LakeNET - Patricia Ireland

Patricia Ireland is an attorney and social activist who became the ninth president of the National Organization for Women (NOW) on December 15, 1991. Ireland published an autobiography, "What Women Want" in 1996 and is said to be one of the most effective voices of the women's rights movement. She attended DePauw University, later transferred to the University of Tennessee and married while in school there. A few years later, she began working as a stewardess at Pan American World Airways, where she took her first steps into the realm of political activism. She has served as president of NOW, the largest feminist organization in the United States. During her tenure, she has fought for the election of women to higher office, lobbied for legislation combating violence against women and aided in forging relationships among various rights organizations.