thank you very much. thanks forit is my pleasure to e our h class faculty moderator for this conversation. linda bill ms., who serves as the daniel patrick senior lecturer in public policy, professor bill ms. teaches budgeting, cost accounting, public finances for our graduate students as well as workshops, newly elected mayors and, members of congress. since 2005, she has led the boston applied field that advances academic program in

which teams of students volunteer to assist local communities on projects related to public finance and operations. bridging academic learning in a way that supports local communities where. delighted to hope to have linda here with us today as she was also. her first job was a support team for the congresswoman. so, linda, i turn it over to you. thank you. well, thank you so much to the women in public policy center for sponsoring this important thank you for everything the women public policy does. and i think you will hear that many of the things that women in public policy center have done and special thanks to professor arizona who is here, the co-founder of wep many of the things actually date back to the

woman we about to hear about margaret heckler. i actually revised my comments today in view of everything that we are going through here over last 24 hours and weekend at harvard, you know, to say that, you know, today, harvard, we are witnessing something precious and something rare and something that perhaps we didn't even know we had. that is courage real courage. courage to stand up for what is right. courage to stand up for the constitution when courage is not partizan. we saw vice president mike pence risk his life to stand for the constitution on april 6th, 2001. we've seen students risk all kinds of things over the past year to stand up for what they believe is right. but what if your own mother in

law was one of the most courageous women in? american history and people don't know her story? a woman who came of age in the men era but whose efforts to stand up for the rights of women gave us the right to have a bank account in her own name to have a credit card in our own name, to buy a car in our own name a woman gave us title nine. a woman fought for the equal rights amendment. a woman who spoke truth to power about vietnam. to president johnson, a woman who spoke truth to power about aids to president reagan. a woman who went to china and was one of the first women to do so. and a woman who led by her faith, always stood up. what was right in her mind.

so what this woman is your mother in law and you want this story to be told kimberly heckler. the daughter law with the help of belinda heckler mulligan. margaret heckler's daughter have done something extremely courageous in their own right, which is to tell this story to write this biography, which is already sold out of its first run. we were in an event last at the queen club that was completely out. she has a massive event tonight at boston where margaret heckler was one of the very first women. the only woman in her class, first women to graduate from boston college law school and this woman born and orphaned as margaret mary katherine

o'shaughnessy, the daughter of irish immigrants grew to accomplish so much so i am really delighted to introduce kimberly heckler the author to talk to you about a woman who among other things, she will give you a fantastic look at this was a representative in congress from massachusetts republic and representative for 16 years she was the lead sponsor of the equal credit opportunity. she served as secretary of health education and welfare. it was and human services today and then was u.s. ambassador to ireland the only woman in history to this trifecta. thank you so much for sponsoring this seminar. webb and i'm so delighted and to introduce a very special new author, kimberly heckler thank.

well, thank you, nicole carter. quinn, for inviting us today. thank you professor linda bell. ms. who i have had the opportunity of knowing now for about eight years through phone conversation stations, and i finally get to meet her, which is honor alicia, mikayla, everyone, that's made this possible and thank you. harvard kennedy school women in public program so we're to be here. thank you. i've always been touch with my destiny these were the words spoken by the honorable margaret m heckler margaret has a place in american history but her story has never been told. president jimmy carter once said

to the women were unsung and sometimes their contributions went unnoticed. but achievements, leadership, courage, strength and love of. the women who built america was as vital as that of the men whose names we know so well. margaret heckler beginnings were fragile. born to irish immigrant during the great depression in new york, she was given away at birth. but in spite of her many challenges, she recorded vised that there was a divine direction to her path she attended all girl catholic schools on scholarship. one of her early childhood dreams was to become a lawyer. harvard law just opened their doors to women in 1950.

