Documents – Forty Years: The History of Women at Bowdoin

Proposal for a Women’s Resource Center

In February 1980, Lois Egasti, Bowdoin’s Dean of Students, sent this proposal to the Student Life Committee requesting that a “long overdue” Women’s Resource Center be established at 24 College St (Document CS, 61.1). At the time there were 10 women living at 24 College St. The space was to remain a dormitory in addition to a space designated for Bowdoin women. That the space was meant for Bowdoin women is evidenced by the name, Women’s Resource Center, and by the proposal’s suggested purposes for the center. The Women’s Resource Center was to be a “comfortable social setting” and serve as the official headquarters for the Bowdoin Women’s Association. The proposal held that “any groups, Bowdoin or local, concerned with women’s issues” could meet in the center.

According to the feminist issue of To the Root published in March 1980, the regular library did not have any periodicals related to women but did have a subscription to Playboy. One main purposes of founding a Women’s Resource Center was to create a space for a library of material by and about women.

The letter to the editor of the college newspaper on February 22, 1980 announces the acceptance of the proposal and invites people to participate in the Women’s Resource Center (Document CS, 61.2). From the beginning, the members of the Women’s Resource Center Collective attempted to raise awareness and build community. The opening of the center marked an important transition for women at Bowdoin. Women’s presence on campus would be claimed and emphasized on a whole new level, in the form of a small, brown house on College St.

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To The Root: Feminist Issue

The feminist issue of To the Root, from March 10, 1980, provides evidence of the type of consciousness raising and passionate activism that was taking place on Bowdoin’s campus during the early 1980s (Document CS, 62). The Afro-American Society, the Bowdoin Energy Research Group, the Bowdoin Women’s Association, Struggle and Change, and the Gay-Straight Alliance came together to raise awareness around feminism through this issue of To the Root.

The authors challenge conceptions of feminism and lesbianism, discuss sexism and the women’s movement, explore ways to make change, ask readers to think about male-centered language, and argue for breaking down gender imbalances and inequities. One article, “A Feminist Critique of a Liberal Arts Education” criticizes Bowdoin’s use of male-centered language, its exclusion of her-story in history classes, the scarcity of feminist books and magazines in the college library, and the dearth of women in the permanent and more powerful faculty positions.

This publication includes images as well as text. All of the images, from cartoons to drawings, are of naked woman. One image is a white woman in child’s pose with the caption “I Am a Woman Giving Birth to Myself.” Another features a black woman holding the emblem of the United Nations. These images propagate the idea of reclaiming women’s bodies, self-expression, rights, and history.

To the Root introduces the Women’s Resource Center, which was slated to open the following fall as an “educational tool for the entire community.” The publication shows the determination of Bowdoin’s early feminists to work in coalition with other campus groups to raise awareness around women’s issues.

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Bowdoin Women’s Association Handbook

The cover of the 1980-1981 Bowdoin Women’s Association Handbook features a picture of four naked women dancing beneath a crescent moon and reads, “Women Rising: Ten Years of Women at Bowdoin.” The word “rising” likely refers to the title of the alma mater, “Rise Sons of Bowdoin” (Document CS, 63). Ever since the arrival of women, daughters of Bowdoin were “rising” alongside its sons. These women featured on the handbook’s cover dance in celebration of 10 years (9 years according to our timeline) of women at the college. By holding hands they join forces as women, supporting and empowering one another.

In addition to providing women with information, this handbook aims to build community around women’s issues at Bowdoin. The writers express a hope for expansion of the Bowdoin Women’s Association. During this one-year, for example, they planned a celebration of ten years of women at Bowdoin, a symposium on life for women after Bowdoin, workshops on self-defense and healthcare, discussion groups and lectures.

The articles in the handbook provide information on a variety of women’s issues at the college. In one, the immediate past president of the Bowdoin Women’s Association and previous vice-president of her fraternity examines the recent history of women’s status in fraternities. She raises the pros and cons of joining a fraternity and is complementary of the choice to remain “independent.” She wishes the best to the incoming class of 1984 and writes, “May Bowdoin be as good to you as it was to me.” Another article lists the numerous options for women’s sports available to students. The authors encourage athletic involvement and mention the discrepancy in funding between male and female athletic programs. A section on healthcare urges Bowdoin women to take advantage of the free gynecological services. The two last sections provide information on security support and political groups on campus.

