Juno's unborn baby has nails.  How many thousands of born children with nails are starving, have HIV and/or are dying.  How many Iraqi's have nails - ah but I digress.

Yesterday I watched, Love with the Proper Stranger (1963).  I saw it first when I was 15.  Natalie Wood married Steve McQueen after hearing bells and banjos and that the rabbit was dead (code for the PG test was positive)  You can bet the Catholic Legion of Decency okay-ed a 15 year old seeing that.  So much fodder to rebel against. 

When does life begin?  I earned a BA and a MA trying to answer that fundamental question.  When does life begin.  Approaching 60, I can say with conviction that life begins with the development of a conscience, with inquiry, with curiosity, with attachment and aversion - not with nails at all. 

Ready for Roe v. Wade?

I have been asked often about posting lately.  I have been posting on a regular basis at California NOW.  Yes, I have seen the irrestible light on fighting the sexism that Hillary is bringing to the surface.

Celebrate 35 years of Reproductive Freedom!

The Circle of Orange.  Jan 22 6:30 P.M.

Park in the public lot on Olive Street and walk to the Cicle together for tne march.  The President of CA NOW will be speaking afterwards at the Rally.  MAKE SIGNS!  BRING SUPPORTERS!  This is the 25th annual demonstration in Orange Country in support of Roe v. Wade.  It will be an exciting night; bring friends, make videos for youtube, Come and show Orange County that we have lots of feminists and care deeply about Reproductive Justice.  Sponsored by Orange County NOW and Long Beach NOW.  See you there!   

Your answer will be my sextant

Over the next 6 weeks, I expect to be sending and posting letters to my supporters, my sister members, my friends.  I have not had a looming deadline in such a long time and there is an escalating sense of urgency, emergency, finality.  Feb 20 will be a new day. filled with new tasks and, yet, I am reminded of my speech from running for office last April, which said,

For me, tomorrow, nothing is going to change.
Tomorrow I will do what I do everyday.
I wake up, I get out of bed and work to advance women.
I do it with my blog.
I do it with demonstrations.
I do it hosting Feminist Cafes.
I do it promoting the ERA.
I do it protesting oppression.
Tomorrow I will do what I do everyday.

A year ago I was invited to a summit, to support and guide a group of servant leaders in designing their intentions; not mine – but theirs.  Out of that meeting the current leadership of CA NOW was called to service.  We shared a vision that we would be of service to the members with our the feet in the field, in service to the activists who work to advance the women and girls of California.  Collectively we support activism, the verb - motion, change, growth.  We have not supported a ladder of authority pointing higher and higher, awarding more and more power with each ascending rung.

The losing slate has not accepted the outcome. They are appealing up the pyramid, bypassing the local remedies and appealing to higher office holders to come and declare the elections illegal removing and replacing the state officers.  And there are things afoot.  As there should be.  A familiar story of  two forms of organizing in a struggle.  The outcome will show itself and there will be fallout as demonstrated by the garden’s seasons. 

What is my role?  What is the right thing to do which is in keeping with my conscience?  Frankly, I don’t lose sleep over such a question, as I might have 30 years ago.  I know the answer -  I ask.  I ask the membership.  I am in their service.  The consistency of conscience is a hard won battle, which slips and slides from time to time, but this is rudimentary for me.   

What do you want?  I will be in service to that answer.  If you want to fight, to go to the mat, to step away, to let it go.  What do you want?  This is in keeping with my form of leadership and this is just another opportunity for me to practice it.  Please, give it some thought and say what you want. 
Your answer will be my sextant.

Tomorrow I will do what I do everyday.
I will buy and read every book I can afford on feminism.
I will crawl the web for every item that is by ~ for or about women.
I will encourage every female to be all she can be and to exceed even her own expectation.
Tomorrow you may decide to get back to the issues of our evolving feminist lives.
But fundamentally, for me, tomorrow nothing is going to change.
Tomorrow I will do what I do everyday.

Celebrate Equality

Over the last thirteen months I have been to an extraordinary number of gala events.  Actually more than I have been to in the previous 58 years.  There is something peculiar about such events and I have really struggled with what it is.  Fundamentally, it may just be answered in the question, “Who are these events for?”

Mostly these events are a meeting place where the workers of the Feminist Waves in the American Women’s Movement meet.  What is repulsive, literally, is that stars of the past dazzle the street activists with no visible shame for the implicit elitism.  Five college students pool their funds to buy gas and drive through Taco Bell to clap and adore sequined speakers on the stage; and what do they learn? Difference.  They learn hierarchy and difference.

Over the last week I have contemplated what would I have done if it was mine to design.  First, the registration table would have been entirely staffed by the most renown people of the event.  Can you even imagine what would be the lasting impact for a 20 year old feminist to slowly spell her name for Gloria Steinem to check off the list?  Or to wait in line to have Peg Yorkin welcoming her to the event?  Consider if a Senator or Congresswoman was standing with clipboard and pen, asking if you need direction?

I would have made two colors of tickets and directed people to sit next to someone with a different color ticket.  Free tickets green and paid tickets blue.  To equally balance feminists to sit side by side; years in the field and experience to share with the one on the right or the left.  And wouldn’t it be great when the 60 year old asks a 20 year old what are HER issues – could it re-enlist her senior sister right back into the street? 

Instead, I was told by a close friend in her early twenties – “look it’s a who’s who of the feminist movement over there” – and all I could think was that she was the legs in the field, the hands of service to those in need, the working feminist and the real who in Feminist Whoville. 

Oh they learned all too well that rich and famous is what is important.  Media and money make the stars.  Not a lesson I want to impart.  Any woman who is in need and calls for help; chances are a college student, maybe an unpaid intern, will answer the phone at NOW, Planned Parenthood or the local shelter.  They are my Who’s Who.  I am honored to know them, work with them, sit with them.  I hope they will remember when they are 60 that 20 year olds will carry on and to teach them equality through their galas.