in 1953, just three years later, margaret osborne sc applied and was accepted into harvard law school. newly married her husband john decided he wanted to attend harvard. this circumstance can set off an alarm for the dean of the law school, who called the young couple, ushering them into his office after. dean griswold said, we have never had a husband and wife in the same class. it is not advisable. it would put a terrible strain on your marriage. harvard had begun accepting women only the three years prior, so the deans theory was largely untested. nonetheless, his opinion went unquestioned. dean griswold felt that female

law students would at best attend part time because they would marry, get pregnant and take time off to raise children. griswold did not. the idea of women taking man's place at the law school. three more years would pass before bader ginsburg in 1956 attended harvard law. margaret heckler and ruth bader ginsburg were not aware of it, but they were leading parallel lives, pushing against barriers of, rampant sexual discrimination. at a time when few women a law career, both women were raised in new york. ginsburg brooklyn. heckler long island. and they both married men who supported quest to become lawyers. both women trail blazed paths to the judicial and political attainments in united states.

facing the dean, margaret said, well, tell me about the other surrounding law schools. it was said there was boston university and college. margaret transferred in was accepted to boston college law school as. the only woman in her law class she watched a third of her male classmates flunk out and finished tops sixth. the experience she and she had attending school with all empowered her but the world was not for women to take on roles strictly held by men in of her professional endeavors. the path was simply not there. she would need to cut it as she went along in mid 1950s, only 1% of women in america were lawyers. after graduation, when

interviewed with a top boston law firm, the hiring partner told her, your credentials are. excellent, but we will never hire a woman attorney. you're a mother. you can't be serious about being a lawyer. ironically, some 16 years later, after she a member of congress, she a letter from the same man asking for her endorsement, for his candidacy for a judgeship. she replied that anyone who had exhibited that kind of attitude, women should not be sitting the bench, and she couldn't possibly take his candidacy seriously. after law, for ten years, the law led her into the exhilarating world of politics. margaret heckler would soon enter rooms where few women had been invited before with the kennedy dynasty dominating

massachusetts. her husband, john, advised her run as a republican. she then started attending republican fundraisers. would need to run against. joseph w martin, a 42 year congressional incumbent and two time speaker of the house representatives who set about running. if you've beaten one woman, you've beaten them all over the some summer campaign months while joe martin eating lobster on the cape margaret heckler could be seen in massachusetts in the 10th district from wellesley down to fall river. shaking hands with a message, vote for peggy heckler for the congress. she went the constituents. was in the train stations and caught the boston business commuters. she was in factories supermarkets and. morning coffees. she was like confetti.

margaret heckler was everywhere while campaigning and at the west roxbury trance script advised margaret, you need to get in a man's world. you need to dress like them. when asked about her wardrobe, she replied, it's a costume designed to help me blend into the gray mass or to used to sky, so that the voters are forced to unconsciously identify me with the issues and to forget about the fact that i was a woman. her friend, governor volpi, a republican, attempted pressure. margaret out of the race. he advised her, you might have a better shot. you run at some future time. but the five foot two inch 35 year old mother of three said, i'm waiting. many american women in, the 1950s and sixties, were housewives. and television portrayed. them wearing aprons and baking

cakes on shows like i love lucy and leave it to beaver. television left powerful impression on women. the sixties who yearned that lifestyle. even college educated women. by 1967, margaret heckler, the only newly elected woman to congress coming in with 70 men, including george h.w. bush. margaret was a woman in a man's world and a republican in a democrat state. on the day she was sworn in, she overheard two of her colleagues over her shoulders saying, have that secretary get on the floor of the congress. as one of only ten women in congress. asked lots of questions and took advice easily. the same newspaper editor that told her to blend in with the men called her and said, i didn't see you during lbj's

state of the union address. where were you? margaret replied. you told me to dress like a man. ditch those things, he said. you've got to be seen now. her colors changed overnight. the media reported that representative margaret heckler was seen wearing a bright raspberry on monday. and on wednesday, a lovely lavender suit. she was in media sensation and drew welcome and unwelcome attention. she kept a sign on her desk that read whatever women do, they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good. luckily, this is not difficult. early into margaret's first term president lyndon agreed to meet the group of new republican congress members and asked if they had any questions. margaret's hand up first. all little lady. he said.

