In 1970, a group of women from the National Organization for Women

ferried across the water to the Statue of Liberty with fabric hidden underneath their dresses.

They had it bunched up over their stomachs to make them look like this massive contingency of pregnant women. Then, when they got to the statue, they climbed up and put the fabric together,

draping and over the railing to form a gigantic banner.

It read, Women of the World Unite.

They proceeded to take over the monument, singing, playing guitar, dancing,

doing a kickline, all until the police were finally cold.

Now, this demonstration from 1970 was led by the great Ivy Botini, who I was incredibly

sad to learn died just a few days ago. She was 94 years old. And over the course of those

94 years, Ivy had a truly brilliant career of service.

She got her start working with Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan in the 60s. She helped

found the first chapter of the National Organization for Women. She was a core part of their

leadership team until she was kicked out of the movement for being a lesbian. But true to

her character, she did not let this stop her.

Ivy promptly moved to Los Angeles and joined the fight for LGBTQ rights.

It is there in Los Angeles where I got to know Ivy.

She was living in West Hollywood right down the street from me, it turned out.

So one day, I walked over, rang her doorbell, and she invited me inside.

I spent a few afternoons there with her going through stacks of paintings she'd made,

hearing stories, and yes, one day I brought my mic to record.

So this interview that you're about to hear is from January of 2019.

It originally aired on the Luminary app, and I wanted to re-air it now to celebrate the life

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