Category: Powerful Woman of the 80s

How Maya Angelou’s Life Continues to Inspire Change

Dr. Maya Angelou was an activist, poet, dancer, actor, civil rights leader, screenwriter, playwright and so much more. Not only did she win numerous humanitarian awards and received over 50 honorary degrees, but she won and inspired the hearts of more people we will ever know about. She is an iconoclast who spoke truth to…
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August 2, 2024
Thank You for Being a Friend Bea Arthur

Do Bea Arthur and Cyndi Lauper have something in common? Could artist and art be unified in cause? Did Bea Arthur inspire me and change me in my 50’s? Yes. The Golden Girls is a rare and special gem in entertainment. A television sitcom that premiered in 1985 captured the hearts of the Silent Generation,…
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July 26, 2024
Original Batgirl Yvonne Craig Fought More Than Jokers

Are there Gen Z fans of the original Batgirl? Was a ballet dancer turned actress also an activist? Did she fight more than Jokers? If we are talking about Yvonne Craig? Absolutely! A few weeks ago a 20 year old reached out to me on Instagram and asked if I knew who Yvonne Craig was.…
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July 19, 2024
Fem Friday’s Heather Lost Her Dad and Found Truths

Today’s Fem Friday is by reader request. The reader was also a subject of one the Fem Friday features and has appeared in other stories we have told. Today is a conversation with my dear friend, Heather. Heather was a teenager and Madonna fan who found herself homeless in a Mall when we met. Her…
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July 12, 2024
Cyndi Lauper and Other Powerful Women Pass the Torch

As the Era of Cyndi Lauper comes to an end with her final tour she passes the torch to Taylor Swift who is on her Eras tour! When I asked for reader feedback and ideas for Fem Fridays, Gen X Watch reader Charity asked for articles where I project who the future Fem Fridays would…
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July 5, 2024
Jodie Foster is the Freaky Fem Friday a Fan Wanted!

Was there an actor who was part of my childhood? Did she make movies with important statements? When outed without consent did she take back the narrative of her life? Is she mentor to many? And are there lessons we can learn from a mistake? If we are talking about 2 time Oscar Winner Jodie…
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June 28, 2024
Make Your Mark: Contribute to the Next Fem Friday!

One of the most beautiful things about Fem Fridays is the comments you share. Sometimes they are on the article, other times they are in various social media outlets. The fact that so many of you connect with the stories about these amazing women we write about means the world. The point of Fem Friday…
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June 21, 2024
Tiffany and the Little Things That Mattered in Malls

In August of 1987 I was visiting some friends in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. It is a small town on the East Side of Madison. Everyone I knew was busy one day so I went to the East Towne Mall. I got there early and the mall was not crowded…yet. But it was about to be…
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June 14, 2024
Why Fem Friday: Powerful Women’s Stories and Struggles

Why does a guy tell Fem Friday stories? Do the stories matter? And what can we do together? Why Fem Fridays Started After my second Fem Friday, a progressive minister told me that a woman should be writing these stories. I told him that I’m a feminist and intentional representation matters. He then told me…
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June 7, 2024
Pat Benatar is All Fired Up to Be Invincible

Can a bank teller become a rockstar? Can ideals survive realities of misogyny? Is love a battlefield and is hell for children? Pat Benatar’s life and music says yes. Shine Pat Benatar was raised in a home where female empowerment and equality was the norm. She was taught that women were equal and could accomplish…
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May 31, 2024