what's your mind? margaret responded. mr. president, how longer is the vietnam war going to go on? we why aren't we not getting truthful information? johnson exploded. he yelled and he cast about the protesters outside his window. when he finished his tirade, margaret replied, with all due respect, mr. president, you still didn't answer my question. margaret heckler had to be bold. she had to think like a man, look like a girl. and like a dog. her sheer determination and tenacity would serve her well during. the ensuing battles ahead in congressional lady's reading room. the women were not chatty. they were like queen bees in charge of their own hives. many of the congresswoman got

their by taking the place of their husbands. others, like margaret, were elected in their own right. this left several cross current issues. margaret believed that since the now 16 women in the house were in stark minority to the men they needed come together in solidarity in order to be heard. such issues like breast cancer testing. only on men and male rats. women not receiving child support payments. and inequalities with women's social security payments were just a few of the concerns facing at that time. margaret had a plan. she would a dinner and invite both sides of the aisle to. her home. the first, all female congressional gathering was in

mclean virginia. however the women had different views and they didn't want to be dominated. the views that were not their own. it would take another year for the women to on the virtues of establishing such a group. congresswoman patricia schroeder, a democrat from colorado, said margaret, was the mother it all. she was the one that wanted that took the lead on a stable showing. the congresswoman's caucus, when margaret received award on behalf of the caucus, stated it was one of her proud achievements during her career in congress as former representative of senator olympia snowe, a republican, maine said the caucus that margaret's vision created laid the groundwork for all the other that were achieved by organizing this group of women where they could work internally to make a

difference. the congresswoman's caucus created the office of women's health, which led to the women's health initiative. this created the largest study trail from hormone therapy to cervical cancer, including a 150,000 and women. a major initiative that is still producing results today. also, family medical leave. pension reform. child enforcement. the other major programs produced by the congresswoman's caucus. snow went on to say that the congresswoman's caucus was a landmark and in congressional leadership, that sets an example of bypass that we could work together in spite of our differences. since the caucus is formed almost 50 years ago, 125 women have been elected to the house

of representatives, up from 16. in 1977. as heartening as the progress for women was, the old boys club prevailed. after walking on the speaker's balcony one day to enjoy the sunshine, representative patricia schroeder stumbled across a group of congressmen with their trousers down, sunning themselves on what they had an exclusively male balcony. we strangers in paradise, margaret said, as a lawyer and congresswoman in the 1970s and before margaret heckler had no right to credit in own name. she joined the banking and currency committee, which was comprised of 37 men. a widow and margaret. margaret believed that women were to receive credit in their names without the of signatures of husbands.

fathers. she found opposition, though, where least expected it from a woman. eleanor sullivan, a democrat from missouri and a widow, was the only other woman serving on the banking and currency committee. john b sullivan as was known to be called, felt strongly that women would not be responsible enough. pay their bills and i will support such a law. margaret turned and asked her, how is it that you, a widow, are getting by? i'm sure all of your credit have been canceled. well, i have kept my dead husband's rolls alive. margaret heckler's. bipartisan skills of building consensus put the ban. the men on the banking committee at ease. it would take another year to convince sullivan. margaret when to use the velvet

glove and when to turn on the fire. the equal credit opportunity act was signed into law by president ford on october 28th, 1974, which stated that you could no longer discriminate based on sex or status in the areas of credit banks. financial institutions were required law to extend credit to women in all forms credit cards, car loans, home mortgages, 2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the implementation of women's right to credit in their own names for. the first time in american history giving women the of the purse. but equal credit was. just one of the many battles fought for women during the 1960s and seventies, a period known as the second wave of feminism.

