Kim Fallon: Grateful for feminist leaders, both in the past and present

To The Daily Sun,

It was very disheartening to read Marie Bradley’s letter on March 19 where she criticized “radical feminists” from the '60s and '70s who “convinced many young women that they were victims of inequality because they lived in a male-dominated society.” I didn’t need radical feminists to tell me that girls in that time period were being shortchanged. Title IX, which ensured equal opportunity in academics and athletics, passed in 1972 but wasn’t implemented for years.

In my junior high school, the boys had soccer, basketball and baseball and Little League in the summer. No sports for girls except for 10 spots on the cheerleading squad. For gym class, the girls had a substitute teacher with no physical education background. She was trying to strengthen her pelvic muscles after a couple of miscarriages and so all winter long we were forced to arch our backs like cats and do pelvic thrusts along with her to a record that was titled “Exercises for Women Over Thirty.” Meanwhile, the boys were doing gymnastics and playing basketball and other sports with an experienced physical education teacher.

In high school, the girls varsity basketball team got bussed to the junior high to practice in the small multipurpose room and the boys junior high team was bussed to the high school to practice in the gymnasium.

In the '60s and '70s, women were paid a lot less than men for the same job and had limited career opportunities. A woman couldn’t even get a bank loan or a credit card without their husband cosigning. Sexual harassment was not against the law.

I’m extremely grateful to Gloria Steinem and the other feminist leaders who worked to improve the lives of women and girls.

Kim Fallon

Meredith