In a nod to the feminism alive on Bowdoin’s campus in the 1980s, the terms “freshpeople” and “freshpersons” are used throughout the publication instead of the word “freshmen.” Nowadays “freshpeople” are referred to as “first years” at the college.

The paragraph announcing the new Women’s Resource Center describes the center’s abundance of resources for the Bowdoin community. The article mentions event plans, the center’s new library, and the hope that the new headquarters of the Bowdoin Women’s Association will be a space reader’s feel comfortable visiting “for assistance or just conversation.”

The last section of the publication discusses how women had “made their mark at Bowdoin after this first decade.” The student body was now 50/50 male/female, the Bowdoin’s Women’s Association had “become the largest student supported organization on campus,” the Women’s Resource Center was opening this fall, and the results of a report on “the Status of Women at Bowdoin” were to be published. The authors identified the most substantial sign of change as the arrival of 13 new women faculty members.

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Bowdoin Alumnus Magazine: A Women’s Resource Center

This article from the fall 1981 edition of the Bowdoin Alumnus Magazine informs readers of the establishment of the Women’s Resource Center and discusses the effort that had been put into preparing the center for its grand opening in the 1980-81 academic year (Document CS, 64). A few women had stayed at Bowdoin over the summer to catalogue books, plan events, and turn the house into a women-centered space. The Bowdoin Women’s Association now had an entire home to call their own, rather than the one room they had previously occupied in the Coles Tower Senior Center.

This piece highlights the Women’s Resource Center’s attempts to provide students with educational opportunities not yet available at the college. The 300-volume library of books by or about women is described as a major advance in providing more women focused resources. Alternative academic offerings in: self-defense, pottery, auto mechanics, batiking, weaving, and career planning are also highlighted as ways in which the Women’s Resource Center was supporting and educating women.

The accompanying picture displays cheerful women sitting on the front stairs of the Women’s Resource Center. The caption informs readers that these are some of the founding members of the Women’s Resource Center Collective. These women, along with others, provided the fire behind the opening of the Women’s Resource Center, its informational and passionate publications, and its inspiring events. The smiles on these women’s faces look genuine. One imagines they took pride in securing for Bowdoin women a vibrant, supportive space on campus to call their own.

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Holly Near at Bowdoin

In March 1981, the Bowdoin Women’s Association brought singer, activist, and out- lesbian Holly Near to perform on campus (Document CS, 65).

“In 1972, Holly Near was one of the first women to create an independent record company… Near’s vision was to promote and produce music by politically conscious artists from around the world… Often cited as one of the founders of the “women’s music” movement, Holly not only led the way for outspoken women into the music world, but also worked for peace and multicultural consciousness.” ( http://www.hollynear.com/bio.html)

This concert provided an opportunity for women to come together, enjoy music and claim their space in the world and at Bowdoin. At this point, Bowdoin women officially had claimed Women’s Resource Center and were continuing to create more spaces for themselves on campus.

The women active in the Bowdoin Women’s Association and at the Women’s Resource Center were politically conscious, many of them were lesbians, and they fought for women’s rights at Bowdoin. Bringing Holly Near to campus was a way of claiming space, breaking down barriers, and demonstrating the strength on the feminist community.

Working with larger women’s organizations, such as the National Organization of Women, Bowdoin women were able to bring Holly Near to campus and to create a larger community and support network for themselves. Provision of sign language interpretation and wheelchair accessibility suggests that the organizers envisioned a truly inclusive community at the college.

Today numerous avenues exist through which to secure money to bring performers and lecturers to campus. A few years ago, Eve Ensler, author of The Vagina Monologues came to Bowdoin, and this fall singer and activist, Angelique Kidjo, brought to campus a vision of peace and justice through music. Guest performances continue to raise awareness and create new conversations around women’s issues at the college.