FW2 Joan Baez on PBS

Post #17 – Rosie’s Daughters: The “First Woman To” Generation Tells Its Story by Matilda Butler and Kendra Bonnett

On this blog, we sometimes feature stories of that generation of women born during World War II, daughters of the iconic Rosie the Riveter. Other times, we look at stories of the women who worked during the war, the Rosie’s themselves, because they took the first step toward opening occupations to women. Of course, they managed to also raise an incredible generation of women, many of whom were the first to graduate from college in their families or the first female to hold the jobs they sought and won.

Today, I’d like to highlight a PBS documentation about one of the many women in the generation of Rosie’s Daughters that we call the “First Woman To (FW2)” Generation. Joan Baez. Actually, all you have to do is say her name and you see a face and hear a voice that resonates with many of us. PBS recently aired in the American Masters Series a broadcast called Joan Baez: How Sweet the Sound.

As someone who came of age politically in the 1960s, the interwoven history and music in the documentary brought back memories — the Civil Rights and Peace Movements, Bob Dylan’s music, and much more. I was touched to see the recent conversation between Joan Baez and Davis Harris in the documentary.

But most of all, I loved hearing Baez talk about how comfortable she is on stage where once her fear caused her to regularly flee, even in the middle of a concert. It is a reminder to all of us to embrace what we’ve done, both the good and the not-so-good, and to become comfortable with ourselves at this point in our lives.

The following video, although not from How Sweet the Music, is Joan singing Love is Just a Four Letter Word. Enjoy.

Missed the PBS viewing? I just checked and you can rent it through NETFLIX.