Maya Angelou: Molly Ivins Shook the Walls With Her Clarion Call

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/01/AR2007020101909.html

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The walls of ignorance and prejudice and cruelty, which she railed against valiantly all her public life, have not fallen, but their truculence to do so does not speak against her determination to make them collapse.

Weeks before she died, she launched what she called "an old-fashioned newspaper crusade" against President Bush's announcement that he was going to send more troops to Iraq.

She wrote, "We are the people who run this country. We are the deciders. Every single day every single one of us needs to step outside and take some action to help stop this war. We need people in the streets banging pots and pans and demanding, 'Stop it now!' "

Years ago there was a fundraising gala for People for the American Way in New York, and Molly Ivins was keynote speaker. I was a loyal collector and serious Ivins reader, but I had not met the author. Another famous journalist, who was to have introduced her, had his flight canceled in a Southern city. Norman Lear, founder of the organization, asked me to introduce her. I did not hesitate. I spoke glowingly about Ms. Ivins for a few minutes, then, suddenly, a six-foot-tall, red-haired woman sprang from the wings. She strode onto the stage and over to the microphone. She gave me an enveloping hug and said, in that languorous Texas accent, "Maya Angelou and I are identical twins, we were separated at birth."

It was always one of my favorite things on a Sunday morning - coffee, the paper and a dog curled in my lap.

She will be terribly missed.

absolutely wonderful and right on the money.

I can just picture that scene.

We are all one voice.

with her last bits of energy, Molly was telling us all to get up off of our asses and stop Bush

i will miss Molly. It's really sad to see someone of her stature departed from us.

A brigade of women banging pots and pans. What would it be called?

Molly might have had a laugh over the phrasing there. :-)

But I know what you mean.

Edited (for clarity, not levity)!

:shrug:

No mealy mouthed platitudes for Molly. While much of the rest of America strove to be inoffensive, centrist and middleclass, she tore off that gag and spoke the truth clearly - and with glorious wit. But without any personalised spite.