“Feminists have a death grip on the top level of the Democratic party,” insisted Phyllis Schlafly during an interview last month. “The feminists are a disaster … It’s so unfortunate what they do to young women.” Funny, some say the same thing about Schlafly.

Yes, Schlafly’s nothing if not a contradiction. Educated at Washington University and Radcliffe, the 85-year-old conservative leader boasts quite a list of accomplishments: She’s penned 20 books, influenced powerful politicians — including Ronald Reagan — and commands a powerful lobbying group, the Eagle Forum. In fact, she would have addressed the Conservative Political Action Committee this weekend had she not broken her hip after a lecture last Wednesday. Oddly enough, the thrust of Schlafly’s success rests on her hard line against other women.

“She did lasting damage to the women’s rights movement,” remarked Mary Jean Collins, a longtime feminist activist who once headed the National Organization for Women’s Chicago branch. The iconic Betty Friedan, meanwhile, took a harsher tone during a 1970 debate, when she reportedly called Schlafly “a traitor to [the female] sex” and said she wanted to burn her at the stake. On the other hand, commentator Ann Coulter has described Schlafly as “brilliant,” “beautiful” and “principled.” Elaine Donnelly, a longtime ally of Schlafly’s and leader of the Center for Military Readiness, lavished extraordinary praise on Schlafly: “If you look at her as a conservative women, she has shown women what’s possible. She’s certainly a role model for women, regardless of party.” There’s indeed little middle ground when it comes to Schlafly. Some call her a hero, while others maintain she’s the most dangerous woman in American history. Why, though, can’t she be both?"

Born in 1924, Phyllis McAlpin Stewart came from modest beginnings in St. Louis, MO, where her family struggled through the Great Depression. Though women had only three years earlier gained the right to vote, and though discrimination still existed in the workplace, Schlafly maintains she never once felt oppressed. “I always felt I could do whatever I wanted.” And you can be sure young Ms. Stewart made short work of her goals. 

Determined to go to school, Phyllis paid her way by testing ammunition at the St. Louis Ordnance Plant, a fitting job for a woman who would become such a spitfire. She managed to finish Washington University in three years — “I don’t believe in going to college for four years” — and then headed to Radcliffe, where she earned a Masters of Arts in government in 1945, at the age of 20. From there Phyllis headed to Washington, DC, and worked for the American Enterprise Association before moving back to St. Louis, aiding a congressman’s campaign and acting as a research director at two local banks.

By her telling, Schlafly was “saved from the life as a working girl” when she met and in 1949 married a wealthy, Illinois-based attorney named Fred Schlafly. Asked whether she thinks a woman needs a man to be happy, Schlafly asserted:

I think it’s much more fun to have a home, have a spouse, have children. Absolutely. And most of the women I debated in the 1970s don’t have what I have, which is grandchildren. But they made their choice. The trouble is they’re not happy with their choices, and I’m very happy with mine.

Fred and Phyllis were certainly happy in the years after their marriage and together threw themselves into the anti-communist conservative movement. Though both passionate about politics, it was Mrs. Schlafly who made the most waves.