Feisty Female Friday: Bella Abzug

The FFF this week is Bella Abzug.

Bella was a U.S. congresswoman and lawyer who founded liberal political organizations for women, was a supporter of equal rights for women, and an opponent of the Vietnam War.

She was the daughter of Russian-Jewish immigrants and attended Hunter College and Columbia University Law School. After graduation, she divided her time between the practice of civil rights and labor law. Bela defended people who were charged in Senator Joseph McCarthy’s anticommunist crusade, Women Strike for Peace, and protested against the Vietnam War.

Bella was elected to the House of Representatives for the NYC 19th district and was a founder and chair of several of the country’s first liberal political organizations for women. She supported the ERA, a women’s credit-rights bill, abortion rights, and child-care legislation. Her flamboyant manner earned her the nicknames "Battling Bella," "Hurricane Bella," and "Mother Courage.”

With Gloria Steinem and Shirley Chisholm, Bella cofounded the NWPC, which aimed at increasing the participation of women in government. She was named cochairman of the National Advisory Committee on Women by President Jimmy Carter and returned to private law practice, continuing her political and public activities at the end of his term. She was active in Women USA, a contributor to Ms Magazine, worked as a daily news commentator on a television, published a book about women in politics, and was also inducted into the Women’s Hall of Fame.

Bella died in 1998, was married, is survived by two daughters, and her cousin NY politician, Scott Stringer. Bella Abzug Park in NYCity honors her work as feminist, civil rights activist, lawyer, and U.S. Representative who was a staunch supporter of civil liberties and as a leader of the Women's Movement.