First published in 1985, Vermont Woman was a woman-owned, -produced, and -written publication dedicated to providing a woman’s point of view. Not surprisingly, there were plenty of critics. Frightened, often abusive men and skittish women questioned the timing, its purpose and marketability; worse, they claimed that men and women thought exactly alike on every issue and therefore the very existence of Vermont Woman, which they feared excluded men, would in fact diminish women and polarize the sexes. The implication was that women could not think for themselves, if they thought at all. And further, if they did, then there was something wrong with them, i.e., man hating.

Vermont Woman was launched following a period of societal upheaval after the Vietnam War and civil rights protests and the emergence of what was called the second wave of feminism. By the mid-1980s, the long-entrenched system of patriarchy was on a collision course with the feminist movement, as women were recently liberated by the accessibility of the birth control pill.

Those who were threatened tried to hold on to the status quo. They did everything they could to marginalize the idea of Vermont Woman and its readers, including not advertising themselves or boycotting those that did. (Short-sighted because women were their prime market.) It was standard tactics back then, in 1985, to marginalize women who had the audacity to question and challenge the entrenched patriarchy (at least since biblical times), a system all of us, men and women, had been raised under.

Cloaked as faux exultation, the patriarchy regularly dismissed and patronized women as objects, whose sole existence was to have sex on demand, birth babies, run the household, and support men. And it worked—for centuries. For men, there were clear advantages to making sure women remained dependent and kept in their place: power and economics. Women who were rendered powerless complied. With limited education and job opportunities, options were few. Laws favored men in divorce, domestic violence, inheritance, property ownership, and so on. That was not by chance. It’s no wonder that so many women—conflicted by a tradition of subservience as homemakers, economically dependent on men, and locked into their biological role as baby bearers—buckled under the slightest male criticism.

Patriarchy is a social system in which men hold primary power and predominate in roles of political leadership, moral authority, social privilege, and control of property.

Feminism is a range of social movements, political movements, and ideologies that share a common goal: to define, establish, and achieve the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes.

The 19th Amendment: The Right to Vote 1920

Until the early 1900s, spanning to the mid-to-late 1900s, women were politically, economically, and socially powerless, partly due to limited or no access to educational institutions; literacy was even discouraged. On top of not being allowed to vote, there were laws prohibiting women from owning property or getting bank loans, domestic violence was rarely prosecuted, and divorce and child custody settlements favored men. Plus hundreds of other gender-based restrictions dismissed women as equals. It was not until 1920 that President Woodrow Wilson finally signed the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, guaranteeing women’s right to vote. It was a very big deal. We honor suffragette warriors (starting in 1848) such as Susan B. Anthony, Susan Cady Stanton, Alice Paul, Carrie Chapman Catt, and Jane Adams, some of whom were jailed. The right to vote for women was a critical step that took 80 years to win, but so much more had to change. Women did make slow steady progress with setbacks and resistance every step of the way.

World War II, the Not-So-Fabulous ’50s & the Raging ’60s

Complacency followed WWII when the Rosie-the-Riveter wartime workforce ended, and the men returned. The Rosies were soon back in the kitchens and expected to carry on as before.

Discontent was stifled, with many women during this period sinking into depression and mental illness. It was during the 1960s that women like myself were questioning female role expectations, marching in demonstrations against the horrors of the Vietnam War and the Kennedy and MLK murders and in support of the rise of black pride and the demands for civil rights. Rosa Parks in the ’50s and in the ’60s Angela Davis helped propel the civil rights movement, which later morphed into the feminist movement and later still into same-sex equality. Both these brave women’s shoulders we stand on today.

Don’t Forget: The Pill, 1963

The availability of birth control pills in 1963 finally gave women control over their own reproductive choices for the first time ever. Since the beginning of time, all over the world, women have been powerless to limit unwanted pregnancies, forcing millions of desperate women into the dirty underground world of unsafe abortions. The Pill changed everything, and that too was a fight, this time with the medical community. It was Margaret Sanger, jailed in 1916 for opening the first birth control clinic in the country, who advocated for women’s health and contraception and gave vocal support for widespread access to the Pill. We stand on her shoulders too.

Roe v. Wade, 1973

Roe v. Wade made abortion legal in 1973, but not before the famous Vermont case Jacqueline R was passed first in Vermont, which was the legal precursor to Roe. We have Laura Twitchell and Jackie R. to thank for their courage. We also remember Texas attorney Sarah Ragle Weddington who, representing Roe, brought the case to the US Supreme Court and won.

