NOW has become an embarrassment to reasonable feminists. If
anything, you'd think the initials stand for Nagging, Overreacting and
Whining.
Self-described feminist Debra J. Saunders of
the Los Angeles Daily News.[1]
Anti-Life Philosophy.
The National Organization for Women is a mainstream lobbying group
whose only goal is to insure equality for women in the workplace and in
society in general. As such, we represent the views of the vast majority
of women in this country.
The only women who do not agree with NOW's agenda are timid little
house-mice who have been brutalized by this patriarchal society into
accepting the male as their role models.
History of NOW.
A liberal is a person whose interests aren't at stake at the
moment.
American author Willis Player.[2]
The National Organization for Women (NOW) represents the very essence
of the Neofeminist movement. It is not as extreme as some groups, whose
very obnoxiousness renders them ineffective. It is also not as 'laid
back' as most women's groups. NOW seems to have approached the proper
mix of political action and radicalism that ensures a maximum
probability of success in its wide range of ventures.
Because it appears to occupy the middle of the gender-feminist
spectrum, NOW can be used as a relatively accurate barometer of the
range of demands and progress of the Neofeminist movement as a whole.
NOW was founded on June 29, 1966 by 28 women meeting at the Third
National Conference of State Commissions on the Status of Women. Betty
Friedan was elected its first president, and NOW immediately declared
its support of abortion and the Equal Rights Amendment on November 18,
1967. It lost almost a third of its fledgling membership in the ensuing
battle over fair representation of 'alternative viewpoints.'
Shortly thereafter (in 1971), NOW took up the cause for so-called
"lesbian rights."[3]
These early resolutions show that NOW was not one of the many women's
groups that were taken over by Neofeminists and subverted; NOW
(sometimes uncharitably referred to as "The NOW Sows") was
unusual in that it was corrupt from its very inception.
General Philosophy of NOW.
'We should have day nurseries,' Mrs. Friedan announced yesterday,
'to take care of the children.' Mrs. Friedan noted that this is
working out just swell in some European countries. The ones that came
to mind were Russia, Romania, and Latvia ...
Joe Cassidy, New York Daily News.[4]
NOW's far-ranging political and social agenda goes much farther that
any other major Neofeminist group. In addition to standard feminist
concerns such as economic rights for woman-headed households,
homemaker's rights, and older women's rights, NOW is pushing for more
women ministers in every denomination (including the Catholic Church),
forced funding for all abortions, rights for sexual deviants, and
other extreme positions that are described in the remainder of this
chapter.
Former NOW president Ellie Smeal's campaign platform, distributed at
the 1985 NOW National Convention, was a masterpiece of hysteria.
Excerpts from this document sum up the organization's agenda succinctly;
"The Right Wing's disgraceful use of the tragedy of AIDS has caused
unquestionable harm ... We must join the effort to repeal state sodomy
statutes which classify lesbians and gay men as criminals in 25 states
... Lesbian mother's rights to their children are under increased
attack. NOW must be in the forefront of defending these mother's
families ... I will help build a strong alliance between NOW and the
peace movement. As a member of the SANE board and Nuclear Freeze Voter,
I understand these issues and their crucial importance to eliminating
the feminization of poverty and sexism in the world."
The following paragraphs give details on the radical aspects of NOW's
far-left agenda, which are summarized below and explained in the
corresponding numbered paragraphs.
(1) NOW supports forced abortions;
(2) NOW supports sex-selection abortions;
(3) NOW supports destruction of the family;
(4) NOW supports the elimination of adoption;
(5) NOW supports lawlessness; and
(6) NOW supports sexual perversions.
(1) NOW Supports Forced
Abortions.
The Abortion Platform.
NOW completed its radical platform during its July 19-21, 1985 New
Orleans National Convention. The extracts from this platform dealing
with abortion are shown below.
NOW'S 1985 PRO-ABORTION PLATFORM
"3. Refocus the abortion debate by:
b. Linking the anti-abortion movement to death and starvation in the
Third
World, especially Africa; and
c. Organizing 'Vatican Embassy Days of Outrage' to protest the Pope's
continual interference in our political arena and
the Catholic Church
Hierarchy's work to outlaw abortions and birth
control;
6. Continue the highly successful clinic escorts and clinic vigil
actions as
needed."
Yard's Support for Forced Abortions.
In addition to supporting abortion rights in general, NOW has
stridently defended China's forced-abortion program ever since it was
exposed by Steven Mosher and other researchers. Former NOW President
Molly Yard has said that
We are going to have to face as China has faced the policy of
controlling the size of families, and to assume that we can go on
without facing the responsibility is totally irresponsible ... I
consider the Chinese government's policy among the most intelligent in
the world ... It is a policy limited to the heavily overpopulated
areas and it is an attempt to feed the people of China. I find it very
intelligent.[5]
Yard also said in an April 7, 1989 press conference that criticism of
China's family planning program comes "... from a lot of people who
don't know what they're talking about." She elaborated that
"China's population is so enormous that if they didn't control it,
they wouldn't be able to feed their people. The Chinese government
doesn't coerce people. They use education. It's very clear when you're
there. You can't miss it. Even if you can't read the language, you can't
miss it."[6]
Despite mounting criticism and hard evidence of Chinese forced
abortions, Yard stuck to her guns to the bitter end. During her keynote
speech at the 1990 NOW National Convention, she asked "What is
moral about denying family planning funds to China, which is what the
United States has done, because the Chinese have a policy of allowing
abortions and encouraging a one-child family? What is moral about
insisting that our point of view should be adopted by the Chinese when
the only responsible policy they can have is to control family
planning?"
