Photographs Copyright © Diana Mara Henry . No reproduction without written permission.
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Billie Jean King comments for the exhibition
The National Women’s Conference in Houston was a fantastic moment for me. There was excitement, empowerment and enlightenment in the air. It was definitely one of those days that made me feel alive. The enormity of standing shoulder to shoulder with Gloria, Betty, Bella and other pioneers of the women’s movement was almost overwhelming. We knew the times were changing and we knew we were growing. Being part of that moment made me realize so many people had a hand in pushing us forward and making a better life for women and girls. I left Houston that day committed to honoring the dedication and sacrifice that had been made by so many pioneering women. I thought of those who led the nation’s first women’s rights convention in 1848, and many more women, especially women of color, whom we may never know their names, who came before us. They opened the door that brought us together in Houston in November 1977.
We are very fortunate Diana Mara Henry catalogued this piece of history through her moving and historically significant photography. Feminism and the women's movement are now in the fourth or fifth wave and we can never forget these remarkable moments, especially as they continue to influence us today. We have a voice. We learned to use it in 1977 and we're better at using it today.
As we gather to reflect back it is important for us to celebrate and it is healthy for us to remember. History is a call to action. It’s a vehicle for us to shape the future and it is the perfect reminder for us to keep moving forward. It’s why we gathered in Houston in 1977 and what brings us together today.
Billie Jean King
November 19, 2012
Large prints- approximately 13x19 inches on 16x20 paper
all in black and white except this one:
All photographs Copyright © Diana Mara Henry. NO reproduction or distribution of any kind without written permission of Diana Mara Henry.
In color- Last three runners of the torch for the last mile in Houston: Sylvia Ortiz, Peggy Kokernot and Michelle Cearcy.
Susan B. Anthony, great grand-niece of the original, “calling the question” on the ERA.
Torch that was run from Seneca Falls to Houston enters the convention hall in Houston, November, 1977.
Left to right, front row: Billie Jean King, Susan B. Anthony, Bella Abzug, Sylvia Ortiz, Peggy Kokernot, Michelle Cearcy, Betty Friedan.
Diana Mara Henry's most famous and most frequently published image.
Three first ladies and Bella Abzug at the opening of the Conference
Clara McLAughlin, author of the Black Parents’ Handbook, and her daughter
Betty Ford, Member of the President's Commission on International Women's Year, applauds at the opening of the Conference.
Grey Panther advocate Betty Hamburger at the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977
Last moments seen from the stage of the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977. Signer for the deaf looks on at right.
Jean Westwood of Utah, former Chair of the National Democratic Party and a delegate to the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977, speaks from a microphone on the floor of the convention. Coretta Scott King, second from left, listens attentively.
Co-Chair of the Republican National Committee and later President of NARAL, Mary Crisp. a delegate from Arizona to the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977, as she follows the proceedings.
Coretta Scott King applauding the keynote address by Barbara Jordan.
Pensive young delegate with books on her lap, all the above16x20 black and white ( except for the one at top which is a cibachrome color print) unmounted and unmatted.
SMALLER PRINTS:
Women on the Move: Photographs from the First National Women’s Conference by its official photographer. Copyright © Diana Mara Henry. 42 Black and white prints approx. 6”x9” mounted and overmatted on 11”x14” with masonite backing and glass in clip frames. Many have a small ½ inch square number tag on front and caption adhering to front of glass. Numbers are for identification only.
#60: Seen from the stage of the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977. Signer for the deaf looks on at right. ( also available in 16x20)
#62: At the NASA booth, one woman captures another as an astronaut
#63: Delegate wearing a Viva La Mujer button
"What
a treasure trove you have of memories of Houston and the vibrant
women's movement we created in the 70s. Congratulations."
Carmen Delgado Votaw...
#64: Delegate Freddie Groomes
#65: FNWC Three Commissioners: Elizabeth Athanasakos, GIlda Bojorquez Cjurich
Commissioner ELizabeth Athanasakos (left) and former Commissioner Gilda Bojorquez Cjurich listen attentively to proceedings at the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977. Elizabeth Athanasakos, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida; practicing attorney; Presiding Officer, IWY Commission, 1976; former municipal judge; member, Broward County, Florida and American Bar Associations; President, Florida Association of Women Lawyers, 1976-78; Presidential appointment to Task Force on Women's Rights and Responsibilities, 1969; Atlanta Regional Panel for the President's Commission on White House Fellowships, 1974-76; member, Zonta International; first vice president, Florida Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs, Inc.; American Association of University of Women; Co-chair, ERA Florida, 1977; National Federation of Republican Women Board of Directors, 1976-78; Board of Directors, United Way of Broward County; Chair, Secretary's Advisory Committee on Rights and Responsibilities, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, 1972-74
#67: Grey Panther advocate delegate Betty Hamburger, 73, of Maryland, whose hard hat reads: Pro God, Pro-family, Pro-ERA.” . Speaking for the ERA she said: “What we [older people] want most is life with dignity and respect and an income on which we can live without having to hold out our hands and beg.” Also 16x20 print
.
#68: Gloria Scott,Commissioner fo the President's Commission on the Observance of International Women's Year and National President of the Girl Scouts of America, opens the proceedings of the Conference. She is raising the gavel used during the Women's Rights Convention of 1848 by Susan B. Anthony. (The gavel was loaned for the occasion by Smithsonian Museum of History and Technology, Washington, D.C.
#69: Many Houston policewomen volunteered for guard duty at the Conference.
#48: Phyllis Schlafly, Head of the Stop-ERA movement, holds a press conference in opposition to the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977.
