By Mackenzie Vance
As more than 20,000 attendees flocked to the 1977 National Women’s Conference (NWC), they did so with excitement and a desire to speak their minds. In a crowd that large, the odds of spending any time at the microphone were slim; yet, the point of the conference was to be heard. So, conference participants did what anyone at a mass gathering would do. They made signs, buttons, and hats that expressed their views in a single phrase or picture. Participants used their skills with a sewing machine, paint, or permanent makers – practices they learned inside the domestic bubble – to break into the political sphere and bring their ideas to life. This visual cacophony of thoughts and ideas tells us just as much about the conference as the spirited debates and fiery speeches on the floor of the Sam Houston Coliseum.
Even before the conference’s opening gavel, Houston women took the lead in setting the visual tone for the NWC. Marion Coleman, a local printshop owner who ran House of Coleman, gained a reputation in the 1970s for producing signs, posters, and other materials in support of local feminist causes. When it came time to design and print programs for the conference, House of Coleman was tapped for the project. Coleman and her team created a glossy 78-page program filled with schedules and event information for attendees alongside historical photographs of suffrage parades from the Smithsonian Institute. NWC presiding officer and peace advocate Bella Abzug became outraged by the program’s back cover featuring a 1915 war poster aimed at women reading, “If you want to fight, join the Marines.” She demanded the covers be ripped off, but staff members talked Abzug down, and the delegates received the programs with the back cover intact. Though the process was not always smooth, Coleman left her mark on the conference through her expertise in design.
When the conference began on November 18, 1977, women from across the country brought their unique passions and ideals to display in front of television cameras and photographers. By visually representing their beliefs, conference participants sought support and community with likeminded feminists and antifeminists both in Houston and with the national audience watching at home. For some of these women, it was the first time they had expressed their ideas in a group that large. The excitement they felt not only in gathering but in taking a step forward as a movement is reflected in their protest and advocacy materials.
One of the biggest debates of the conference centered on passage of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). At the time of the conference, the ERA remained three states shy of ratification and a question lingered about whether efforts should continue to push it over the finish line. For some women, putting pressure on states to ratify the ERA was their most important message, and they carried signs with the phrase “ERA YES!” The delegates from Texas even attached an “ERA YES!” sticker to their section marker signs. While this simple slogan was popular, other participants expanded on the idea. One delegate from Maryland, Betty Hamburger, sported a hard hat with the message “Pro God, Pro Family, Pro ERA.” In creating and wearing this hat, Hamburger showed a desire to display her support for the ERA and to refute the idea that the ERA and family were antithetical.
Though the majority of NWC attendees backed the ERA, support for the amendment was not universal. Some women feared that the ERA was too radical, and passage would prevent any further progress. Photos of the conference show a number of women wearing ribbons attached to their name badges emblazoned with the word “Majority” to express their anti-ERA sentiment. By utilizing the word “Majority,” women pushed back against the assumption that all the delegates identified as feminists or favored the ERA. They also created an environment where those who were skeptical about the amendment could express concern or dissent without being ostracized by supporters.
Another controversial topic at the conference was abortion. With Roe v. Wade decided only four years before the conference, the majority of the delegates possessed recent memory of a time when abortion access lacked legal protection. This living memory still haunted many delegates. Photos of the conference show a multitude of small posters bearing the image of a crossed out coat hanger, a visceral image expressing the desire for women to have access to safe abortions rather than resorting to dangerous, homespun procedures. Another photo shows a group of three women in the balcony holding up a large, handwritten banner reading, “If men got pregnant abortion would be sacred.” There is no doubt that even from the balcony, the entirety of the arena could see the sign, which appears to span roughly twelve feet across a railing. It is easy enough to throw a small poster and few buttons into your suitcase, but these three women took time and effort to bring this message to the convention.
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Read “American Women on the Move,” a publication from the NWC that includes buttons and flyers from the conference.
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