., D-4-NEW YEAR'S EDITION-1971 STAR-NEWS Pasadena, California .. ------~· The Preening of Nat ion Di.splays America Peacock Syndrome "girl Friday" to a male boss By Aileen C. Hernandez who has parlayed the Peter National Pre:sident, Natiunal Oryauization fo·r Women Principle int() a sinecure complete with maid service; In recent months. author roles and exploited and rna· the jobs she gets are high­ Charles A. Reich has fo­ nipulated in the unfriendly skill, but low pay because cussed the nation's attention environment of a male supre­ women "don't need as much ma cist world. on the "greening of Ameri­ money as men ; " and she sits ca," and has suggested the The peacock syndrome and seethes while training need for a new consciousness rests on the basic premise her male subordinate to be­ in this most affluent of na­ that the male is infinitely come her iboss. tions. The liberation of wom­ more attractive than the Not content with subjecting en in the United States will female - in all the areas that women to all these inequities, do much toward achieving really count, we discount the male d.ominated society the h u m a n e social order women. (still spreading its taiHeath· which is envisaged in Reich's Our "sexist" 1 a n g u a g e ers) tries to convince her book and among its major makes this abundantly clear. that it's all for her own goad; contributions will be the de­ "Mankind" is the generic she's being "protected" from struction of what I choose to term for all people or all long hours (at time-and-a­ call the "peacock syndrome" males, but there is no similar half or double-time for over­ - the vaingloriousness at the dual meaning for "woman­ tlme) and lifting "heavy" root of what has been the kind." The masculine pron­ weights (ranging from 10 to "preening" of America. oun is used to refer to both AILEEN HERNANDEZ 25 pounds) at high-paying men and women in general ... liberation for men too fa·ctory jobs (but not at home The peacock syndrome is discussions. everywhere in our country - where g r o c e r y bags and The Constitution of the women cross the threshold c h i l d r e n are hoisted a in industry, where chrome­ United States is replete covered cars are sufficiently from "b a c h e 1 o r girl" to hundred times a day), And with sexist language - Sena­ "spinster" to "old maid" but all of this "protection" is so dazzling to persuade buyers tors and Representatives are that safety can wait; in ad­ unmarried men are "·bache­ that woman can stay healthy "he;" the President is ob­ lors" forever. enough to fulfill her role as vertising, where consumers viously "he" and even the fu­ are convinced that the key to "brood mare" and economic gitive from justice is "he" The male cult continues its paraslave and full time dom­ success is the right deodar· under our Constitution. * ant in the right place; in poli· degradation of the woman by estic slave. tics, where candidates are It is clear that the founding controlling her conomic exist­ merchandised for their sex fathers were deeply imbued ence as well - she is the It is now becoming* obvious appeal, rather than their with the conventional wisdom marginal worker to be manip­ to many American women, abilities; in social relations, about women, but what is ulated as neederi in the work as it has been obvious to mi­ where .people are stereoyped frightening is that Rexford force (Rosie the Riveter - nority groups for some time, by. how they look and what Tugwell's new draft constitu­ national slack-clad, acety­ that the advantaged seldom they wear, by the color of tion c o n t i n u e s the sexist lene-torch-welding heroine of (if ever) give up the privi­ their skin, the slant of their approach and excludes a pro­ the . Second World War - leges of the.ir status voluntar­ eyes, by their religion, their nominal reference to women. banished to baby-produeing ily. If the American woman wants to change her environ­ ancestry and their sex. It is no wonder that women boredom in suburbia to make The peacoek syndrome is in the United States felt it room in the economy for the ment, the time is now and preoccupied with form, with necessary to seek the 19th returning G.I.); she is the the voice must be her voice, o u t w a r d appearance and amendment in order to gain new slave labor class - defining her own issues and offering her own solutions. rarely with substance. 1t has suffrage and are now seeking reaping praise, instead of pay, as the ubiquitous volun­ The goal of the new feminists produced the preening of the 26th amendment in order to gain freedom. teer, cheerfully exploited by is a restructuring of the so­ America, the titillation of the churches, charitable organi­ ciety - to provide shared vast army of producers of But just in case we as zations and political parties; power and shared responsibil­ trivia and tinsel, all made women manage to escape the she transfers her domestic ity. out of ticky-tacky encased in brainwashing that assigns us skills - cooking, cleaning Thus, in the legislative ·plastic and guaranteed to be to "our place" in the order of arid protecting the "master" halls women are rev1vmg a nonbiodegradable. things, the language contin­ of the house from intrusion long dormant campaign for ues to get the message - to a new location where constitutional e q u a 1 i t y - But there is* another aspect across. she makes the coffee, types "personhood" under law -: of the peacock syndrome There is a "housewife" but neat letters and screens call­ in an effort to break out of which is even more devastat­ no "househusband ; " there's ers for the "master" of the the stu!tifying cocoon of sec­ ing because it has succeeded a "housemother" b u t no office; she takes her superior ond-dass citizenship. We're in keeping more than half the "housefather;" there's a education into the market­ learning that some men put i>opulation in a state of semi­ "kitchenmaid" but no place and trades her BA, MA us on pedestals so they won't bondage, trapped in limited "kitchenman;" unmarried or PhD for a new title as have to look us in the eye. ------~ ------, ;. ~--~ •· ...... -.-: #... -- ... ..;.,; ..• -· ..

