They were tough. When I was growing up in Baltimore the feminist movement was in full flower. My mother was on board as were many East Coast Kennedyesque women who were willing to march, lay down in the street and do whatever it took to advance women's right. I hung out with a kid named Matt. He was cool. His parents were real hippies. His brother was a hippy. His father had long hair and his mother...well she drove an VW Micro bus, wore her hair down to her waist, wore high boots, long coats, and did not take anything from anyone.
She was the activist mom of the early seventies and had signs in her garage from demonstrations. His mother scared the hell out of me. One time I didn't eat the crusts of my tuna fish sandwich. She turned her dark eyes on me with her peace sign hanging down. Do you know how many kids are starving in China Billy? I did not. Well there are many and they would kill for those crusts. From then on I ate the crusts.
But I think about my mother and Matt's mom and how they took nothing from anyone. And I think about the women's movement today. They will have to get tough because power is not given up easily and they are facing probably the most hostile administration in history to women's rights. It will be a tough fight...but you know what, I still eat my crusts.