Yard is speaking the truth from her perverted point of view. No woman
is physically forced into having an abortion. They are hunted
down and forced to sit at attention while cadre members browbeat them
mercilessly. In most cases, they are not allowed to wash and are given
little or no food. Sleep is almost nonexistent. The poor pregnant women
have to endure this brainwashing for weeks, or as long as it takes to
break their wills and get them to agree to abort their children just to
stop the torture.
Then, weeping, they are led to the slaughter.
The Implications.
This means that, in spite of being confronted with a mountain of
evidence that convinced even Congress that China's population plan used
coercion, Yard is trying to defend it!
The Chinese program also includes forced sterilization of mentally
handicapped men and women, women with one child, and even young girls in
some outlying areas.
For more detailed information on China's forced-abortion policy, see
Chapter 50, "Forced Abortions."
In the United States, such sterilization abuse is directed solely at
the poor women and 'women of color' that NOW sheds so many crocodile
tears over. Can you imagine White women being forced or conned
into having themselves neutered against their will or without their
knowledge?
NOW's Racism.
Even Marxist theorists recognize the obviously racist nature of the
population controllers, including NOW. Alexander Cockburn, one of the
Left's few articulate writers, says that "The not-so-concealed
theme of some major figures in NARAL and NOW was that abortion should be
legal because the most prolific breeders were welfare mothers from the
dangerous classes ... the leader of NARAL in New York lobbied against
the provisions to protect poor minority women from involuntary
sterilization, and so did Planned Parenthood."[7]
(2) NOW Supports
Sex-Selection Abortions.
Comical remarks from pro-abortion groups trying to 'have it both
ways' have provided continuing entertainment for pro-life activists. For
example, Francoise Jacobsohn, president of the New York chapter of the
National Organization for Women, has asserted that "I think
sex-selection abortion is a horrifying symptom that women are still
being ignored and disregarded as human beings in virtually every society
in the world. The real issue in question here is not abortion, but the
treatment of women."[8]
Notice how "the real issue is not abortion." Of course
not! It never is. Jacobsohn's 'logic' is like saying that
"The real issue is not rape, but men's sexual rights." To
admit that the real issue is abortion would be psychic death to
pro-abortionists.
It is interesting to note that Jacobsohn had nothing at all to say
about the more than 750,000 preborn women who die every year in
this country at the hands of abortionists and that many of these
baby-killers are themselves female!
The practical result of NOW's stand, as outlined above, is that they
support all abortions even sex-selection abortions. To do
otherwise would put a crack in their monolithic facade of consistency,
so dear to the cold, dark Neofeminist 'heart.'
(3) NOW Wants to Destroy
the Family.
Introduction.
The curious Neofeminist outlook sees the nuclear family as
'oppressive to women.' As such, the family must be destroyed and
replaced with a kind of free-floating amoebic societal mass made up of
tenuous omnisexual relationships. Children and commitment have no place
in this arena, unless they are useful as tools to further the liberation
or the physical pleasure of women.
NOW's Attitude.
The uniform NOW attitude towards the family and children was best
summed up by member Sheila Cronan at the 1988 Houston Conference for
Women, sponsored by NOW; "Since marriage constitutes slavery for
women, it is clear that the women's movement must concentrate on
attacking this institution. Freedom for women cannot be won without the
abolition of marriage."
Gloria Steinem, active in the early days of NOW, has said that
"Marriage makes you legally half a person, and what man wants to
live with half a person? ... I can't mate in captivity."[9]
And a Neofeminist author in the screed anthology Sisterhood is
Powerful goes beyond attacking motherhood and claims that staying at
home and raising children should not even be an allowable choice
in the brave new Neofeminist world;
A woman who stays at home, caring for children and the house, leads
an extremely sterile existence. This kind of woman leads a parasitic
existence that can aptly be described as "legalized
prostitution" ... The time has not only come, it is past due,
when marriage and motherhood as a life's goal should be cut out of the
training of the female child ... The day has come when motherhood
should be the lot and privilege of a select minority.[10]
Neofeminist author Vivian Gornick echoed this view as she insisted in
the April 25, 1981 University of Illinois Daily Illini that
"Being a housewife is an illegitimate profession ... the choice to
serve and be protected and plan towards being a family-maker is a choice
that shouldn't be. The heart of radical feminism is to change
that."[11]
The psychology of this loathing of commitment and family is obvious.
NOW and fellow Neofeminists are incapable of true love, commitment, or
caring. They fail miserably in child rearing and cannot endure a routine
they see as unfulfilling. Therefore, they must abandon these roles and,
since this causes a deep-seated guilt and longing in them, they must
attack normal families and try to create sad and insufficient
substitutes for themselves.
(4) NOW Condemns Adoption.
