Bella Abzug: How One Tough Broad from the Bronx Fought Jim Crow and Joe McCarthy, Pissed Off Jimmy Carter, Battled for the Rights of Women and ... Planet, and Shook Up Politics Along the Way

By Suzanne Braun Levine

Book Overview

"I've been described as a tough and noisy woman, a prize fighter, a man-hater, you name it. They call me Battling Bella, Mother Courage, and a Jewish mother with more complaints than Portnoy. There are those who say I'm impatient, impetuous, uppity, rude, profane, brash, and overbearing. Whether I'm any of those things, or all of them, you can decide for yourself.?But whatever I am--and this ought to made?very clear--I am a very serious woman." ? For more than fifty years, Bella Abzug championed the powerless and disenfranchised, as an activist,?congresswoman,?and leader in every major social initiative of her time-from Zionism and labor in the 40s to the ban-the-bomb efforts in the 50s, to civil rights and the anti-Vietnam War movements of the 60s, to the women's movement in the 70s and 80s, to enviromnemtal awareness and economic equality in the 90s. Her political idealism never waning, Abzug gave her final public speech before the U.N. in March 1998, just a few weeks before her death. Presented in the voices of both friends and foes, of those who knew, fought with, revered, and struggled alongside her, this oral biography will be the first comprehensive account of a woman who was one of our most influential leaders. Suzanne Braun LevineandMary Thomare both nationally recognized authorities on women's issues. Most recently, Levine is the author ofInventing the Rest of Livesand Thom is the author ofInside Ms. Bella Azbug said, "I've been described as a tough and noisy woman, a prize fighter, a man-hater, you name it. They call me Battling Bella, Mother Courage, and a Jewish mother with more complaints than Portnoy. There are those who say I'm impatient, impetuous, uppity, rude, profane, brash, and overbearing. Whether I'm any of those things, or all of them, you can decide for yourself.?But whatever I am-and this ought to made?very clear-I am a very serious woman." ? For more than fifty years, Bella Abzug championed the powerless and disenfranchised, as an activist, congresswoman, and?leader in every major social initiative of her time-from Zionism and labor in the 40s to the ban-the-bomb efforts in the 50s, to civil rights and the anti-Vietnam War movements of the 60s, to the women's movement in the 70s and 80s, to environmental?awareness and economic equality in the 90s. Her political idealism never waning, Abzug gave her final public speech before the U.N. in March 1998, just a few weeks before her death. Presented in the voices of both friends and foes, of those who knew, fought with, revered, and struggled alongside her, this oral biography will be the first comprehensive account of a woman who was one of our most influential leaders. "Abzug was certainly a major player in our change in attitudes in the second part of the past century [and] Suzanne Braun Levine and Mary Thom give us a fascinating glimpse into [an] inspirational but undeniably peculiar period that is receding, all too quickly, into the past."-Carolyn See,The Washington Post "A fabulous read about a breed of politician now largely extinct . . . Levine and Thom have crafted a history that brings to life one of the great political personalities of the twentieth century."-Alice Echols,Bookforum ? "Abzug was certainly a major player in our change in attitudes in the second part of the past century [and] Suzanne Braun Levine and Mary Thom give us a fascinating glimpse into [an] inspirational but undeniably peculiar period that is receding, all too quickly, into the past."-Carolyn See,The Washington Post ? "[A] fluid, sharply ed

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0374299528
• ISBN13: 9780374299521
• Release Date: November 2007
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.33 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.8" x 1.0" x 5.8"

Customer Reviews

Hats Off to a Great Read

It's an inspiring, but ultimately dynamic true-to-life account--of how one woman really did make a difference in this world. Accomplishing this difference pre-internet era and before 'packaged candidate' times is what keeps the reader perpetually hooked. An outsider in every sense of the term starting from her childhood, Bella Savitsky Abzug crusaded for her causes merely because it was the right thing to do. She was not expecting fame or fortune to come from this work, she saw injustice and wanted to correct it. After admittance to the bar, she went down south to defend African Americans, motivated by that sense of fairness rather than money. This work and other even caught the eye of Richard M. Nixon, placing her on his infamous 'enemies list', something which she undoubtedly took as an honor. Her being noticed by the system meant that the cages were being rattled and they knew their time was up. The only machine which she was a member of was her own. Throughout each battle, her devoted husband Martin was proud to have supported her, not at all ashamed to 'Bella's husband'. One can only imagine what the outlets attacking Hillary for being a 'nutcracker' would have said about Bella. She too enjoyed being a wife and a mother. But she also transgresed established gender norms at seemingly every turn. Even when elected to public office, she did not quietly fall in line with what the rest of the Party electorate expected her to go along with. It's definently a holiday gift item to inspire the women in our lives. But guys also wanting a solid example of what quality community organizing actually is need to get this book.