the second wave of feminism also included such landmark acts as title nine and the equal rights, both of which margaret heckler. during the 1980 republican national convention. margaret strove convince her party that the equal amendment needed to be included in the republican platform. she was rejected by fellow republicans. margaret then called a meeting to former hollywood star and governor ronald reagan, who was the nominee for president, to talk to him about his support for the equal rights amendment. the converse session went something like this. mr. if you were elected president, will you support the equal rights amendment? i will not the form of an amendment, he said, but i will support fair labor laws for

women. he said i am worried that this concern, that approach may lose the women's vote. margaret said many women take you seriously as an advocate for them. reagan spot response ended. well, now, what would you suggest do margaret's answer? now you appoint a woman to the supreme court. when the meeting was over, margaret walked and told her press secretary. lynda bill, miss michigan account list. margaret had very strong feelings about the fact women did not have the same legal rights as men. she was a lawyer and she felt that one of the ways it could be achieved would be by putting a woman and her perspective on the supreme court. that would add symbolic value. eight months into his first term as president, president reagan appointed sandra day o'connor as the first woman supreme court

justice. after that, margaret's 16 year career as a congresswoman came to a screeching halt in 1982 after she voted for the reagan tax cuts and barney frank, a freshman democrat, won the seat when ronald reagan came in, he brought in more conservatism so the moderates like margaret heckler, were pushed out. the moderate republican party up then was open to could do the job and represent the state well the so-called proverbial in massachusetts which allowed democrats republicans to function together or disintegrated. there was no longer for moderates like margaret heckler professor george brown, a b.s. law professor, said margaret heckler represented the end of

the two party system in massachusetts in 1983. president reagan appointed margaret as secretary of health and human services, in charge of the third largest budget in the world, the first largest budget, the entire federal budget. the second. the entire budget of the soviet union. and the third was the office and the budget. health and human services comprised the department, education, the entire social security administration, medicare, medicaid and 350 other programs that had to do with americans health and cdc. at her swearing in, it was a hastily sick moment for both sandra day o'connor and margaret heckler as it was a rare display of. female empowerment at. the highest levels in american government.

during first day on the job, margaret sought the advice of her under-secretary asking. what should be my priority in the department? oh, you begin with aids, he said. aids. what's aids? he responded. this is a disease that is killing our young people and the hospital wards in san francisco are. in fact, bulging aids was fatal pandemic of the eighties. she was at the helm alone and horrified to hear of the terrible deaths with no cure. americans were a panic about using swimming pools, water fountains. even nurses would place food, aids patients, hospital. the reagan administra nation turned a blind eye to the fatal disease. when director of management and

budget david stockman balked, margaret made the case to secure more funds for aids by saying david. imagine that you're in a car accident and you need a blood transfusion. how will you feel about the safety of our blood supply? it was a convincing argument, resulting in millions of dollars now earmarked toward aids research and a possible cure. she followed up by announcing that she was making aids, the number one health priority in america, while was looming over the nation. a group of five promise black medical were granted a private with secretary hechler to present a new study that showed the devastating inequality of black health in america. dr. louis sullivan, president of the morehouse school of medicine in atlanta, led the charge

before the meeting started, margaret was talking to another doctor, dr. warren and they began discussing bost. margaret mentioned that she, a dentist in boston who was black. dr. warren said, well, you must be referring to dr. walker for he is the only black dentist in all of boston. margaret replied, yes, i him very well. dr. warren. that this was the perfect icebreaker which pointed to the fact that were so few black medical professors and professional aids. dr. sullivan presented the report blacks and the health professions. in the 1980s, a national and a time for action. the study revealed 5 to 7 year life expectancy gap between black americans and white americans. for margaret, the burden of death for black americans due to

health care disparities brought to mind cristina. the kind black woman who took on her caregiver, belinda west chores and saved her job at a laundry facility when belinda fell ill all those decades ago during the great depression, margaret said at secretary of hhs, i was not satisfied to accept a shorter life span for minority americans of christina's background and ethnic groups. even though the federal government had known about this disparity for centuries, no one had taken up the torch to do anything about it. it was an affront to art, ideals and to the genius american medicine. margaret stated. she commissioned the heckler report a groundbreaking nine volume study that highlighted significant health disparities among racial and ethnic minorities in the united states. dr. warren said of margaret.

