Remembering Kate Millett

Friends gathered yesterday afternoon at the Unitarian Universal Church on Central Park West to celebrate the life of Kate Millett, the pioneering feminist author who died on Sept. 6. She was 82.

Per PBS:

Millett championed the causes of feminism and mental health across a lifetime of work, and helped pioneer the field of gender studies and contemporary American conceptions of sexual freedom.

The Bowery Alliance of Neighbors shared the following yesterday via email:

Ms. Millett was also a long-time resident of the Bowery, residing at 295 Bowery, a building that had once housed the notorious McGurk's Suicide Hall, site of multiple suicides carried out by young female prostitutes.

Upon learning that the building was to be demolished, Millett led a valiant effort to have the building declared a NYC Landmark, and hoped to establish a museum memorial to women who had died there. Sadly, these efforts were unsuccessful, and the building was demolished.

When we were preparing an historic signage poster about 295 Bowery (see below), Kate was a very helpful adviser.

In 2004, the Cooper Square Mutual Housing Association helped Kate Millett and her spouse Sophie Keir relocate to a nearby spot just east of the Bowery.

A wonderful neighbor on many levels, Kate will be missed.