NOW, a premier organization advocating women’s rights, was born 40 years ago. Find out what they’re all about, how they operate and how they’ve impacted your life, no matter how old you are. They work against such issues as violence, racism, and sexism. They support ideals like diversity, Lesbian rights, economic justice, and constitutional equality.
Betty Friedan, Founder
Betty Naomi Goldstein Friedan (1921-2006) was born in Peoria, Illinois to become a media phenom with the publication of The Feminine Mystique, 1963. She and 27 others were attending the 3rd National Conference of the Commission on the Status of Women. They knew that, despite the 1964 Civil Rights Act, women still endured constant discrimination. Someone observed sardonically that women could use an NAACP, and NOW was born.
Pauli Murray’s Bright Idea
NOW Co-founder, the late Anna Pauli Murray (1910-1985), was a woman of color, a
