Spillar, Kathy

Metadata

Abstract

An oral history with Kathy Spillar and Peg Yorkin for the Women, Politics, and Activism Since Suffrage Project. This interview discusses Spillar and Yorkin’s role in establishing the Feminist Majority Foundation (FMF) and their opinions on socially-relevant issues. Specifically, this interview covers how the Feminist Majority Foundation formed in the early 1980s; how they were different from the National Organization for Women (NOW), but similar in wanting growth and progress for women; strategic establishment of different office locations; settling on the name Feminist Majority Foundation; early goals of the organization, particularly the feminization of power and how to get more women into elected office; the defense of reproductive clinics; combating the blockades of Operation Rescue; the assassination of Dr. George Tiller; how FMF produced groundbreaking television segments on abortion; their attempts to demystify early abortion; erecting a temporary memorial in Washington DC for women who died from back alley abortions; and their role in bringing RU-486 to the United States and pressuring the FDA for approval.

Metadata

Abstract

An oral history with Kathy Spillar for the Women, Politics, and Activism Since Suffrage Project. This interview discusses Spillar’s role in establishing the Feminist Majority Foundation (FMF) and her opinions on socially-relevant issues. Specifically, this interview covers how the Feminist Majority Foundation formed in the early 1980s; how they were different from the National Organization for Women (NOW), but similar in wanting growth and progress for women; strategic establishment of different office locations; settling on the name Feminist Majority Foundation; early goals of the organization, particularly the feminization of power and how to get more women into elected office; the defense of reproductive clinics; combating the blockades of Operation Rescue; the assassination of Dr. George Tiller; how FMF produced groundbreaking television segments on abortion; their attempts to demystify early abortion; erecting a temporary memorial in Washington DC for women who died from back alley abortions; and their role in bringing RU-486 to the United States and pressuring the FDA for approval.

Metadata

Abstract

An oral history with Kathy Spillar for the Women, Politics, and Activism Since Suffrage Project. This interview discusses Spillar’s social and political activism as a champion for women’s rights and cofounder of the Feminist Majority Foundation (FMF). Specifically, this interview discusses the Feminist Majority Foundation’s feminization of power campaign, including a research trip to Europe where they learned strategies from women leaders who had made significant strides in politics; attempts to achieve gender balance in California legislatures; the power and effectiveness of organizing feminists on college campuses, particularly in the early 1990s; putting on their first feminist expo in 1996; strategies and resources involved in campus organizing; the advent of the Internet and how the Feminist Majority Foundation was quick to transition into digital media; Proposition 209 (California Civil Rights Initiative) to end Affirmative Action; how FMF acquired Ms. Magazine from Gloria Steinem, and how Spillar became its executive editor; how the magazine raises awareness for a wide spectrum of women’s issues; how women are still under attack, especially in the era of Trump; why there are still so few women in elected office; and finally, what Hillary Clinton’s victory would have meant for women, and the factors behind her loss.

Metadata

Abstract

An oral history with Kathy Spillar for the Women, Politics, and Activism Since Suffrage Project. This interview discusses Spillar’s social and political activism as a champion for women’s rights and cofounder of the Feminist Majority Foundation (FMF). Specifically, this interview discusses FMF’s massive campaign to stop gender apartheid in Afghanistan, including protesting corporate oil interests, meeting with politicians, (including presidents Clinton and W. Bush) and gaining grassroots support from members of the Hollywood community (including Mavis Leno and columnist Dear Abby); discusses Dolores Huerta’s integral involvement with FMF; shares insight on the differences in how women and men lead; talks about challenges women face when they run for office, mainly resources and incumbency; reflects on the impact Hillary Clinton’s presidential nomination would have had on women in politics; remembers Election Night 2016 and the effect of Clinton’s loss; recalls organizing the subsequent Women’s March of 2017; shares current priorities for FMF in the age of Trump, including the critical fight to maintain women’s reproductive rights; speaks about the impact of the Me Too Movement, and compares it to Anita Hill; provides advice for women wanting to get involved, and the effectiveness of women “flooding the ticket;” shares insight into the resistance element of activism currently; and finally, looks back on her greatest achievements and her thirty years working at FMF.