Fox News
written by Greta Van Susteren, OpEd
Thursday February 11, 2010
Blast from the past? Remember Jane Fonda and Gloria Steinem? What has happened to them? They are now irrelevant because they have wandered from their core purpose to see that women have equal rights and are not demeaned for simply being women. Now - it is only about agreement with them and thus they have completely marginalized themselves. An emailing from them (posted below) has prompted me to discuss this.
Beginning in the 1960's, for Fonda and Steinem, it was about equal rights for all (not just some) women....opening the doors to all women in the workplace and ensuring that all women be treated fairly and equally. This was and is very important to women...all women. In the beginning it was about all women being able to have and voice opinions - not censored by men or even by other women. This was and remains very important to all women.
Unfortunately it has become something different for many of these women's movement old timers. Yes, I am grateful for the path they blazed for me but now they disappoint me because their movement has evolved and now it is about having one opinion - theirs. That is bad - and, frankly, tactically stupid for women. What happened to these women who were trail blazers? Where did the big tent go? Why have they turned on women who have other opinions? They now look small - not smart. And worse? they now try to hurt other women who simply have ideas or opinions different from theirs.
Women should celebrate and defend successes of all women -- not just snipe from the sidelines at those with whom they disagree. That does not mean women should all agree but you know the difference. Women should defend women who are getting trashed for being women and not just express outrage when it is done to a women with whom they agree. You know exactly why many of these women were silent when David Letterman trashed Gov Palin and her kid -- or when Newsweek put Palin in shorts on its cover. They don't like Palin's opinions. Forget the woman thing -- forget that Palin managed to become Governor of the biggest state in the union while these women sit back and attend women's pot luck dinners and trash her to each other. Frankly, I don't agree with Palin on many issues but I do believe she has a right to be treated fairly. And of course many women in the women's movement were mad at me when I said it was bad how Palin was being treated since I walked off their reservation and dared to defend a woman for being demeaned. I stayed the course. If they noticed, I did the same for Secretary Clinton.
I am proud of women's accomplishments -- whether it be Secretary of State Hillary Clinton or Governor Sarah Palin....or yes, even competitors in cable news, Campbell Brown or Rachel Maddow (yes, I confess I love it when Rachel beats the guy who has the show before her!) I don't like it when any one of these women is demeaned. It is wrong.
Below is what prompted this posting...it is what Fonda / Steinem and the Women's Media Center are emailing to women. They encourage women with "diverse backgrounds" to apply -- but not with "diverse opinions." This posting alone would not provoke this blogging - but rather I see it as an opportunity to open the discussion about the women's movement and where it is going (or not going.) I know some women will be unhappy with this posting - but I have stayed the course. I think all women have equal rights - not just those with whom I agree. Every night - for almost 20 years and 8 of them until 11pm - I have been an example for women's rights. I will defend all women being treated unfairly ...why won't they? Why has the goal of these old time leaders slipped from being one directed at making certain women are treated fairly and get equal opportunity to 'does she agree with me or not?"
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