A Look into the Mind of Mary Borror

I decided to interview my mother about her experience with feminism, and I had forgotten how much she talks. Obviously, she had forgotten that I was supposed to be writing this done as she was speaking, and I had to stop her every once in a while to catch up. Hopefully, our forgetfulness did not detract from my transciption.

What is your experience of gender?

M: I am able to reproduce beautiful children. I have expereced day to day hormonal changes, where I don't think men do.

What is your history with feminism?

M: Jeraldine Ferraro ran for vice president with Walter Mondale, and was teh first woman to run for the office of vice president. She was my first glimpse at a woman telling me and the world that, "Hey, I know more about politics that my husband does."

Somewhere in the 80s, early in my twenties, someone was on a mission to tell women that they didn't have to stay home and clean, that they could make their presence known with men and work rather than stay at home watching the children. I never had that look on it; I thought I should raise my children rather than others. I was ridiculed, and people made me feel like I lazy, that I should be out doing something, or that I was dependent on my husband. But in reality, it was the other way around, because he couldn't handle it emotionally to stay home with you all. I also worked part time when we needed help financially, and it was really hard for me when I finally left you all to go to work. I feel very lucky that your day had enough money me to stay home. It was more rewarding ot me than if I had been vice president of a company. To me, it was an achievement to see your first steps and hear your first words.

What is feminism?
M: It is a state of mind, not in the way that you do your hair or wear your clothes. To me, feminism is how I tell myself to react to how I am a woman. I have breasts--I have to put them in a bra everyday. Do I like to feel pretty? Yes. Do I have a hard time with the hair growing on my chin? Yes. To me, I emit, I personfiy feminism. I don't think it is having a "voice" or burning my bra--that is just crap. I know what I am; I'm very comfortable with who I am.

What is an experience in your life that made you conscious of gender?
M: When I was nine-years-old, I went to Catholic school. In Catholic school you have to wear little white Peter Pan-collared shirts. I was a chubby little girl, and when you are chubby and you are nine, sometimes you look like you have breasts. I wore a white shirt underneath, but the nuns called my mother and told her that my nipples were showing and it was time to get me a bra. Back then there weren't bras like there are now; there were two kinds: ugly and really ugly. They also didn't have the sizes for little girls like we have now, so my mother squeezed me into one, and this is why I have never liked bras. They also made me wear a sweater over my shirt from then on. I became very aware at a young age that any inclination that you were female was innappropriate. Boys could wear whatever they wanted, while we had to waear shirts with sweaters to cover up every inch, including a knee-length skirt with knee socks underneath. Any development of femininity had to be covered.


I should ask my mother to tell more stories. There are so many things about her I don't know, even when she is the one who birthed me!

And yes, the first thing she said was that she can birth beautiful children. We Borrors are pretty amazing like that.