Two legendary American women, now gone

This week saw the deaths of two great American women, both trailblazers: Coretta Scott King and Betty Friedan.

King, the widow of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., carried her husband's legacy into the late 20th century, ensuring he would be remembered with the King Center, which advocates nonviolence, and with a national holiday commemorating his life and a day on which we remember not only his contributions but the dream he imagined. Coretta Scott King lived her life since 1968, when Dr. King was assassinated, as a role model and as a graveful leader.

Today, she became the first woman and the first African American to lie in state in the Georgia Capitol in Atlanta, an honor refused her husband after his death in April 1968. That throngs of citizens would wait for hours to pay respects to her as she lies in state is a testament not only to the respect the held but also to how far our nation has come.

Friedan, author of "The Feminine Mystique" in 1963, articulated a vision for American women that launched a movement. She said women could -- and should -- be more than just housewives and secretaries, that they should not have their value judged by their housecleaning or their children. Women, she said, could have careers and not families and that was OK. Husbands were not required for satisfaction or value.

The feminist movement today has lost some of its momentum. Women, and men, take for granted the rights and equalities that women in another generation worked hard to acquire. Demonized by radical right-wing radio hosts such as Rush Limbaugh, feminism has become a dirty word. In fact, everyone who believes women deserve the same treatment and rights as men should rightfully be called feminists. I'm a feminist.

King and Friedan represent the leadership in civil rights that is fading in 21st century America. Who will pick up the banner for people of color and for women? Who will smack the young people of today into shape? Who will motivate our citizens to take action against the slow erosion of rights, against the apathy of satisfaction? We need a new generation of leaders to step up and quench the thirst that exists among today's Americans. We also need to take steps ourselves to initiate action. It's time for a new civil rights movement in America, time to take back the rights we've lost to the false promise of security. We've gained nothing and lost too much ground.

That is the legacy of Coretta Scott King and Betty Friedan.

-- Wenatchee, Wash.