she realized her own life experiences that you can be disadvantaged through no fault of your own and have to suffer. her fight was mission driven because she lived it. she had empathy. i'm clear now that she had to do it in the words of mel lukens, margaret's head advance. margaret was, a top down visionary. she was operating at 30,000 feet and she needed us to bring it in for a landing. here are my ideas. she would say to her staff now, you assemble the ingredients and bake the cake. she knew the problem. she knew what the solution was. but she wanted us to work on this stuff. the middle. by 1985, margaret was appointed as the first woman u.s. ambassador to ireland. back to the place where her parents fled poverty. the ambassador's residence in dublin was palatial.

in a call from her estranged mother, bridget o'shaughnessy, margaret told you in congress are helping israel. you're helping italy. you're helping countries whose names i can't even spell or pronounce. but what are you doing? ireland today. peggy? her reply. mother. i've come home to ireland. and i've brought america with. margaret. presidents heads state supreme court justices. andra day o'connor. four star general kelly lords and ladies. princeton and princesses. and of course bono. margaret's priorities. her time in ireland were twofold one to quell the troubles. and two to help expand economic opportunity between ireland and the united states. upon her first visit to northern

ireland, margaret encountered a security at the airport. she asked, has the ambassador's car arrived? he replied, the ambassador is not here. margaret said, i was inquiring about the ambassador's car. i told the ambassador has not yet, sir, the ambassador is here. the question is where is my car? throughout the country irish college graduate who could not find a job in ireland were forced to flee their country leaving a symbolic message for ambassador heckler help bring corporate america to ireland. the result was impactful. the late 1980s started the beginning of an america corporate migration to ireland. with over 350 american companies having a presence on their

grassy shores, including such giants as anheuser-busch, intel, hp and boeing. margaret story is relevant today because she was profoundly bipartisan. and these are polarized times. we need to be reminded of the virtues of bipartisanship. her life shows us a foundation for how we should live today, including the importance of showing compassion. where did get her moxie? where did her force of character come from? if you're looking to be inspire. if you're looking to be encouraged, look into the life of margaret heckler. thank you.

well, thank you. thank you, kimberly. that gives you kind of a glimpse of margaret heckler. and i want to add, i did know her. she was my first job out of out of college, graduated from college. i was not yet 21. and friend of a friend of a friend of a friend of mine said, oh, well, there's some member of congress who is looking press secretary. and so i went in and had an interview and met this woman who her when i met her, i went into the ornate office, was holding a beagle on her lap and she had her feet in an ice bucket. and she said, gee, you know, do you know anything about media and media relations? i said, no. and she said what have you been working on? and i told her, well, i had been

writing my senior thesis on the role of the national of teachers in great britain. and she said, well, she said do you like dogs? and i said, i love dogs. and she said, okay, that'll do, you know. and then we went off two days later to the republican national convention, where i saw her, you know, went with her as the only with her go into a one on one meeting with then candidate reagan where she demark handed that he appoint the first woman to the supreme court. and a few months later he was elected. sandra day o'connor was elected and sandra day o'connor, who i was fortunate in my life to get to know very well because we served on the national parks board together for some years always attributed her presence, the supreme court to margaret

heckler's intervention. and so i i want i want to open this up questions now. and i think between kimberly and belinda, i mean, any questions are welcome about any aspect. and one of the questions i almost would want to start out with is how did she do it? how did she you know, i mean, she was a person who did all these things historically and. she did have this moxie. she also was really funny. she was charming. she was the kind person who i would say, if she gave you a glass of water, if you gave her a glass water, she would make you feel like the best person in the world. like, thank you so much. there was this water is so great. was so thirsty. i was dreaming water. and did you put some things water. good. you know, she just had that that ability to make people feel great. so maybe talk about her as a

person a little bit then open into questions. so she was a survivalist. she needed to be with her parents, giving her away and woman that took her in was well into her. so there really was no one to look back to. no one really to look up to. it really who she was going to come across through her life. and i think it was a pivotal point. her life to baby sit for a family of a judge and she would go into that law library while the children were taking a nap and she would open up those law books and she would read them. and she was surprised she was able to retain that. and she looked and she surveyed the scene of that home and she said, i'm going to be a lawyer one day. so at age, i think she was set on a path. and of course, she would say, as a woman of faith that she felt into these certain areas.

