I can be a founder, an entrepreneur, and a CEO of Gotham because of the countless women who came before me who were bold, driven, and pushed forward. If we knew the names of these numerous women in each industry, it would change the narrative. We have come so far, but we have so much farther to go.
There are times when I believe women are at a tipping point. Then we see women still kowtowing to men, and I wonder, wtf. If all women behave that way, we will find ourselves in the back office just taking care of men.
I saw two movies about women who opened doors with big shoulders. Orin O’Brien is featured in the documentary The Only Girl in the Orchestra, which is only 35 minutes long and worth watching on Netflix. She was the first woman to join the New York Philharmonic in 1966 under Leonard Bernstein.
Orin has kept countless articles written about her when this happened. The press coverage was sexist. And not true, shock! She was called “curvy.” It was almost comical because nobody would say anything these people said (thank god), and it wasn’t that long ago.
I also watched September 5th, which is about the murders at the Munich Olympics on September 5th, 1972. There was one woman with the broadcasting crew, and she is essential. There is a scene when she is brought in with the rest of the team, and the first thing a man does is look at her and ask her to get them coffee. It was not lost on me.
The more films that reference those times when women were not treated as equals, or paid as equals (although that still exists), drives home the narrative that women still have a ways to go.