In their mad rush to eliminate all choices except abortion,
NOW has relentlessly attacked even adoption! For example, Molly Yard has
claimed that "With 35,000 children already waiting in foster homes
for adoptive parents, adoption is not the answer for women with unwanted
pregnancies."[12]
This is a typical pro-abortion half-truth. What Yard did not say is
that none of these children was placed in a foster home at birth!
They had almost all been removed from their homes because of
neglect or abuse.
Every one of the annual 50,000 babies put up for adoption at
birth handicapped or not is immediately placed with a family. There are
more than two million couples on the adoption waiting list. These
include minority babies, those with AIDS, and Down Syndrome, and spina
bifida according to William Pierce, president of the National Committee
for Adoption.[12]
Nobody at NOW seems to remember that adoption agencies easily handled
the load before Roe v. Wade, and could just as easily gear up for
the increased number of adoptions if abortion once again became illegal.
In such a case, the 2,000 licensed adoption agencies would easily be
able to take on the estimated additional 105,000 children placed for
adoption per year an average of only 60 children per agency.
This figure is 10 percent of the current 1.5 million abortions, minus
a standard 30 percent miscarriage rate. About 10 percent of all women
with unwanted pregnancies who carry their babies to term choose
adoption.
NOW is certainly not the only Neofeminist organization that would
like to eliminate adoption. In her book Abortion and the Politics of
Motherhood, Kristin Luker claims to speak for all so-called
'pro-choice' people when she says that "Having a baby and giving it
up for adoption, as pro-life people advocate, is not seen by most
pro-choice people as a moral solution to the abortion problem. To
transform a fetus into a baby and then send it out into a world where
the parents can have no assurance that it will be well-loved and cared
for is, for pro-choice people, the height of moral
irresponsibility."
For further information on adoption as it relates to the abortion
issue, see Chapter 35.
(5) NOW Supports
Lawlessness.
NOW's "State of Emergency."
NOW has given us some of the more outrageously comical examples of
hypocrisy and double-standard thinking that we could ever hope for.
These examples are very useful as potent weapons against the
Neofeminists.
For example, NOW squawks endlessly about Operation Rescue's
lawbreaking activities, and applauds vigorously when rescuers are beaten
up by police or jailed for long periods (NOW is not really for all
women, because it supported with its studious silence the brutal sexual
molestation and beatings of female Operation Rescue participants in
Pittsburgh in 1988).
But when it comes to NOW respecting the law itself, it's a
different story, of course.
When former NOW president Molly Yard heard that the Supreme Court
would review Roe v. Wade in its Webster case, she said on
January 8, 1989 that; "We are now declaring a state of emergency
for the women of America. We will not go back to illegal abortions. We
aren't going to obey the law."[13]
So don't feel too bad when NOW condemns rescuers and other pro-lifers
for breaking the law; After all, it approves of and encourage lawless
action itself!
Support for Ginny Foat.
One interesting and deadly string of incidents involved Ginny Foat,
president of the California chapter of NOW, who sought election as NOW
national vice-president in October of 1982.
The professional barmaid did not quite make the grade. She was picked
up on a fugitive warrant for bludgeoned Argentine businessman Moises
Chayo to death with a tire iron outside a bar in 1965. In the same year,
she also murdered San Francisco hotel employee Donald Fitting after
picking him up in a bar, a crime for which she spent four years in
prison.
Shortly after her arrest, Foat sniveled that "A political
climate of violence and degradation of women is in a test stage, with me
as its first victim."[14]
This attitude is quite typical of Neofeminists. In Foat's case, she
was sent arrested and sent to prison for murdering two men and then
whined that she was the "victim!"
One interesting part of the entire episode was the reaction of her
fellow high-ranking members of NOW. Not a single Neofeminist condemned
her; instead, she became the focus of a stomach-turning outpouring of
sympathy and, incredibly, an increase in statements of hatred directed
against men!
For more information on numerous illegal and violent pro-abortion
activities, see Chapters 18 and 19 of Volume I, "Anti-Life Illegal
Activities," and "Anti-Life Violence."
In light of its promotion of lawlessness and the flouting of laws
that it does not like, NOW provides us with a continuous stream of
statements that are so hypocritical that they are funny. For example,
after the Supreme Court's Rust v. Sullivan decision, NOW formally
accused the "Rehnquist Five" (who voted pro-life) of the
"crime" of "high treason" and failure to
"support and defend the Constitution of the United States of
America."[15]
Remember that this is the same organization that ignores any law
(including Constitutional law) that does not suit it. Perhaps the
leaders of NOW will eventually be placed on trial for "high
treason" and "crimes against humanity."
There would certainly be no shortage of evidence to support such
charges!
(6) NOW Supports Sexual
Perversions.
As described in the first few paragraphs of this chapter, NOW has
made it perfectly clear that its drive for so-called 'reproductive
rights' includes a demand for a sort of omnisexuality, or the right to
have sex with anyone (or anything) that one wishes. This, of course,
includes lesbianism.
NOW not only supports this perversion, but unflinchingly demands that
all of its members support it as well (this demonstrates how much
latitude in thought NOW allows its rank-and-file members).