and the question was, would she follow the proper path that was was going in a direction to help her succeed in this life and to find her passion. and that's, in fact, what she did because she ended up getting that that law degree. and there were some, you know, some twists and turns in that way. but she didn't let any of that discourage her she just got it done and then even entering congress you know she went all girls schools okay where she was empowered by nuns told get up and give speeches and then all men in school right. and so all of a sudden the professors are calling on her a lot. and to her surprise, cause she knew the answers as well as the men and then after practicing law for ten years, she goes

congress another virtually all men again. but what she learned is her massachusetts accent, her irish charm and her femininity just slayed people. they just she was, in my opinion, a beautiful woman. and i think she people i think she came she made sense because she was the smartest woman in the room and in most cases, the only in the room. and i think the men were able to in that era see differently because they the blinders on it had only that way for all of years. and so here is someone saying, i'm a lawyer and a congresswoman and, i can't get a credit card. so, you know, she was able to make sense and really change nation because it took warrior to do that. and there were other women in

congress. but margaret was one of those that pivoted that the conversation and that is one of the things that i think makes her historically significant as a figure in american history. one wonderful era thank you so much this was incredibly enlightening and also inspiring i thank you more so today and other days i'm so. it appears as if she at times a lonely fighter. but it also appears if she was good at building coalitions because you mentioned that she was good working across the aisle. yes. what do we know about that skill, that her negotiation skill, her coalition building skill, her skill to build a little bit of a movement?

right. putting out the eight squares. excellent question in congress, her were more on the left and the right she came in with four republicans one of four republican women. the others were democrats and they were older women. and so they got some things done together. but like, for instance, that group of four, they were called the tiny but mighty nixon with those four women and they went in together and told nixon, your administration has no women in middle management. you know, they're capable and, they're they're able. you must consider putting women in roles where they currently are not positioned. and so she was able to work with them, but her best friends became so she worked across the aisle bella abzug if that's a name that you know lindy boggs martha griffiths yes may i suggest that you tell the story

about tip o'neill and the nuns? that's a great story too to this point that harris raises. yes, absolutely. so one of her first friends was the speaker of the house, tip o'neill, and he also had graduated from d.c. law. so they had that in and he was from massachusetts delegation that was her group and when she became secretary, she did have a lot of power it was quoted that she was one of the most powerful women in america in 1983. so she came in and there were only 12 hospices independ and facilities located the country so that you could take your loved one and have care. right. but it was not anything under medicare as. it is now a federal benefit. so when she came in to hhs, the reagan was cutting budgets her

job in those 350 departments was to okay let's make sure that you're clear on you're cutting the budget today are you clear you know so it was cut cut and she knew that because congress was trying pass this and it was not getting done. so here she had this power. if you will. and she decided call her good friend, tip o'neill. and she literally sent nuns from her church to the congress. i dare say they stormed the congress. but you want to be and they went straight to tip o'neill's office and secretary of tip o'neill. speaker o'neill, we have about a dozen nuns outside in the waiting room that are looking to speak to you. and he what do they want? and she said, i have no idea. but they were sent by secretary

hechler and he's like, bring them in. so they come in and said, we're here on behalf of secretary hechler, who is very angry. and and they were like he said, oh, you're here on behalf of secretary hechler. that's my girl. so he listened to their request. hospice was something that really needed to be put in at a higher as a medicare benefit and we needed the support of congress to get it done. and through him it got done in 1986. hospice is not just little places around the country. it's in every state, in every city across the united states. so it was a very successful. and on that one, she not stop. she kept in her staff and saying, get back in there. remember, death with dignity do not let you do come back with a no answer.

