300 Years & Counting 1H KILLS - On The Issues Magazine

There is also talk now of a new"womanism" — a stand, a bridge, arealpolitik of feminism that would allowfor brilliance, excellence andambition, but with a difference. Thisbrand of feminism would exist in a controlled,directed secondary (partnership)form. No longer the little woman behindthe man or the power behind the throne,it is now the big woman next to the man— a radical traditionalism masqueradingas feminism. After all, HillaryClinton was not asked to be Bill Clinton'srunning mate. She remains his bedmateeven as she sits on six corporate boards.But if feminists are to achieve evergreater power — if we are to roll backthe enormous wave of repression, specificallythe potential loss of abortionrights, the "anger out there" has to befar more directed, focused, and on thesurface.Feminists and the feminist movementare society's Accusers, and as such theyare now poised to receive the same minimization,disbelief and directedaggression as any individual womanwho stands up against a powerful man.They are poised in fact to be society'sultimate Bad Girls.Real revolutions, like great socialchanges, don't happenjustbecause GoodGirls get angry. Anger is not enough.Good Girls have to get bad. Bad Girls dosomething. Bad Girls say no to the system,no to the historical definitions offemale and not to the historical oppressionof their class.When Barnard college asked enteringfreshman to list women they most admired,Eleanor Roosevelt was on thetop of their list. Mother Theresa, GoldaMeir and Madonna were also named.Good Girls or Bad? Who's deciding? •who is a Communist and who is not.Consequently, it has been with considerableanxiety and guilt that I havewritten here that my uncle Archie, eventhough he died in 1990, and one aunt,never left the Communist party. Growingup, we were all taught that belief inCommunism and Party membership isa Constitutionally protected right; thatour system isn't worth anything if itonly protects people with safe views.During the McCarthy years, anyonewho "named names" was to us thatlowest form of humanity, a fink. I stillbelieve that. But right up to his death,Archie was a proud and outspoken Communist,and my aunt was too, thoughshe was never a public figure. If Archiedidn't mind talking about it, why shouldI? So why have all these feelings comerushing back, and why doesn't my nauseaabout writing this go away?Like many kids from the left, I have notolerance for the sustained political activismthat was crucial in the lives of mygeneration's parents. But its lessonslive in me. In the broadest terms, it boilsdown to two basic principles. JoshMostel elucidates one of them whenhe speaks of his father's decision not totestify before HUAC. "See, my fatherwas not a Communist Party member,"he says. "But he had to take the Fifthbecause he did not want to inform onanyone. For him being up there beforethe Committee was not even political. Itwas a human gesture. He just couldn'tdo that to another person. I have alwaysloved that about what he did."The other one is well said by JanetAdes, of all people, who, in spite of herbitterness, has found much of value inher left-wing background. "It is a respectfor working people, for their needs,for what they suffer and what they haveaccomplished. They are people whomhistory usually doesn't count, and yetlarge-scale unionization of the Americanworking class is a major achievement.They do count. Egalitarianism ismy heritage, and I wouldn't give it up foranything."Nor would I. It's a heritage to beproud of.•Portions of this article are adapted fromone that appeared in New York Womanmagazine, August 1988.'The Miracle on 57th Street rrTucked away on the 4th floor of an office building on 57th Street in NewYork City is an elegant boutique & bookshop devoted exclusively towomen's sexual health, self-growth and happiness!We offer books on sexuality, relationships, Tantra, Goddess history,women-created erotica, and an exciting collection of romantic and sensualaccessories to enhance self-love and shared-love.Created by women for women and their partners, Eve's Garden is acomfortable space where women can shop in a new-age environment thatnurtures the intimate connection. And that's the miracle!Send $2 for our mail-order catalog* or visit in person and receive one free.Monday thru Saturday 12 Noon to 6:30.119 West 57th St., Suite 420, NY, NY9 - (212) 757-8651 Either way, start creating your own miracle today!^Endorsed by lending sex educators and lliernpists throughout the countryBLACKLIST from pg 21eyed left wingers, he remembers: "Communistsdon't invest in capitalism." TheBrombergs tried to follow it. "My parentswere naive enough to try and act onit, and to get into terrible trouble with it.A lot of their friends who weren't quiteas honest got blacklisted and had noproblems. They had made a fortune ininvestments and walked away cool. Iremember a lot of conflict over that."Unable to get work, Joseph Bromberggradually went nearly broke.One law that all of us left-wing kidslived by, and that I have lived by untilnow, is that you never, never discussON THE ISSUES SUMMER 1992THE WISE WOMAN2441 Cordova StreetOakland, CA 94602(510) 536-3174THE WISE WOMAN, a national quarterly journal, focuses on feministissues, Goddess lore, feminist spirituality, and Feminist Witchcraft.Includes: women's history/herstory, news, analysis, critical reviews,art, poetry, cartoons by Biilbtil, exclusive interviews, and originalresearch about witch-hunts, women's heritage, and women today.Subscription: $15 a year/$27 for 2 years, $38 for 3 years (U.S. funds). ASample copy or back issue: $4 (U.S. funds only). / \Published quarterly since 1980 by Ann Forfreedom. %~ /A FREE 1-year subscription to each Women's Studies teacher thaw Csends in a copy of this ad.1/^^^THE WISE WOMAN, 2441 Cordova St., Oakland, CA 94602. ^57