Former NOW president Molly Yard has decisively linked homosexuality
and abortion in the Neofeminist movement. On one occasion, she said that
"Lesbians have always been on the front line of the abortion issue
because a woman's right to choose ultimately includes not only
reproductive freedom, but the right to choose one's sexuality."[16]
And a memo from her organization said that "Every woman must be
willing to be identified as a lesbian to be fully feminist ... no woman
is free to be a woman until every lesbian is free to be a
lesbian."[17]
NOW Is Not 'Pro-Choice.'
Congress should vote to take away all federal funds from [ERA]
unratified states. Government contracts and water projects should also
be taken away.
A NOW spokescreature.[18]
Introduction.
Every pro-abortion group whines that it is not pro-abortion, but
instead 'pro-choice.' In the case of the National Organization for
Women, there can be no doubt that the label 'pro-choice' is a misnomer.
NOW Censorship.
There is ample proof that NOW wants to stamp out every choice except
abortion, even here in the United States. For example, trash rocker
Madonna released a pro-life hit single, "Papa Don't Preach,"
in 1985. The song included the following lyrics;
"Papa don't preach, I'm in trouble deep,
Papa don't preach, I've been losing sleep.
But I made up my mind, I'm keeping my baby,
I'm gonna keep my baby, mmmmm ..."
Incredibly, Neofeminist attorney Gloria Allred, speaking for NOW and
other pro-abort groups, demanded that Madonna immediately "... make
a public statement noting that kids have other choices, including
abortion. Or, if she doesn't want to make a statement, then she has the
responsibility to make another record supporting the opposite point of
view. This song has me very concerned ..."
NOW vigilantly monitors the airwaves for any song that they do not
like. The group succeeded in getting Seals and Crofts' song "Unborn
Baby" banned from a number of radio stations because of its overt
pro-life message, and also protested Paul Anka's song "Having My
Baby," which was rated Number 1 in the United States and Number 2
in Canada for a number of weeks.
NOW bestowed one of their sarcastic little prizes on these songs:
This one was entitled the annual "Keep Her in Her Place"
award.[19]
Elsewhere, Human Life of Washington (the state Right to Life
affiliate) placed a series of ads on Washington Transit Authority
busses. These ads consisted of a photograph of a 17-week old unborn baby
swimming in its mother's womb with the caption "ENJOY LIFE. GOOD
THINGS COME IN SMALL PACKAGES." The objective of the ads was not
even to stop abortions, but to warn the public about the effects of
alcohol and substance abuse, and diet on fetal development.
The Reproductive Rights Task Force of the Seattle Chapter of NOW
immediately initiated a telephone campaign directed against Washington
Transit, claiming that the photos and ads were, in NOW's lofty opinion,
"too graphic."[20] The Washington Transit Authority quickly
broke its contract with Human Life and obediently pulled the ads.
A NOW spokeswoman explained that "NOW works to promote and
protect the human rights of women. It is in keeping with the work that
we do that we protest advertising the intent of which is harmful to the
health and well-being of women, and which deprives women of their full
rights as human beings."[21]
When asked how the advertising was "harmful to the health and
well-being of women," and how it "deprives women of their full
rights as human beings," the NOW people refused to answer.
In other words, NOW does not even want the public to know the most
basic facts about human reproduction, because the sight of a healthy
unborn baby might make some women change their minds about abortion!
Apparently, NOW simply does not care about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS),
which is not only the leading cause of infant mental retardation in the
United States, but also causes about 8,000 babies to be born annually
with serious physical handicaps.[22]
NOW is Anti-Choice.
NOW condemns pro-lifers for "not caring for women," while
simultaneously trying to sabotage or destroy pro-life Crisis Pregnancy
Centers and shelter homes. NOW is obviously ashamed of not helping the
women enough themselves, and so it wants to make sure that nobody else
can help them either.
For example, in Pensacola, Florida, the local NOW demanded a local
ordinance that would ban picketing outside homes, places of business,
and abortuaries, while simultaneously picketing Our Father's House, a
shelter home for pregnant women.[23] This incident also demonstrates
that NOW wants only its own speech to be protected, while trying
its best to stamp out all speech that opposes them.
Not surprisingly, NOW's anti-choice activism extends far beyond
abortion into all of its other areas of agitation, to the detriment of
society in general.
This was vividly demonstrated in Detroit in 1991, when NOW
aggressively attacked a special school program for ghetto youth.
Detroit's dropout rate for inner-city Black boys was 54 percent, and the
rate for Black girls was less than half that. In an attempt to remedy
this inequality, Detroit's board of education set up three special
schools for ghetto boys to help equip them with the tools necessary to
get out of their situation and better their lives.
The National Organization for Women and the American Civil Liberties
Union sued the City of Detroit and won in Federal Court, and the City,
unwilling to spend one million dollars in its own defense, closed down
the schools. NOW and ACLU never once set foot in the afflicted
neighborhoods to talk with the parents or see what impacts their actions
were having. After the judge handed down his decision, 300 parents
protested outside the courthouse. One mother said, "If you have
money you can go to whatever kind of school you want. But the average
Black guy can't go to special schools."[24]
CDRR's Lies and Deceptions.
There are many examples of the lies and deception that NOW uses in
its attempts to destroy all choices except the one they desire so
passionately: Abortion. One perfect example of the incredibly
underhanded tactics it uses to drive even Crisis Pregnancy Centers out
of business is described below.
