Women’s History Month is an opportunity to give voice to extraordinary women throughout history who fought to define and demand equality.
Friends of Ms. gathered last month to discuss two extraordinary anthologies that reflect on the past while pointing toward a future of feminist progress. Blackbirds Singing: Inspiring Black Women’s Speeches from the Civil War to the Twenty-First Century by Janet Deward Bell and 50 Years of Ms.: The Best of the Pathfinding Magazine That Ignited a Revolution both give voice to extraordinary women throughout history who fought to define and demand equality.
The writers reflected on their experiences in feminist media. Janet Dewart Bell, a celebrated civil and human rights activist, scholar, author and early contributor to Ms., discussed the process of creating Blackbirds Singing. A compendium of powerful speeches by African American women with an exploration of their lives, the book contains speeches from well-known trailblazers—Sojourner Truth, Ida B. Wells-Barnett and Maya Angelou—and lesser known visionaries—like Anna Julia Cooper, who was born into slavery and earned a doctorate later in life, and Margaret Walker Alexander, a poet and activist in Chicago’s Black Renaissance movement.
Carol Jenkins, an award-winning journalist and founding president of the Women’s Media Center, posed questions about the process of curating the content for the books and the state of the women’s movement today.
For Weiss-Wolf, re-examining Ms. content from the 1970s—her self-professed favorite era—reminded her of growing up reading the magazine after discovering it as a teenager in her local library. She pointed to the magazine’s prescience as an early model for ad-free nonprofit journalism.
Bell spoke about the elegance and beauty of the speeches that she assembled for her Blackbirds Singing. She was particularly moved by the keen communication skills of women who did not have the benefit of formal education, noting that each speech touches the listener in deeply stirring ways.
Giving voice to feminist truth-tellers seems especially poignant now—not only because their voices were often constrained or silenced at the time, in the post-Civil War period or the civil rights era, but because of the myriad threats to women’s rights today.
Bell highlighted themes of “speaking truth to power along with decency, compassion, peace, justice, freedom and love,” as a way for us all to effect change and navigate the world.
All three writers recognized that while times have changed, the role of women writers in influencing the next generation remains more vital than ever.
Reflecting on interactions with Ms. co-founder Gloria Steinem, Bell recalled her writing on women’s experience as household workers being edited as a young journalist in 1973. Steinem demanded “more passion” in her writing—advice that still shapes Bell’s work today and which she imparts to other burgeoning female authors.
Weiss-Wolf, too, spoke of the fulfillment she experiences working with younger female writers who contribute to Ms. (including me!) and the importance of engagement across generations.
Bell shared that her own mother loved the title “Ms.” and reiterated what she told the New York Times in 2022 for a Ms. retrospective—her mother thought “it brought power and understanding of equality.”
The discussion closed with an intergenerational call to action for young women to study and understand history as essential for making progress in the future, especially entering the 2024 election cycle. Weiss-Wolf and Bell both emphasized that young people will continue to carry on the legacies of feminism. It was a fitting and celebratory end to a conversation filled with the “passion” that Steinem demanded.
Up next:
U.S. democracy is at a dangerous inflection point—from the demise of abortion rights, to a lack of pay equity and parental leave, to skyrocketing maternal mortality, and attacks on trans health. Left unchecked, these crises will lead to wider gaps in political participation and representation. For 50 years, Ms. has been forging feminist journalism—reporting, rebelling and truth-telling from the front-lines, championing the Equal Rights Amendment, and centering the stories of those most impacted. With all that’s at stake for equality, we are redoubling our commitment for the next 50 years. In turn, we need your help, Support Ms. today with a donation—any amount that is meaningful to you. For as little as $5 each month, you’ll receive the print magazine along with our e-newsletters, action alerts, and invitations to Ms. Studios events and podcasts. We are grateful for your loyalty and ferocity.