A Messy Revolution

With every passing decade, women became more strident, brave, and louder, many taking risks most of us could not or were too afraid to try. They spearheaded a societal revolution, blasting away barriers so that coming generations of women would have more equitable roles, fuller lives, and endless choices.

This period was the genesis of and the making of what turned into the most important movement in 100 years, known as the second wave of feminism. Feminism combined with changing economics demanded two-income families for survival. And so by necessity, education and job opportunities opened up for women, but not equal pay, maternity leave, daycare assistance, or shared labor at home. Those came later in the 1990s and 2000s, with more confrontations, including fighting for civil rights for blacks, women, the disabled, and homosexuals.

It wasn’t perfect. Mistakes were made. Leaders were not a cohesive think tank. All women did not walk in lockstep or speak with one voice. A wide net was cast, and still working-class women were underrepresented. It was a messy revolution.

Women Warriors of the ’60s, ’70s, ’80s, ’90s & ’00s

In preparing to publish Vermont Woman, we had help from so many who came before us. We very proudly salute those who were on the front line (there are many more, but we are constrained by space).

Nationally: Activists and authors Betty Friedan, Robin Morgan, Kate Millet, Germaine Greer, Simone de Beauvoir, Mary Daley, Audre Lorde, Maya Angelou, Flo Kennedy, Adrienne Rich, Grace Paley, Rita Mae Brown, Helen Thomas, Jane Fonda, Ellen Degeneres, Katha Pollitt, Molly Ivins, Ann Richards, Celia Richards, Anita Hill, Rosa Parks, Helen Thomas, Billie Jean King, Nancy Pelosi, Sandra Day O’Connor, Sally Ride, Ruth Bader Ginsberg, and Gloria Steinem.

Locally: Vermonters Laura Twitchell, Dr. Judy Tyson, Robin Lloyd, Sandy Baird, Peggy Luhrs, Carol Cohen, Lynn Vera, Deborah Kutzko, Beth Mintz, Dolly Fleming, Sister Elizabeth Candon, Janice Ryan, Sally Ballin, Jane Folta, Lisa Alther, Scottie Ginn, Dr. Patti O’Brien, Priscilla Welch, Sallie Soule, Governor Madeleine Kunin, Glo Daley, Susan Murray, Beth Robinson, Mary Twitchell, Susan Smith, Roz Payne, Martha Abbot and the Redbird Collective, Billi Gosh, Gretchen Morse, Brianne Chase, Patricia Fontaine, Mary Griswold. They and so many more set the table for Vermont Woman.

Unsung Heroines

Unsung, unnamed, and unrecognized women from every country, every town and city, every village from all over the world since the beginning of time have contributed in some way to the long road that has led to where we find ourselves today. This was our time, and together we rose up to get it done: a time of truth-telling and resolve to no longer exist as second-class citizens. From the legalization of the birth control pill and safe access to abortion to the passage of Title 9 (equality in sports) and expanding opportunities in education and jobs, the way has been cleared for women to choose whatever kind of life they want to lead.

We are lucky to have been alive and to be part of and bear witness to this powerful movement.

There is much to do, including, sadly, having to deal with the continuous recycling of the same old issues, such as preserving reproductive rights and countering concerted efforts from the far right and church groups to control women. Ensuring equal pay, access to daycare assistance, paid parental leave, and affordable health care and finding cures for breast cancer and other woman-prone diseases are among the many issues that will have to be fought for by the next generation.

We hope the next generation is up to the challenges ahead, particularly the effects of climate change. Gun violence, racism, and anti-Semitism are all complicated and daunting critical problems. Our concern is that the human race save itself from drowning under mean-spirited dangerously twisted racist, bigoted, stupid demigods like Donald Trump.

Independent media (a pillar in a democracy) has always been under threat, especially now as Trump almost daily trashes the press and journalists he happens to disagree with on any given day. A large poster hanging in the Vermont Woman office speaks for itself: “The power of the press belongs to those who own one.”

To you all of who helped Vermont Woman survive and succeed, including my dearest friends, and to my precious and patient family, Kurt, Susan, and Jan, and to my niece and muse, Elsa, and my nephew, Harrison, all whose emotional sustenance has been my lifeline—your love and support has meant everything to me.

So, as they say on the radio … this is the end of my broadcast day.

I would not have missed it for a trip to the moon.

My personal hope is that another woman is out there who would like to take over Vermont Woman, keeping her alive and thriving for another generation.