On March 6, 1986, the Committee to Defend Reproductive Rights (CDRR),
which was affiliated with NOW, brought suit against a San Francisco CPC,
the Free Pregnancy Center, for so-called "deceptive
advertising." NOW's allegations included that women were virtually
prisoners of the CPC and were literally "forced" into watching
various presentations.
The CDRR admitted basing much of their information on the testimony
of a "set-up," but purposely did not include her as a witness
so that she could not be cross-examined.
This suit had been prepared in advance and only needed the name of a
plaintiff to fill in. It didn't take long for NOW to find someone
willing to fill the bill. On January 23, 1986, Carla Abbotts, who had
had three abortions and worked in a pornographic bookstore called Last
Gasp Comics, began to watch a slide show offered by the CPC. After five
minutes, she began to scream at that her rights were being trampled.
The Kangaroo Kourt was soon in session.
At the CPC trial, NOW and the CDRR demanded that they have complete
editorial control over all the contents of CPC slide shows, interviews,
and videos; that the CPC pay $2,500 for each person who saw their
original "deceptive and misleading" ad in the Yellow Pages (if
only ten percent of San Francisco's population glanced at it, that would
be a fine of 500 million dollars), and various other ridiculous demands.
At the trial, plaintiffs presented an incredible attorney's bill of
more than a third of a million dollars, which was denied by presiding
Judge Dandurand, primarily because the District Attorney's office had
done almost all of the work in the prosecution. This shows quite plainly
that NOW and its ilk have no regard for fairness or justice, but just to
smash the opposition. But the judge denied little else, granting almost
all points of the requested injunction.[25]
NOW Master of Hypocrisy.
The entire basis of this lawsuit, of course, was deceptive
advertising. Yet NOW, master of hypocrisy, feels perfectly free to
deceive the public itself.
For example, NOW's function is listed in the 1989 Combined Federal
Campaign guidebook as; "NOW fights sex discrimination in education,
employment and the legal system, opening opportunities for women.
Projects include referral service, employment and family law, education
rights."
Notice that NOW statement of purpose mentions nothing about
destruction of the family, nothing about supporting abortion, and
nothing about supporting lesbianism. NOW knows that it must remain
carefully neutral on these issues when representing itself to the
average CFC contributor, or it will not get many contributions.
NOW, who's being
deceptive?
Pro-Life Women Need Not Apply.
Another indication of how extreme NOW gets in its support of
baby-killing is its response to a New York law requiring liquor shops to
post signs about possible harm to unborn babies through Fetal Alcohol
Syndrome (FAS). The New York chapter of NOW released a statement saying
that "We are most uneasy about the step this legislation takes
toward protecting the unborn at the expense of women's freedom."
Naturally, NOW's primary focus is on the most radical aspects of
feminism, and anyone who does not toe the line is not welcome. Feminists
for Life of America was formed when NOW told pro-life feminists that
they were not welcome in the organization, and then ejected them. And,
even though Representative Mary Rose Oakar (D.-Oh), has a formidable
record of supporting feminist issues like comparable worth and child
care, she was not allowed to address an NOW convention because she is
pro-life.[26]
So Much for the 'Majority.'
NOW demands that the public believe that they are the majority voice
in the United States. But common sense tells us otherwise. How many
people support sex-selection abortions, "lesbian rights,"
forced abortions, breaking the law, and the total destruction of the
family? How many people does current NOW president Patricia Ireland
represent the person who revealed in early 1992 that she was committing
adultery with a lesbian 'lover?'
Perhaps one percent.
A September 2, 1983 Los Angeles Times poll showed that only
28% of American women thought that NOW and the National Women's
Political Caucus (NWPC) speak for a majority of American women, while
56% said that these groups represent a "small minority."[27]
Predictably, this was the last poll performed along this vein: The
results were not what the Neoliberals wanted to hear.
It is quite obvious that NOW is a much smaller minority than the
"anti-choice fanatics" that they so loudly condemn. For
example, the conservative group Concerned Women for America has a
participating membership four times larger than NOW.
But Nobody is All Bad ...
... Or Are They?
Of course, like anything else, NOW is not all bad. For
example, it continues to mindlessly push the Equal Rights Amendment,
rather like a wired mouse pushing a level for repeated cortical
stimulation, thus exhausting themselves and tiring the American public
with their shopworn rhetoric, which itself provides a handy focal point
for pro-life forces.
Additionally, NOW has advanced the idea of creating a separate
Neofeminist political party. Many pro-lifers are holding their breaths
and crossing their fingers, hoping that NOW believes its own press
releases enough to proceed with their plan. Such a political party would
be a magnet for the most extreme radicals, causing the Neofeminists to
squander their resources as their party isolates itself, pulls support
from the Democrats, and makes itself look like clowns in the public eye.
Of course, the antics such a political party would engage it would
conclusively demonstrate that the Neofeminist agenda is far outside the
"mainstream."
Thank You, Gerry!
And, of course, NOW also boasted of "being instrumental" in
the selection of Geraldine Ferraro as Walter Mondale's 1984
vice-presidential running mate. This brought Ferraro's hypocrisy as a
"good pro-abortion Catholic" to the forefront, and pro-lifers
dogged her continuously. The issue was before the public as never
before, and the defeat of the rabidly pro-abortion Democrats gave NOW
and others a black eye that is still smarting. Every pro-life activist
owes NOW a heartfelt vote of thanks for this extraordinarily valuable
service to the pro-life movement.
