International Women's Day - Blair McPherson

The Black Panthers, the Vietnam war, Bob Dylan and the woman's liberation movement, this is the New York scene in the Late 60's early 70's. The story is set in the open plan office of a weekly magazine, the editor, deputy editor and all the journalists are white males, all the researchers are female. It soon becomes clear that the women do all the leg work, come up with the most creative ideas, have the most engaging interview styles and make the coffee. What they don't do is get their names on the published articles and they are beginning to resent it. 

The story focuses on three young women researchers, one is married with a husband who has,"given " her a year before she must give up work to start a family. Another comes from a very privileged background whose wealth parents think work is just a means to secure the right husband. The third is an ambitious and talented "career girl".  All three are "good girls" in that they do what is expected of them. Up until now. 

They must rally the other women in office to lodge a joint law suit demanding the magazine offers them the same opportunities as the men but the men must not find out in advance or editor will sack them. All this to a back ground in which " The times they are a changing". 

The women are about to find out its one thing having rights it another to exercise them. 

It's great period drama, one in which you care about the characters. The men are not portrayed as villains or sexist pigs but insensitive, confused and a bit pathetic.   It's a challenge to those who think the passing and extending of equality legislation has brought about opportunities  for all. It's uncomfortable  viewing for a man not because of what has happened in the past but because so little has changed.

In a climate where sections of the media complain about political correctness where some argue we no longer need equality laws and others argue we can no longer afford them, the relevance is clear.

 

The question is will an outsourced, shrunken, underfunded local government be able and willing to defend equality of opportunity against the social and political forces that led to Brexit and the election of Donald Trump? 

Blair McPherson former director of community services www.blairmcpherson.co.uk 

Good Girls Revolt is on Amerzon Prime