On Thursday, the people of Texas lost Ann Richards, our second woman governor, who governed Texas in a more hopeful time, before our current president held the position and stamped out most traces of Ann's New Texas, which she had populated with the best and the brightest women and minorities in top positions and a taste of optimism about our collective future.
I met Ann Richards once in Denton, when I was campaigning for her as a Young Democrat in college. I worked as a legislative aide for the Texas House of Representatives when Governor Richards was in office and was impressed with her vision. One of the first presents my husband ever gave me, when we were just starting to see each other, was a t-shirt from Governor Richards' 60th birthday bash that said Ann at Sixty and fit me like a dress. Now, I cannot fit in it at all and the Lone Star Girl sleeps in it at night. I will always remember the optimism of those days and try to work toward their return. Governor Richards will be missed.
The following is one of my favorite Ann Richards quotes, which shows how much she understood the ridiculousness of things:
They blame the low income women for ruining the country because they are staying home with their children and not going out to work. They blame the middle income women for ruining the country because they go out to work and do not stay home to take care of their children.
2 comments:
I will miss Ann Richards, too.
Thanks for the quote. I've heard it and didn't know who said it!
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