remember, think about the fact that there's no nursing. think about if there no nursing centers, you our nursing home air facilities. that's what we're building here we're building something from nothing. so think about it from that perspective and go back in there and man even referred to her as joe palooka doll, which was blowup punching bag that had sand the bottom and you just punched and it would drop down but pop right back up and that's what they called margaret heckler, i hope answered your question. thank you so questions. oh, yes. just to understand, there was this sense of it could be come from because i'm imagining he she from a very different world today it's like you know to be conditioned to believe that you are submissive and those kind of things where does that coming from and given her background as somebody who's often been living here, i'm curious to understand

that. so i it came from the fact that this woman, a widow an old woman raised her from birth in a boarding home and she was an industrious woman she was a commercial laundress. even into her older years, no car. so had to go and get the food, no right to credit. all right. thank god she had a house but i think margaret's this and realized how few this woman had and could feel in her own life experi whether it law school right trying to get a job and being turned not just once but never no one except at her in boston, a lawyer. she had to go to a of the b.s. law graduates they said we'll take you we know but aside from

that it would not have happened she would not have joined a law firm in the 1950s. only a law clerk or a secretary. so she experienced it it was her own battle. it was her own battle. she into a bank. she was the main breadwinner as a congresswoman. her husband had a failing business. and so it was very important for her to set the record straight and she could do it because she was in the place where you write laws. and so she made to use her time wisely and effectively. and she knew how to do it in such a way that built consensus. and she did it across the aisle and she did it easily. yes. thank you very much for this great presentation. and shane is based and story. thank you. it seems to me that she was not

truly a woman of hers in the sense that she really had this position as a first woman. many leadership positions. but she also understood the importance having more women in leadership positions. so creating is critical of women in key roles. can you tell us more about that? well, yes. from from creating the congresswoman's caucus, because her desire was to have more women come into congress. and that happened. and then her meeting nixon forcing women be put into these mid management positions, which would then have an effect on corporate america, because if they saw it happening in the government and they would see pictures of women in management positions that were a ripple effect would happen, but then when she became secretary of health and human services. she had a she had meetings outside her office and letters went i even some women that are

in my book club that said i received a notice to come to congresswoman and heckler's room because women that are interested higher management positions there's training over here and so with the class were sold out every month and so it was a constant thing in her mind to not only push women up if they were capable and able that they deserved the same position as a man and economic equality with men. so yeah, it was in all in all positions and i'm sure it happened as well as ambassador to ireland. i thank you very for your talk. if margaret were here today in this political environment with this divide of all the lessons we can take from her life, what is the one lesson you think she apply to.

bridge the divide. she would be very disciplined pointed with the polarization that we're experiencing right because she crossed the aisle so easily and was very much as linda can attest she went the people she was very much a lover of people and so she wouldn't want this animosity. she also was one that showed a lot of compassion and she would feel that we're missing. she believed that the answer was always somewhere in the middle. and so if people could could come a little together to get to their answer, she would want us to go back to and be civil to each other and kind so i guess that's my my answer. she would also feel that women have advanced substantially because there are more women entering law entering law women

in the workforce. women in universities women's women in congress women in the military. she sponsored one of the first women at west point, which now that woman is part 5700 women graduate. it's from west point and. and so was a door opener she was a change maker and she was warrior that had the ability and the confidence and the courage to persevere against a different era of. our time. mm. thank you. it's a question here. it just goes back, i think something you've already mentioned but i'm curious to hear more about what kind of people margaret surrounded herself with, including, it sounds like had also very supportive partner. what kind of advice her to run

as a republican and democrat i think if any lessons or stories you share in that regard be helpful. well she was very busy. so i mean, her time was definitely spent on the hill or as secretary, but i would say that margaret did find her mentors in people like tip o'neill and the other congresswomen that she served with on both sides of the. she spent an awful lot of time with her family and she was very much mother home every single night for dinner. the kids did have eat quite a few bowls of cocoa krispies before the 9:00 meal. the when she got home after a vote. but i would say that that really her her time was short in terms of outside time but she really did look for people of faith as

