Contest

The second wave of feminism began in the 1960s and was in full swing by the time I graduated from high school.  My parents, the community and religious culture where I was raised were very resistant to the idea of “liberated” women, however, and strongly discouraged any kind of discussion or participation in this movement.  The terms “liberal intellectuals,” “hippies,” and “feminists” were frequently used in my family to designate dangerous and subversive groups and I was exhorted to keep myself “clean” and “pure” from all such worldly contaminants.  My father worried that “liberal” college professors might sway me from the path outlined by our religion, to which he had devoted his life.  To minimize that risk, he would only provide financial assistance if I attended BYU.

Of particular note in my background is a contest sponsored by my community in 1965 to determine who would be “Mrs. Utah” and represent the state in a national competition.  One of the finalists was Alice, a neighbor who lived just up the street from my family.  The event was televised and I remember gathering around the TV with my parents and watching excitedly to see if Alice would win.

Even as a 12-year-old, I remember being startled to see that the women were being judged on their homemaking skills.  The five finalists lined up for the camera, each with her own ironing board, and on signal, began furiously ironing a man’s shirt to the tune of the William Tell overture.  Alice had been practicing and finished ahead of the others with impressive style.  She went on to win the national competition where the contestants were judged not only on their ability to iron a man’s shirt, but also on how well they could cook, sew and excel in party planning. 

It's hard to imagine a contest like that now but I'm sure there are other forms of female stereotyping taking place today that cause the same kind of cultural blindness from the 70s.  I'm looking forward to learning more about the shift in attitudes towards women from then to now and finding ways to join the important feminist cause.