By Pepper of the Daily Pepper
Betty Friedan died today, although you might not know it judging from how little press she has received in mainstream news outlets. The best CNN could do was pull out old stock footage of Sharon Stone complimenting her work. Nothing against Stone, but that stock footage was musty. (Hat tip: Faith, Doubt, and the American Way.) I'm hoping that we'll hear more about her death tomorrow but it's likely to be buried in Super Bowl-related news.
Even on an RSS-feed level, I was surprised to see that her death didn't rank as high as the death of Coretta Scott King. Both women fought passionately for equal rights and made a direct contribution on the way we live now. Without them, women and African Americans would still be subordinates - shoved to the back of the bus or the kitchen. Without her, women might still be in the kitchen. Even conservative female leaders, the Condoleezza Rices and the Karen Hughes owe a tremendous debt to Betty Friedan, but she'll never get a word of thanks from them, unless it's a sneaky PR move.
