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About Bella
"Women will run
the 21st Century....This is going to be the women's century and young people
are going to be its leaders." —Bella
Abzug, April 1997
Bella S. Abzug
(1920-1998) was one of the most influential and recognizable female
politicians and leaders of the late 20th century.
Former Congresswoman Bella Abzug was an activist her entire life, beginning
in early adolescence when she delivered impassioned speeches in the subways
for causes she championed. After an acclaimed career as a civil rights
lawyer, peace activist and political organizer, the Hunter College and
Columbia Law School graduate sought public office for the first time at age
50 under her famous slogan: “This woman’s place is in the House—the House of
Representatives.” She decisively won election to Congress in 1970 beating an
18-year incumbent to represent Manhattan’s West Side and Lower East Side.
Bella helped to bring billions of dollars in public works and transportation
funding to New York State and authored or co-authored several historic
bills, including Title IX, a bill prohibiting sex discrimination in
educational opportunities by schools receiving Federal funding assistance
(though Title IX did not mention athletics, it became known most prominently
for its impact on high school and college sports), the Freedom of
Information Act, and the first law banning discrimination against women with
respect to obtaining credit. Bella also chaired historic hearings on
government secrecy. She was voted by her colleagues the third most
influential member of the House as reported in the U.S. News and World
Report. Bella was known for her keen intelligence, her flamboyance and her
colorful wide-brimmed hats. Often recognized by these vibrant hats, Bella
reminded all who admired them: “It’s what’s under the hat that counts!”
Ms. Abzug was the first woman to run for the U.S. Senate from New York.
After losing the Senate race to Patrick Moynihan in 1976 (by less than 1
percent!), Bella ran for Mayor of New York City in 1977, becoming the first
woman ever to run for that office. As a result of her groundbreaking
campaigns for higher office, Bella is often credited with paving the way for
women aspiring to even higher levels of office, and opening doors to power
for all women and especially to generations of women leaders in politics and
government. Increasingly influential on the national and world stages, Bella
went on to serve as Chairwoman of President Carter's National Women’s
Advisory Council. In that capacity, Bella, among other accomplishments,
presided over the first National Conference on Women in Houston in 1977
where 2,000 elected delegates from every state and territory in the U.S. and
18,000 observers attended and developed a precedent-setting National
Platform of Action for women.
As a pioneering attorney, a highly effective member of Congress (D.NY)
representing the West Side and Lower East Side of Manhattan, and a leader in
the global movement for women’s rights, Ms. Abzug has often been credited
with "jumpstarting the international feminist movement." Bella always moved
deftly between community activism and government or institutional power by
exercising her tactical brilliance, wit and charisma in the courts, the
Congress, the United Nations and in the streets—yet she always preserved her
fierce integrity and never hesitated to take risks on behalf of her ideals.
She was skilled at translating her visions and altruistic hopes into
pragmatic solutions. She was the author of two successful books, "Bella: Ms.
Abzug Goes to Washington" and "The Gender Gap," the latter co-authored with
friend and colleague, Mim Kelber. She also lectured widely throughout the
United States and internationally, tirelessly campaigning for the rights of
women.
Ever open to new approaches, Bella continually devised innovative strategies
to further her vision of equality and power for women in the United States
and abroad. In the last decade of her life, in the early 1990’s, she
co-founded the Women’s Environment and Development Organization (WEDO), one
of the largest non-governmental organizations working in the United Nations
and internationally to achieve full economic rights and equal representation
for women. Bella led WEDO until her death, at age 77, in 1998. She was
inducted into the Women’s Hall of Fame in Seneca Falls and is the recipient
of numerous prestigious national and international awards. A year before her
death, Bella received the highest civilian recognition and honor at the
U.N., the Blue Beret Peacekeepers Award. Bella was married to her beloved
husband Martin for 42 years. Together they raised two daughters, Eve and Liz
(Isobel).
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