The papers of Lee Kefauver document the local, state, and to some extent national activities and affiliations of a feminist activist during the turbulent 1970s. They reveal how groups of concerned organizations, both large and small, banded together to attempt to defeat anti-choice legislation and to defend the Equal Rights Amendment, and they illustrate some of the day to day business of these organizations. This collection contains information about small local organizations which may not be available elsewhere.
Lee Kefauver was born in Boston, Massachusetts and educated in Brookline where she lived for most of her youth. In 1958 she was transferred to Michigan where she met her future husband, Walter Ray Lavalli, who worked for Smith, Hinchman & Grylls Associates, a major Detroit architectural firm. Between 1968 and 1972 she attended classes in political science at Wayne State University in Detroit. Ms. Kefauver took an active interest in the political and social issues of her time, particularly those concerning equal rights for women and abortion rights. From 1968 until 1975 she was an active member of the Dearborn-Dearborn Heights chapter of the League of Women Voters, where she served as Publicity Chair and Chair of the Equal Rights Amendment, United States Congress, and Foreign Relations committees as well as serving on the board.
In 1970 she began working with the Michigan Organization for the Repeal of Abortion Laws, where she lobbied for bills before the Michigan legislature and worked with other pro-choice groups to influence legislation. Throughout her career Ms. Kefauver was active in a large number of formal and informal groups and coalitions working toward better living conditions for women. For a more complete account of her activities, refer to the documents in the Biographical/Personal folder. In 1971 Ms. Kefauver joined the Detroit chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW). She served as chair of the Reproductive Rights Task Force of that chapter, and as NOW Michigan Coordinator for Reproductive Rights. In 1973 she was elected Michigan State Coordinator (President) of NOW, and served one eighteen month term. In 1976 Ms. Kefauver became active in the Women's Equity Action League (WEAL), representing them as a registered lobbyist, legislative coordinator, and as state president in 1979-1980. In 1978 she won the national WEAL Lobbying Award for the most effective contribution to lobbying on women's issues. As a member of the Feminist Bureau of Investigation, Ms. Kefauver compiled the Michigan Legislative Report in 1975 and 1976.
Ms. Kefauver was also an active member of the Republican Party, serving as a delegate to the State Convention several times and as a member of the Issues Committee. While her affiliation with the Republication Party may be surprising in light of her ardent feminism, she explained in a 1977 Delegate Questionnaire that: "I am originally from Boston, Mass. where the Republican party was the 'progressive' party, concerned about human rights and issues that affect people in their daily lives" (response dated February 1, 1977, Folder: Republican State Committee, State Conventions, 1974-1977). During this period, Ms. Kefauver became increasingly frustrated with the positions taken by the national and state Republican party. Her last act as a Republican was to join hundreds of other women in picketing the Republican National Convention held in Detroit.
In 1982 Ms. Kefauver moved to Massachusetts where she registered to vote as a Democrat and became involved in the Democratic Town Committees of the towns in which she has resided. For additional information, see the Biographical/Personal folder in Box 1. Ms. Kefauver passed away in October of 2017.
One of Ms. Kefauver's children, her daughter Kari Lee Lavalli, also became involved in the struggle for equal rights when she filed a complaint with the Michigan Civil Rights Commission (MCRC) charging the "Dearborn Public Schools with discriminating against her by excluding her from shop classes, and forcing her to take homemaking classes instead" ("Teen Charges Bias in School," Detroit Free Press, March 13, 1974, 1-C, Folder: Public School "Desexigration" [Equal Access to Educational Facilities], 1973-1974).
