I hear that women-centered movies are now referred to as counterprogramming. That's what Bea Arthur did for women; she provided counterprogramming for us, but on television. The video clip below is from an episode of Maude on the subject of abortion; it ran two months before Roe v. Wade became the law of the land. It is, I think, a good example of how the good old days of the 1970s were, in many ways, more liberal than any days we've seen since.
As one of the stars of Golden Girls, Ms. Arthur became part of a beloved family ritual for myself and my daughters. She will be missed.
Bea Arthur died on Saturday at age 86.
Video via Gloria Feldt's tribute to Bea Arthur:
Maude, already a grandmother in her late 40's, decides she should not go through with the pregnancy and has an abortion. Watch the video to see how her daughter speaks of abortion as it should be. It was a little slice of realism rarely seen today, when the option of abortion is so often pushed again into the virtual back room and rarely mentioned in pop culture.
Arthur won Emmys for both "Maude" and "Golden Girls". She was inducted into Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame in 2008, an honor well-deserved for her lifetime of extraordinary work.
Photo via Broadsheet: Remembering Bea Arthur, feminist TV pioneer, AP/Reed Saxon: Beatrice Arthur accepts an Emmy award for "The Golden Girls" in 1988.
Feminist Politics Progressive News Gender Equality Abortion