#50: Barbara Jordan, U.S. Representative from Texas, delivering the keynote address at the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977.
#51: Gloria Steinem National Commissioner of the President's Commission on International Women's Year, is interviewed at the conclusion of the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977, by a reporter with a similar style.
#52: A delegate with camera considers the scene at the Conference.
#53: A delegate to the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977, writes in her diary during a debate.
#55: Joan Gubbins, Leader of the anti-Plan of Action delegates at the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977, taking a stand on the floor of the convention against the National Plan of Action.
#57: Puerto Rican Delegate wearing the delegation's straw hat at the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977.
#38: C. Delores Tucker, Secretary of State of Pennsylvania and delegate at large, at microphone, objecting to seating of all-white mostly male delegation from Mississippi.
thereafter.
#45: A delegate expresses her displeasure with the passage of a plank on freedom of sexual preference by raising a home-made sign that reads: “Keep ‘em in the closet” at First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977.
#46: Coretta Scott King, member of the President’s Commission on the Observance on International Women’s Year / IWY, applauds Barbara Jordan’s keynote address at the First National Women’s Conference. ( also in 11 ½ x 15)
#23: Betty Ford, member of the President’s commission on International Women’s Year / IWY, applauds Barbara Jordan’s keynote address at the opening of the First National Women’s Conference. (also in 12x16 )
# 25: The late Margaret “Midge” Costanza, Presidential Assistant, who later replaced Bella Abzug as head of the President’s Commission on International Women's Year, speaks at the First National Women’s Conference, Houston, 1977
#26: Mary Crisp, then Co-Chair of the Republican National Committee and later President of NARAL, a delegate from Arizona to the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977, as she follows the proceedings. ( Also in 16x20)
#27: Elizabeth Holtzman, U.S. Representative of New York, delegate to the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977, with her arms crossed in her lap.
# 31 Delegate Delthia Akiu wearing a “Majority” ribbon representing the anti-ERA sentiment at the First National Women's Conference.
#33: Pat Kery, organizer of torch relay across U.S. from Seneca Falls to Houston, in front of the First National Women's Conference podium, Houston, 1977. She is displaying scroll bearing statement written by Maya Angelou, "To Form a More Perfect Union" and signed by First Ladies and delegates as well as thousands along torch relay route.
#36: High Chief Pulu Peneueta of Pago Pago
A delegate from American Samoa.
#10: A Conference delegate from New York State listens attentively from her wheelchair to the debate on the floor of the convention.
#13 Delegate Agnes Dill of the Isleta Laguna Tribe, New Mexico
#14 L. Mandy Stellman, Delegate from Wisconsin to the First National Women's Conference in Houston, TX, 1977, blows the rape whistle that is her calling card ( she is a lawyer) and applauds the passage of a part of the plan of action which included support of an Equal Rights Amendment, freedom of choice on abortion, support for day care, and banning of discrimination based on sexual preference.
#15: Alice Bibeau (left), homemaker, grandmother, and community activist, and Colleen Wong, college student, 17 years old, both California delegates to the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977.
# 16: At the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977, a participant watches a monitor of Gloria Steinem, who is addressing the convention from the stage.
#17:
Anne Saulnier of Ohio speaking at podium during the Fourth Plenary session at the First National Women's Conference. At right is an interpreter for the hearing-impaired.
Dear Ms. Henry,
Thank you for inviting Mrs. Carter to attend the exhibit and 35th anniversary celebration of the First National Women’s Conference....
She asked that I express her gratitude to you for the kind invitation and send her best wishes for a most successful event.
[signed] Executive Assistant to Rosalynn Carter, The Carter Center
#18: Delegate at the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977 with “Politics is My Bag” bag; "GOP ERA button" half-hidden, and "I am Pro-Plan" sticker.
#19: Jean Westwood of Utah, former Chair of the National Democratic Party and a delegate to the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977, speaks from a microphone on the floor of the convention. Coretta Scott King, second from left, listens attentively.
( also in 16x20”)
#20: Barbara Jordan, US Congresswoman from Texas, signing autographs after giving the keynote address at the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977.
#21” Chief Pulu Penueta High Chief of Pago Pago, American Samoa,
(right), and similarly dressed members of her territory’s delegation to the First National Women’s Conference, Houston, 1977.
#22: Two Farm Women Delegates staying late at the Convention Hall after the second day's proceedings to draft an additional plank for consideration in the National Plan of Action, at First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977.
#8: Delegate with N.O.W. button refers to Robert's Rules of Order, as she asks a question of the Chair during floor debate at the First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977.
#9: Delegates waving bras inscribed with the words "We Didn't Burn Them" in an attempt to correct some historic misinformation, as they demonstrate in favor of the ERA plank of the National Plan of Action at the First National Women's Conference in Houston, TX, 1977.
#70:One of the anti-ERA, anti-abortion, anti-sexual preference delegates at First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977.
#71: A delegate at First National Women's Conference, Houston, 1977, wearing a National Women’s Political Caucus button and ribbons reading “Family” and “ERA” smiles as she looks up from her needlepoint.
# 72: A delegate wearing an “I am Pro-Plan”button raises her fist in assent during debate. ( Don't have a scan of this one.)
All photographs Copyright © Diana Mara Henry. NO reproduction or distribution of any kind without written permission of Diana Mara Henry.
Thank you. Email us or call 802-334-7054
Back to home page for Women on the Move....back to Diana Mara Henry home page.....email us for more information to schedule this exhibitand/or Diana Mara Henry as speaker