First Hitler, and NOW ...
Hitler's mad, wasteful antics eventually destroyed the Nazis. NOW
will be just as invaluable in eventually destroying the pro-abortion
movement. This fact is known even by the most fervent Leftists in our
culture. Even the Communist magazine Proletarian Revolution
recognizes that
NOW does not represent the majority of women, who are working
class. [Their tactics are] entirely consistent with NOW's upper- and
middle-class base ... In the past, the typical pro-choice activist has
been a professional career woman. In contrast, pro-life women come
mainly from a lower section of the middle class. As long as NOW is
allowed to parade as the heavyweight champion of women, it will
continue to attract flocks of new young supporters who will then
become disillusioned with its dead-end strategy.[7]
References: National Organization for Women.
[1] Debra J. Saunders. "NOW's Shrillness Becomes Embarrassment
to Feminism." Los Angeles Daily News, July 7, 1989, page
A14.
[2] American author Willis Player, quoted in Jonathon Green. The
Cynic's Lexicon. New York: St. Martin's Press. 1984, 220 pages.
[3] National Organization for Women pamphlet. "NOW Origins A
Chronology of NOW 1966-1985."
[4] Joe Cassidy, New York Daily News. November 1966. As
reported in The Review of the NEWS, June 8, 1977, pages 29 and
30.
[5] Molly Yard, on the July 6, 1989 "Oprah Winfrey Show."
Quoted in The Wanderer, August 3 1989, page 5.
[6] Mary Meehan. "Women as Guinea Pigs." National
Catholic Register, April 30, 1989, page 4.
[7] For an atypically lucid and accurate far-Left assessment of NOW's
damage to the Neofeminist movement, see the article written by Alexander
Cockburn in the Fall 1989 Proletarian Revolution, pages 26 to 28
and 32.
[8] Eve Glicksman. "Breeding for Gender Encourages 'Shopping
Mentality.'" The Oregonian, June 18, 1991, page B7. Also see
R. Rao. "Move to Stop Sex-Test Abortion." Nature
Magazine. November 20-26, 1986, page 202.
[9] Gloria Steinem, quoted in 1971 and 1984 Newsweek Magazine
interviews. Summarized in Douglas Johnson. "Rep. Chris Smith
Targeted By Planned Parenthood, Steinem." National Right to Life
News, April 10, 1986, page 6.
[10] Robin Morgan (editor). Sisterhood is Powerful. New York:
Vintage Books, 1970, page 246.
[11] Vivian Gornick, quoted in David Kupelian and Mark Masters.
"The New McCarthyism." New Dimensions Magazine, July 1,
1990, page 22.
[12] Todd Ackerman. "The Campaign Against Adoption." National
Catholic Register, July 23, 1989, pages 1 and 6.
[13] Molly Yard, President of the National Organization for Women,
quoted in "Reproductive Rights: Not a Single-Issue Struggle." People's
Daily World, March 29, 1990, page 12.
[14] "Political Rivalry Cited in Feminist's Arrest."
Pittsburgh [Pennsylvania] Post-Gazette, January 20, 1983.
[15] NOW resolution of July 1991 entitled "Impeach the Rehnquist
Five."
[16] Molly Yard, President of the National Organization for Women, at
the National NOW Conference, July 21-23, 1989, held in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Quoted in the homosexual newspaper The Lavender Network,
September 1989, page 64.
[17] NOW memo quoted in the September 6, 1989 Washington Times.
[18] NOW spokesperson, quoted in The Review of the NEWS, June
8, 1977, pages 29 and 30.
[19] Vital Signs. "Keeping the NOW Persons Busy." National
Right to Life News, October 1974, page 15.
[20] "Pro-Life Ad Pulled From Seattle Buses." Portland,
Oregon Catholic Sentinel. November 3, 1989, page 22.
[21] Living World, Volume 5, Number 2, page 28.
[22] Angela Hornsby. "Drinking Warnings Required." The
Oregonian, Tuesday, June 25, 1991, page A10.
[23] ALL News, July 12, 1985.
[24] "NOW Says Never in Detroit." The Wall Street
Journal, November 11, 1991, page A12.
[25] Thomas W. Case. "Freedom of Choice, San Francisco
Style." Fidelity Magazine, July/August 1988, pages 8 to 10.
[26] Robert J. Hutchinson. "Pro-Life Democrats." Catholic
Twin Circle, August 13, 1989, pages 12 and 13.
[27] Dr. and Mrs. John C. Willke. Abortion: Questions and Answers.
1990, 315 pages. Order from most Right to Life chapters or from the
Right to Life Educational Foundation or from the Hayes Publishing
Company, 6304 Hamilton Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio 45224. This poll on NOW
is described on page 292.
Further Reading: National Organization for Women and Neofeminism.
Samuel L. Blumenfeld. The Retreat From Motherhood.
New Rochelle, New York: Arlington House. 1975, 222 pages, hardback.
