women's suffrage, Michael and music

2018 marks the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage in Nova Scotia. Specifically, April 26, 1918 was the date the bill was passed in the Provincial Legislature. Other Provinces celebrate other dates. Britain also  marks its 100th anniversary this year; However, none were universal suffrage; there were limits to women. For example,  being 30 or older, Homeowners or married to  Homeowners. Wider enfranchisement came later.

I arrived in Canada on March 15th 1970. I was sleeping on a friend's "Davenport".  Couch surfing before it was a thing. I had no job, only a suitcase and dreams. There were no Sunday papers, so 6 days a week I scoured the classified columns for employment, which was scant at that moment. But I did enjoy reading the paper from front sheet to back. There was a lot of talk about the "Women;s movement". Possibly sparked by the March 20th news item - 

Betty Friedan gave her farewell address as outgoing president of NOW (the National Organization of Women), and called for a nationwide women’s strike on August 26 (the 50th anniversary of winning the vote.  Although, it took the 1965 Voting Rights Act to ensure Black women could execute that right which the 19th Amendment should have granted in 1920.) As the momentum for a women's march built,  and the myth of bra-burners gathered steam, I found most of the people in my new circle were strongly modernists in their outlook. The circle of friends and acquaintances all supported a wider role for women in society. That included the males. 

As noted above, Women getting the vote, women working side by side with men in factories throughout two wars, was not enough to break the many barriers that women faced in life. Regardless of race, ethnicity or status. It was these invisible, but very durable barriers that women needed to break. 

Women had been successful in music and the entertainment industry in limited numbers, but the music itself did not address their struggle and receive wide distribution. 

It took until 1971 for music to catch up. 

Helen Reddy's feminine anthem I am Woman, was out in 1971 on her debut LP but was not a single until 1972 when it topped the charts. Of course, it went on to win the Grammy for single of the year and in her acceptance speech, Helen Reddy, thanked a female God. It was a pivotal moment for increasing awareness of the issue.  Also in 1971, Carly Simon released That's The Way. Although that shortened title belies the mood of the song which the full sentence conveys very well: That's the Way I've Always Heard It Should Be". It's about a young woman coming of age and seeing her parents unhappy marriage & friends mindlessly settling down and giving up on their dreams.Not sure why, but I bought the 45 when I did not have a record player. Still have it in fact. (Just to re-deem myself, let me clarify, I had a cassette player & a friend put it on a cassette for me to hear in my bare bones bachelor apartment!)

These are the Helen and Carly numbers:

I am Woman - Helen Reddy

That's The Way - Carly Simon

A final thought, regardless of these decades of increasing power and control for women, the #metoo movement has made it clear that society has far to go still. If you are young and powerless when seeking employment, women face not just "barriers" but harassment as men remain the gatekeepers to the entry to so many paths. Mind you, it is clear, young men face similar harassment in many industries, too.