well to guide her she a faith based woman and did a lot praying she always said work study hard, pray hard. she went to church as much as she could. so she really gave a lot of her her destiny to the lord. other question. the this is this. yes, yes. i think like from a children's perspective, you could hear like something from margaret heckler daughter, like how was the experience having such a powerful, you know, individual as your mom? like, that's such a privilege and that was by way belinda in that photograph of margaret heckler being in holding the bible there. and i, belinda and her sister and brother when they were

little, there were a lot of cocoa krispies krispies but you know, mixed in with from protein. yeah margaret was not the best cook ever but she loved cookbooks. she was always up with menus for gatherings and i remember when she she met with golda meir, she asked her, how do you everyone to agree what to what you want, how do you get them on board? and she said food food always works, which of course the goal here knows. yes but she was a wonderful mother. she really preferred to listen. when i was young, she loved to listen to the of the children rather than tell us what she had done and it given day she had is

she had enough politics to keep her so we really didn't when we were little we didn't we sometimes we went to the white house more than most kids but other than that, it just seemed like she was a mom she wasn't really this big political and wasn't until like i got a lot older went to college that i got to go to china and. then later when she was in hhs, i got to go to israel and, egypt and those were really cool things and i had a much bigger sense of the how widespread her affect was. it one of the best things she gave me was the sense that you don't really have to get old you can you can do. she just was as vibrant in her old as she was in her youth and

she always went after her. so it's almost like that. that was the best. seeing how she aged was was fantastic. stick you're welcome. thank you. a great question. thank you. so any more do we have any body else who'd like just to add in comments or thoughts or any further? i know we're getting to that or we are at the end of the hour here. any last questions? great set of questions. and she she was if i can add to your great question, i mean, she she drew a lot of as a she was very listener. so she whether she was listening, i mean, she before hannah wrote the the book women about the women nurses, vietnam, you know, she was on the veterans committee. she was one of the few people in america who were really to the role of women in vietnam. but she was also she was just a

good listener for her constituents and whoever i mean, really whoever she was speaking to. but the image that i will always have of her, i mean, even at a time the administration was very unfriendly around gays aids that she was hugging and holding people in hospitals. i mean, just because she was listening to their stories and just showing compassion. just just it was just very, very fundamental and why i started saying that she had real courage i mean, it took courage at that stage in american to be holding, hugging, kissing every aids patient in every hospital that she could. but that's the way she was. that was really her great sort of superpower. and i think she would be very unhappy about the lack of compassion in in the administration now and in america my takeaway from, what you're saying is that a great need or needs empathy.

yes. and that allows the person. to connect with everybody regardless of what strata level they're at. and you feel empathy them for the problems of the person. if you've had hurdles that you've to overcome yourself, do you think that's true based on what you're saying? well, i do. i would. overcoming obstacles is what the book is all about. and that child hood abandonment that she experi did not pull down. it didn't get in the way of her achieving the american dream. and that's what she would want for everyone that no matter your place in life your stay and that she would want everybody to follow their passions and to live out the american dream. she didn't just take everything

for herself. she brought everybody with her. that's just everybody up. it seems. and that's true. there were many during the time, i will say that pulled the ladder after them right. and so it really did take a different mindset because was hard for women to get just getting there was hard so once they got there it's like talk to the hand. but in margaret's situation she did. she extended a hand. through this is this is really wonderful thank you for these wonderful questions and. thank you, kimberly heckler the linda heckler for lifting up and bringing back to life many ways this incredible story. she is a sandra day o'connor on the book. she's a woman you should know.

let let me let me add my thanks to linda. this is an incredibly important history i'm so just honored that you would bring it into our community and share it with the i know that it was a labor of love over ten years so thank you for sharing this history. and we will not forget margaret heckler thank you.