This interesting book by a pro-abortion former editor and sociologist
attempts to pin down the roots of Neofeminism and does a pretty good, if
rather disjointed job. Although he is definitely anti-life, Blumenfeld
has strung together a large quantity of evidence that shows the
influence of the population controllers and media in the mass turning
away from childbearing to abortion and contraception. Blumenfeld feels
that there is really no hope for us, and that we will eventually
exterminate ourselves (but he neglects the role of religion, as well).
Ronda Chervin. Feminine, Free, and Faithful.
143 pages. Order from Ignatius Press, 15 Oakland Avenue, Harrison,
New York 10528. Chervin shows that freedom and femininity are not
mutually exclusive terms, but necessary elements for a woman to achieve
her full potential as a Christian.
G.K. Chesterton. What's Wrong With the World: The Superstition
of Divorce, Eugenics, and Other Evils, and Other Essays.
450 pages, sewn hardcover, sewn softcover. Order from Ignatius
Press, 15 Oakland Avenue, Harrison, New York 10528. Although nearly a
century old, these economic and sociologic writings by one of the most
prolific and respected Christian writers of all time show conclusively
that the anti-life mentality has been with us for many years. Chesterton
shows that lax moral standards will lead to eugenics, divorce,
artificial contraception, abortion, and ultimately the dehumanization of
man, the loss of respect for human life, and the destruction of the
family. A 'must read' for Christian historical scholars.
Mary Lewis Coakley. Long Liberated Ladies.
260 pages. Order from: Ignatius Press, 15 Oakland Avenue, Harrison,
New York 10528, telephone: 1-800-528-0559. A favorite Neofeminist myth
is that the Catholic Church institutionally and systematically oppresses
women as a class. This book outlines the lives of women who accomplished
spectacular spiritual and material feats instead of whining about how
terribly they were "oppressed." Stories include the lives of
Catherine of Siena, Joan of Arc, Amelia Earhart, Isabella of Castille,
and Florence Nightingale.
Nicholas Davidson. The Failure of Feminism.
Prometheus Books, 700 East Amherst Street, Department E, Buffalo,
New York 14215. 1987, 392 pages. Reviewed by Joseph Sobran on page 54 of
the December 18, 1987 issue of National Review. An incisive
examination of the slogans, buzzwords, and idiocies of the Neofeminist
movement. This book covers the deleterious effects of the Neofeminists
on childraising, marriage, sex, politics, and every other aspect of
American life since the late 1960s. Curiously, the author is
pro-abortion, and fails to see the critical place that baby-killing
takes in the murky Neofeminist 'ethos.'
Maggie Gallagher. Enemies of Eros: How the Sexual Revolution is
Killing Family, Marriage, and Sex, and What We Can Do About It.
Bonus Books, 1989. 283 pages. Reviewed by Ellen Wilson Fielding on
pages 41 to 43 of the December 8, 1989 issue of National Review
and by Fern Schumer Chapman on pages 49 to 51 in the June 1990 issue of Reason.
An examination of the forces that destroy normal human sexuality even as
they claim to reinforce them. The many topics covered in this book
include surrogate mothering, no-fault divorce and the resulting
"feminization of poverty," abortion, feminism and social
engineering. The book also covers generally the repressive impacts of
the 'new androgyny.' Gallagher shows how the demands of Neofeminism have
vastly impoverished women in almost every way, while directly playing
into the hands of exploitative men.
Carol Gilligan. In a Different Voice.
Harvard University Press, 1982. 174 pages. Reviewed by Wanda Franz,
Ph.D., on page 11 of the November 24, 1983 issue of National Right to
Life News. The pro-abortion author argues that women have a
different psychological composition than men, then goes on to undercut
her theory of superiority by excusing women to commit various acts
(including abortion) for immature reasons.
Weldon M. Hardenbrook. Missing from Action: Vanishing Manhood
in America.
Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1987. 192 pages. Reviewed by
James Bruen in the December 1987 Fidelity Magazine. Any
Neofeminist who reads this book will die of apoplexy. The book surveys
the feminization of American culture and the extreme confusion and the
resulting lack of direction in our society. It is now men, not women,
who are alienated from many aspects of the Catholic Church and the
mainline Protestant Churches that have allowed themselves to be deceived
and seduced by the Neofeminists. The author presents an array of
solutions to the phenomenon of women's leadership by default: avoid
government programs that are biased towards women; adjust social
programs to reflect the differences between boys and girls; and get men
to accept their responsibilities as spiritual and moral heads of their
families.
Judith Hole and Ellen Levine. Rebirth of Feminism.
Quadrangle Books: New York, 1971. This book tells the reader
everything he or she wants to know about the early (1950 to 1970)
feminist movement and usually much more. It includes incredible detail.
An excellent history of the Equal Rights Amendment to mid-1971 can be
found on pages 54 to 77.
Mary Joyce. Women and Choice: New Beginning.
Order from LifeCom Publishers, Post Office Box 1832, St. Cloud,
Minnesota 56302, or from Trinity Communications, Post Office Box 3610,
Manassas, Virginia 22110, telephone: (703) 369-2429. 1986, 178 pages.
