American Masters Honors Feminist Trailblazer Bella Abzug with New Documentary for Women’s History Month
Bella! This Woman’s Place is in the House explores new revelations on the social activist’s courageous battles on behalf of women, people with disabilities, the LGBTQ+ community and more.
During a time when women couldn’t get a credit card in their own name and other marginalized groups were fighting for political, social and economic rights, Bella Abzug became an outspoken leader for equality. She opened The National Women’s Conference, the largest gathering of feminists in US history, which was seen as a turning point for a new wave of feminism. Considered one of the first feminists to be elected to Congress, Abzug challenged an almost all-male Congress head first, blazing a path for future gender equality in all aspects of American government. In celebration of Women’s History Month, follow the meteoric rise of this firebrand politician and activist in American Masters – Bella! This Woman’s Place is in the House, premiering nationwide Tuesday, March 17 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/americanmasters and the PBS App. The film was a joint winner of the 2022 Library of Congress Lavine/Ken Burns Prize for Film.
Featuring archival footage, never-before-seen home videos and original interviews, Bella! This Woman’s Place is in the House chronicles Abzug’s path as a revolutionary activist who fought for the rights of women, people of color and the LGBTQ+ community. New interviews from key figures including Barbra Streisand, Nancy Pelosi, Gloria Steinem, Hillary Clinton, Marlo Thomas and Shirley MacLaine highlight how Abzug influenced many contemporary female leaders and how her work as a champion of civil rights continues to resonate.
Born Bella Savitzky in New York on July 24,1920 to Jewish parents, Abzug credited her early religious upbringing for her feminist ideologies. After graduating from Walton High School in the Bronx, she majored in political science at Hunter College and subsequently received a law degree from Columbia University. She was admitted to the New York Bar in 1945, when there were very few female attorneys, and opened her own practice focusing on civil liberties and labor rights. She notably appealed the case against Willie McGee, a Black man wrongfully convicted of raping a white woman in Mississippi and was sentenced to death. Although Abzug lost the appeal, she didn’t let the corruption of the Jim Crow South stop her continued fight for social justice.
In 1970, Abzug launched a campaign for United States Congress and was elected as a House Representative for lower Manhattan – which made her one of 12 female House Members in Washington D.C. at that time. She called for the immediate end of The Vietnam War and vocalized her condemnation of the war to President Richard Nixon. Abzug also joined the likes of Gloria Steinem, Betty Friedan and Shirley Chisholm to found the National Women’s Political Caucus, an organization that advocated for women in government.
Despite institutional resistance to her activism, Abzug was unflinching in her fight for gender equality. Her trailblazing efforts led to bills granting women credit cards in their own names and allowing “Ms.” as a valid designation on government documents. She also proposed the first legislation that would grant historic protections to the LGBTQ+ community, and scored legislative wins for the disabled, public transportation and a monumental childcare bill that passed the House, but ultimately was vetoed by Nixon. In her later years, Abzug co-founded the Women’s Environment and Development Organization and developed the Women’s Caucus as part of the United Nations, further showcasing her determination to establish a more equitable society.
