European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - May 3, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Melding motherhood and career mothers in the workforce employment a fetus of Monera with children Ivins at Home by Aoe of youngest he in March 1 985 Fin thousands Tola number percent civilian in in in the population Fabor labor Force Lorce All Molt Wra with children under is Moonert Willii children cto17yearaold 14 to 17 years old 6 to 13 years old Vou Jer wine 3 to 5 Yeara old younger than 3 Souter Al urdu of labor us Tusci by Andrew Mollison Cox news service a Merican women who spent two decades lighting for sexual Equality should really seek special privileges says Sylviann Hewlett whose Lively new Book could urn her into the Betty Friedan of the 1980s. We need More than Freedom she said we need a whole Bunch of family supports if we re going to get equal results economically As we try to reconcile motherhood with a  an economist and the Mother of two boys and a girl aged 1 to 8, she is flying across the United states trying to revive the Century old argument within the american women s movement Over whether to concentrate on rights or benefits. Skimming Over Many notable exceptions she argues that suffragists concentrated in the last Century on getting voting rights for women and feminists concentrated in the last two decades on obtaining equal opportunities Lor jobs education and credit. But she argued firmly for social benefits making such Points As the United states is the Only industrialized country that has no statutory maternity  unlike the United Stales 117 countries including every Industrial nation and Many developing countries legally guarantee a woman leave from employment for childbirth Job Protection while she is on leave and a Cash Benefit to replace All or most of her earnings during that leave. One result she sees is that american women who manage to make nearly As much Money As men in their 20s, fall behind in their 30s. In the United slates most women never catch up after their careers Are ended or interrupted at that crucial stage. Their average earnings 64 percent of those of men lag further behind the male level than those of women in european democracies she said. The fact is most women Bear weighty Home and family burdens and need More than Equality with men if they Are to attain equal earning Power in the marketplace said Hewlett who is 40. They need Job protected maternity leave child care flextime and specially tailored career ladders and pre school  when she was director of the economic policy association her proposals were considered by a committee she formed of established leaders including Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham United Auto workers president emeritus Douglas Fraser and former president Gerald Ford. In january the committee endorsed All her proposals except subsidized Day care for children under 3. She said she could t persuade the panel to endorse Day care because the programs have been stigmatized As Aid to the poor and because in an Era of limited social conscience and High budget deficits they were seen As too expensive. Liberals conservatives feminists and anti feminists As Well As leaders who were lax in attending her committee s meetings All get hard knocks in her Book a lesser Lite the myth of women s liberation in America William Morrow and co., $17.95. Liberals press Lor rigorous enforcement of anti discrimination legislation while conservatives tend to say that since women choose to have families and choose1 to limit their careers Low female wages Are a result of individual Choice and should not be interfered with by government she said. In her eyes feminists Don t realize that the equal rights amendment is irrelevant to working mothers and that anti feminists Are trying to unscramble the egg in their efforts to recreate the values and lifestyles of the 1950s." rejecting the silly right Wing argument that women choose not to have affordable convenient Day care and the leftist Contention that we be got to pretend that women Are the same As men she concluded the Bottom line seems to be that working women need More than equal  As an assistant professor at Barnard College she was denied tenure a form of Job Protection Tor academics with seniority alter she had eased up on her workload following the miscarriage of twins in order to Bear and raise a baby boy born prematurely less than a year afterwards. When younger faculty members at the women s College tried to obtain a maternity policy she said my feminist colleagues were opposed to any kind of maternity policy because in their View such policies smacked of special  with routine family services and a smaller male female wage Gap women in Sweden and Germany which have higher per capita incomes than the United states or in Britain and Italy where incomes Are lower simply do better As wives and mothers and  the British born theorist said. But the 90 percent of american women who have children still face what she called a no win situation. They have lost the guarantees and Protection of the past marriage has broken Down As a Long term and reliable source of financial Security she said. And at the same time they have failed to improve their earning Power As workers in the labor Market Lor the wage Gap Between men and women is As wide and stubborn As it Ever  Pant and puff to the three step polka by Bob Dvorchak associated press Ove Over jazz excise tap Percise and other variations of the dance fitness craze. Roll out the barrel for Polk aerobics a workout in which participants Pant and puff to the three step polka. People hop and sweat to the polka at weddings and Beer Halls. I figured Why not package it As a Way to get in shape said Andy Lorusso of Monroeville a. It s a combination of dance and exercise and getting people to dance together again. It s a rigorous dance that gets the heartbeat up. The program uses All the major muscle groups of the body said Lorusso 37, a former nightclub entertainer. After 30 minutes of warmups and stretches common in other aerobics classes Lorusso Cranks up the Brassy bouncy music that has lyrics such As i Don t want her you can have her she s too fat for me hand clapping participants whoop and spin twisting their trunks and kicking their legs to Snappy tunes played at ethnic weddings. 1986 in Polk aerobics class however there s nary a Babushka in sight. Color coordinated leg warmers head bands Warmup suits and jogging shoes Are a Rigueur. During a recent workout in a school gym Lorusso exhorted his students to keep smiling and keep moving to a routine that included the three step polka Side Steps lunges and chorus line style knee kicks. Pasta ple Rogi and other delights we put it on and we polka it Oil he said. It s just like a wedding. Well eat the cake  Young and old participants sweated to keep up then cooled Down to a Waltz. That was great. Now i m going Home to die. But really it makes you feel Good. You re not straining  said Bill Hajek 54. I feel a lot better. It helps work off some of the stress from the Job said Robert Kocur towering off after a session. Lorusso. Wearing Chic High top red Reebok aerobic shoes a hot Pink pol aerobics sweatshirt and electric Blue workout pants said he picked the polka because he wanted something exciting and innovative. Everybody was doing disco for exercise he said. The polka is Lively. It has lots of  Lorusso got the idea three years ago in los Angeles where he had a fitness show on Cable television. Then he moved to Pittsburgh which has a Large population with Eastern european roots. In the past year about to people have enrolled in his 10-week sessions which Cost $24 to $35. Participants get a casette tape with a Medley of the Beer barrel polka and the Pennsylvania polka along with an exercise Chart. This Spring Lorusso Hopes to Market a 45-minute video. Lorusso admits it s different to see trendy types shape up to a 150-year-old dance. But the polka which originated in the Early 1800s As a Village Folk dance in an area of what is now Czechoslovakia is now enjoying popular Appeal. For the first time this year the National Academy of recording arts and sciences gave a grammy to the Best polka album of the year. It went to Frankie Yankovic. I see the polka As similar to the twist which was a Universal dance that was also an exercise although people did t think about it when they were dancing Lorusso said. The polka brings out the child in everyone. My goal is to have the whole world doing  the stars and stripes Page 15