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WOMEN'S RIGHTS - Women demonstrators march sored by the National Organization for Women. down New York City's Fifth Avenue in support of a of new feminists is restructuring of society to provide nationwide "Strike for Equality." March was spon- tor o shoring of power and a sharing of responsibility.

We're learning that while ions with blatant discrimina­ tims of male-developed deci­ to survive the seventies, it is eighty-two Senators have tion against women and are sions which will dramati-cally necessary that we commit sponsored our equal rights making the charges stick. affect their lives. Having been ourselves to hastening the de­ amendment, many are now NOW is engaged in a major programmed for the "moth­ struction of the "peacock suggesting that they didn't media-monitoring campaign, erhood mystique" from the syndrome'' - in all its rami­ really mean it - or worse surveying the employment of cradle, women are now being ficat.ions. After all why emu­ still, didn't know what they women in radio and televi· told that they bear the major late the peacock; it's a bird were sponsoring. What a sad sion and also the image of responsibility for overpopula­ which can barely fly and commentary on the -caliber of women portrayed in pro­ tion and it is time to ''stop at. that's a hell of a trade-off for legislative representation! grams and advertising, with two." The new feminist re­ a bu-nch of pretty tailfeath­ Women are also learning a view toward seeking revo­ jects the dictation, if not the ers! that it isn't enough to get a cation of station licenses, goal, and insists on her right A-ileen C. Herna-ndez' ac­ law passed; we are learning w h e r e discrimination is to control her own reproduc­ tivist o u. t l o o k took to-rm that the price of liberty is in­ found, or demanding equal tive processes, her right to u>hen shP tnrts n un:ive·rsity deed eternal vigilance and time where programming or share responsibility for rear­ we're sitting on the doorsteps advertising is particularly of­ ing children with men, her st-udent in Washington· D.C. (literally and figuratively) fensive. Women are challeng­ right to the "one person, one where she hod to wa# for of agencies charged with the ing the judicial system to vote" participation in deci­ the "Negro taxi'' in the come out of the dark ages. sion-making, her right to her responsibility_ of enforcing then-;,;egregalerl nat i~D -n ''" -identity. the law. Determined women and view the female of the capital. Since then, shr. has species as a full partner in 11re filing (;harges with tht. .~erved as labor union o·r­ the society, a thinking human Equal Employment Oppor· A n d, interestingly,* the ganizer, assista11t chief ot tunity Commiss~on (enforcers being, capable of making her male converts to the new own decisions and determin­ the Crtlifomia Divis.ion ot of Title VII of the 1964 Civil feminism are learning that Fair Employment Practices. ing her own destiny. The Unit­ Rights Act), with the Office women's liberation means and commissioner of thr. ed States Supreme Court has of Federal Contract Compli­ men's liberation as well. In V.S. Eq·ual Employment Op­ ance (monitoring the employ­ agreed to hear the complaint the new society men will be port-unity Commission. Mr:.. ment practices of contractors of an Orlando woman who free of the limiting stereo· Hernandez has been long i11- with the federal government was denied employment be­ types of the "masculine mys­ cause she had pre-school age volved in proble:ms. of Mexi­ under Executive Orders 11246 tique" and can seek their can-Americans, as well as children (Ida Phillips vs. own individuality as human and 11375), with the Federal blacks and -women. In 1960, Communications Commission Martin Marietta C o r p o ·r a­ beings unhampered by the she to-ured Latin America (challenging the licensing of tion). restraints imposed by the im­ some radio and TV stations All-male bars, restaurants age of man. the aggressor. for the U.S. State Depa~·t­ ment to add·ress the people whose employment practices and professional groups are They will understand the and programming fail to "desexagrating" under the in Spanish on U.S. trade WI irrelevancy o! so many of the ion conditions. She is a con­ meet the requirements of pressure of women who are "masculine" concepts in a federal guidelines). indignant over the public sultant to business, govern­ world of polluted air, polluted ment and educat-ional inst·i­ support of sex discrimination water and devastated land. and are picketing and· dem­ t'tttions ort urban p'roble-ms, Women's civil rights organ­ They will understand that en­ Ptnployment, ho·us·i.ng, se:c izations - like the National onstrating to dramatize the vironment is not just physi­ indignation. atscriutination and raeis·m. Organization for W o m ~ n cal in dimension; it is mental (NOW) and the Women's Eq· and spiritual. uity Action League (WEAL> Environmentalist* grouv:.:. It will profit us little to have charged major employ· cast in the male mold, have clean up our physical envi­ ers, prestigious universitir,-. felt the wrath of won;en whu ronment, if we do not also and colleges, and trade Ull· feel that they are passive vic- clean up our minds. If we are