Before there was Sarah Palin, there was Geraldine Ferraro. Ferraro, who spent her adolescence in the South Bronx and earned her juris doctor at Fordham, grew up to be the first female Vice Presidential candidate for a major American political party. She died on Saturday, March 26, after a long battle with multiple myeloma.
A longtime member of the House of Representatives, Ferraro was a trailblazer and a fierce defender of women’s rights. She was, in a word, an inspiration. The Fordham alumna, who was buried today, led her life in a manner that will continue to inspire collegiettes™ for generations. Here are some of those life lessons:
1. Honor your mother.
Geraldine’s mother, a first-generation Italian American seamstress, was the one who encouraged Ferraro to pursue higher education. Years later, Geraldine married and choose to keep her maiden name as a way to honor her mother, who raised her and her siblings on her own after her father’s death.
2. You can learn to juggle.
After being the first woman in her family to finish college – she earned her English degree at Marymount Manhattan College – Ferraro became a school teacher in New York. Unsatisfied with her career, Geraldine enrolled at Fordham Law. One of only two women in her class, Geraldine graduated with honors in 1960. All the while, she had continued teaching full-time and maintained a happy relationship with her future husband.
3. Give back to other women.
When she began practicing law, Ferraro would occasionally do pro bono work for women in family court. While in Congress, she focused on legislative equity for women in a variety of areas, including pensions. Following her unsuccessful Vice Presidential campaign, Ferraro continued to work to get women elected to public office.
Geraldine Ferraro will be dearly missed, especially by the Fordham community, but leaves behind quite a legacy.
Sources: Wikipedia.org, Fordham.edu