For Immediate Release
Contact: Elaine Rock
ElaineRockAuthor@gmail.com
ElaineRock.com
707-293-0000
Discover the Hidden California Woman Who Really Ignited the Women's Movement
January 29, 2025. Sonoma County, California. Gloria Steinem knows who Dusty Roads is, the true hidden figure who ignited the woman's movement. With the gripping words of author Elaine Rock, thousands of flight attendants and union members know of the ground breaking accomplishments of one stewardess. And now, the public will, too.
"Dusty was the one who started it all." - Gloria Steinem
Elaine Rock writes from Sonoma County, California. She is a woman's rights advocate, historian, speaker and former technology executive announcing the release of her authorized biography about Dusty Roads (1928-2023), who lived in Sonoma County for many years. Dusty Roads: Meet the Hidden Figure Who Really Ignited the Women's Movement was the result of their meeting at the local Sonoma County Family YMCA swimming pool.
The stage is set in the 1950s when no one had said or wrote the phrase women's movement … yet. Stewardess and Union leader Dusty Roads challenged and led the fight to eliminate American Airlines' employment policies firing stewardesses at thirty-two and banning marriage. And the infamous girdle check and weigh-ins. The same rules did not apply to male stewards. Dusty Roads was incensed and vowed to fight the policy. And she won.
Roads became a visual and vocal presence in Washington DC as one of the first female lobbyists in 1958.
- She befriended Congressional Representatives, Senators, Congressional Aides, even Vice Presidents and Presidents.
- She became the most influential voice in her union, and her story captures the essence of her pivotal role in shaping a more inclusive and equal society.
- Her persistence helped lay the groundwork for Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.
- In 1965, Dusty brought the first discrimination complaint to the EEOC when it opened its door.
The author Elaine Rock shares, "In my research, I found numerous references to what women were forbidden to do in the 1950s and 60s, like not being able to have a credit card. When I talk about these restrictions, men and women, no matter what age group, their jaws drop. They're incredulous. Then, when I tell them Dusty Roads was the woman who really started the women's movement, they want to know more."
The book is based on extensive interviews with Dusty Roads at her home in Santa Rosa, along with the insights of the men and women in Washington DC who knew her, of her, and her work
Rock reveals, "When I speak of how Dusty was one of the first women lobbyists to Congress; how she filed the first discrimination complaint in the United States; and confronted dangerous duty flying troops to the Vietnam war, the room becomes silent and attentive. Many have no idea that flight attendants had such a contribution to the women's movement or the war effort. Dusty Roads is the perfect example that helps inspire and give women hope today."
Dusty Roads: Meet the Hidden Figure who Really Ignited the Women's Movement is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org and at local bookstores.
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Media: Elaine Rock responds quickly to interview requests. Call 707-293-0000 or email her at ElaineRockAuthor@gmail.com. Regular updates are added to her website: www.ElaineRock.com.
She was featured on the PBS American Experience documentary "Fly With Me" in February of 2024. Rock has published short stories about Dusty and others who are leaders who shaped history and became trailblazers. . She can provide background stories and commentary about how the women's movement began before Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan came on the scene—before it had a name.