Reviewed by Nancy Koster in the May 1, 1986 National Right to Life
News. Mrs. Joyce shows how the new vehicle of Neofeminism is a
totally inadequate tool for women to attain true equality. By rejecting
the easy paths of the 'rights to choose,' women can lead the way to a
truly benign society, where everyone's needs are met. Mrs. Joyce spends
a lot of time in a revealing discussion of the differences between men
and women and how important they are in the pro/anti-life battle.
Lawrence Lader. Abortion II, Making the Revolution.
Boston: Beacon Press, 1973. The definitive work on early (1960-1970)
pro-abortion strategy by the king of the abortion propagandists. Lader
was a close friend of the 'leading lights' of the early pro-abortion
movement, including Betty Friedan and Dr. Bernard Nathanson.
Kathleen McDonnell. Not An Easy Choice: A Feminist Reexamines
Abortion.
Boston: South End Press, 1984. 157 pages. Reviewed by Patricia
Soenen in the October 24, 1985 National Right to Life News. This
book is a frightening look at true Neofeminism. The author can't really
'reexamine' abortion honestly, because she begins by asserting that it
is a "woman's right." However, this author is not entirely
ignorant: she acknowledges that women must confront the fact that the
unborn are human beings, i.e., they must "let the fetus in."
What is frightening is that, even though McDonnell acknowledges the
humanity of the unborn, she still thinks it is all right to kill them.
This is one step further than even the Nazis took at least they tried to
dehumanize their victims. in other words, McDonnell is baldly stating
that it is all right to kill a human being who is an
inconvenience to you! This book shows how pro-abortionists are sinking
ever deeper into self-delusion and Newspeak.
Father Vincent P. Miceli. Women Priests and Other Fantasies.
Order from Keep the Faith, 810 Belmont Avenue, Post Office Box 8261,
North Haledon, New Jersey 07508, telephone: (201) 423-5395. The author
examines the pandemonium that results in the Christian Church
(particularly the Catholic Church) when the senses of the sacred and
supernatural are lost. The instant that Holy Scripture is judged by
secular standards, the message of Christianity is hopelessly compromised
and lost.
Robin Morgan (editor). Sisterhood is Powerful.
New York: Vintage Books, 1970. The collection of radical Neofeminist
essays that is sometimes used by Neofeminists instead of the Bible as
they swear themselves into office. This gives some idea of just how much
the Neofeminist movement owes to this book, which is an excellent
collection of essays that illustrate vividly the character of the
Neofeminist 'soul.'
Father William Oddie. What Will Happen to God?: Feminism and
the Reconstruction of Christian Belief.
180 pages. Order from: Ignatius Press, 15 Oakland Avenue, Harrison,
New York 10528, telephone: 1-800-528-0559. The Neofeminists are now
striving to eliminate from all church documents and prayers what they
consider to be "sexist" language. Father Oddie exposes the
fallacies of this goal, and shows what will happen if we allow radical
feminism to continue to dictate to the Church. The elimination of
so-called "sexist" language is only the beginning!
Valerie Riches. "A Radical Feminist Charter." Feminism
v. Mankind.
Family Publications: Wicken, Milton Keynes, Britain, 1990.
Rosemary Radford Reuther. Womanguides: Readings Toward a
Feminist Theology.
Beacon Press, 1985.
Margaret Sanger. Woman and the New Race.
Reprinted in 1969 by permission of the Sanger Estate by the Maxwell
Reprint Company, Fairview Park, Elmsford, New York 10523. Any pro-life
activist who wants to become familiar with the real attitudes and
philosophy of the anti-life movement and Neofeminism in general should
read this book. It is an utterly fascinating treatise by one of the
original Neofeminists.
Betty Steele. The Feminist Takeover: Patriarchy to Matriarchy
in Two Decades.
Published by Human Life International, 7845-E Airpark Road,
Gaithersbury, Maryland 20879. 1989. The origins of the Neofeminist
movement and its contrasts to true feminism. This book outlines how a
few influential women who hate men have contributed to the destruction
of family life and of civilized society, and gives the word "Feminazi"
new and compelling meaning.
Gail Grenier Sweet, editor. Pro-Life Feminism: Different Voices.
1985. Order from Life Cycle Books, Post Office Box 792, Lewiston,
New York 14092-0792. Telephone: (416) 690-5860. Reviewed by Leslie Bond
in the October 24, 1985 National Right to Life News. This book is
an anthology of articles that outline what it really means to be
a feminist: to be dedicated to advancing the causes of all women
including unborn women! It also thoroughly debunks the ingrained
notion that a feminist stand must include abortion. The book
discusses the Equal Rights Amendment and its pervasive connection to
abortion, and compares and examines the differences between the National
Organization for Women and Feminists for Life of America.
Hans Urs von Balthasar, Joseph Ratzinger, Walter Kasper, et.al.
The Church and Women: A Compendium.
280 pages. Order from: Ignatius Press, 15 Oakland Avenue, Harrison,
New York 10528, telephone: 1-800-528-0559. A collection of articles by
leading Church scholars on the role of women in the Catholic Church
today and contemporary issues regarding feminism, including the
ordination of women and the role and importance of the family. The role
of women is developed in a context faithful to Scripture, tradition, and
the Magisterium of the Church.
© American Life League BBS — 1-703-659-7111
This is a chapter of the Pro-Life Activist's Encyclopedia Published
by American Life League.
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