My daughter sometimes cannot believe that I was raised under the imperative that I either needed to "find a good husband" or learn to type for a living. My mother, like many mothers from her generation, couldn't fathom that women could remain single or that women could work in legitimate professions other than as a secretary. Oh, sure - women did fly planes solo and they did act in movies, but it took money or looks and/or power provided by social networks to accomplish those goals in the past. That era bred untouchable idols, women who now seem as ancient and dusty as their photographs.

During my lifetime my generation began to teach our mothers that it was ok to remain unmarried and to seek careers. The terms "glass ceiling" and "stay-at-home dad" became familiar. The world, it seemed, was all mixed up when I was my daughter's age, and the women's movement during the 1970's was the blender. One woman who had her finger on "grate and blend" was Betty Friedan.

While I know about Friedan, my daughter and many other young women her age are unaware of what this woman did for women's (and men's) equality and economics. Friedan died February 4th at age 85, and The Economist online offered a tribute to her life. Friedan was from my mother's generation. She lived my mother's life during the 1950's as she raised three children and kept house. But, unlike my mother, Friedan chose a rebellious life-before-marriage which included a college education and involvement in radical politics. So, when her children arrived at a self-sufficient age, Friedan began to question whether her life was "all she wrote." She tapped into her previous journalism experience and she investigated and wrote about The Feminine Mystique.

I'll agree with The Economist in their opinion that Friedan's first book was "rambling and badly written." But Friedan's lack of skill seems to underscore her contribution: a simple yet shattering argument which proclaimed that women needed to be treated as equals to men and that they needed the freedom to move beyond the "find a good husband or learn how to type" mentality. While Gloria Steinem and Germaine Greer, among others, all lent their energy to the women's movement, Friedan's attitude was a bit different. Friedan believed that men were as affected by repression as women, and that this problem was economical rather than sexual. It was a problem that could be resolved with equal work, worth, and incomes, she believed.

While many women applauded Frieden's work during the last half of the twentieth century, many other individuals expressed disdain for Frieden's perspectives. Frieden didn't fit the "idol" mold for that time - she didn't have a lot of money, she didn't come from a socially connected family, and - frankly - she didn't have movie-star good looks. But, she did believe in herself, and she believed in women's legal rights and social equality. Slowly, Friedan's argument gained a foothold, and women's studies were introduced in colleges in the 1980's. In the 1990's women's incomes rose, although they never quite matched their male counterparts.

Perhaps the most significant social and economic change wrought by Friedan's writings and politics is the fact that she gave women a choice. My daughter can now choose to have a career (although I doubt that she'll ever receive equal pay - that notion is probably many lifetimes away), or she can choose to be a stay-at-home mom, or both. This ability to choose a lifestyle seems so normal to my daughter that there's no reason for her to believe that her mother ever faced social repression.

And, although I continue to rant and rave about women's inequality in the workplace, I occasionally read about women who manage to gain a position of authority. Linda Thomsen is one of those women and, as the Director of Enforcement for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), she's gained my attention. Ever wonder why the SEC recently came down hard on junk-bond kings and thieving CEO's? Look at Thomsen, who earned the moniker "top securities cop" from SmartMoney Magazine, November 2005 issue.

Thomsen joined the SEC in 1995 as Assistant Chief Litigation Counsel and was named Assistant Director of the Division of Enforcement in 1997. In 2000, she became Associate Director of the division, and she became Deputy Director in January 2002. When the previous Director of Enforcement, Stephen M. Cutler, announced his departure from the SEC in April 2005, Thomsen was named his successor.

While Thomsen's career seems to be on a fast track, she spent more than a few years in college at Smith and at Harvard earning her law degree. She also paid her dues as an attorney at the law firm of Davis Polk & Wardwell in Washington, D.C. and New York, and she also served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Maryland. Although, it didn't hurt her career when Thomsen's predecessor and the SEC desired continuity during a time filled with fraud. The fact that Thomsen had worked her way into the SEC and that she was familiar with the scandals that rocked Wall Street during the past few years didn't hurt her chances for promotion.

I'm unsure about Thomsen's pre-SEC life, as the Internet offers little information about this woman other than news about her promotion and about recent SEC enforcement decisions. I do know that Thomsen is a woman from my generation, as her photograph in SmartMoney Magazine attests to that fact. This photograph, though, isn't ancient and dusty, and her image seems to represent the equal rights and economic aspects which Friedan promoted during her lifetime. Although my daughter currently doesn't view someone like Thomsen as a person to emulate (musicians and snowboard gold-medal winners are more up her alley these days), I appreciate Thomsen's drive and ambition. I also appreciate and will remember Friedan as the woman who cracked the equality and economics door for many, many individuals.

Until Next Week,
Linda Goin