Signature on a Placemat

I mentioned before that my parents were dyed-in-the-wool Democrats. That meant that they went to a lot of events where well-known politicians visited our out-of-the-way area in New York.

Here's a piece of evidence from one of those times, which I found while going through their stuff:

I know that isn't super easy to read, so I'll translate: For Betty – Best Bella Abzug 

I think I wasn't present for this event, but memory is malleable, so I'm not sure. 

I do definitely have a button like this one in my collection, though:

I didn't remember why I liked Bella Abzug specifically, but having just refreshed my memory on her Wikipedia page, I now know that she introduced the first federal gay rights bill, cosponsored the bill that established the first National Parks site dedicated to the achievements of a woman (Clara Barton), and ran against Daniel Patrick Moynihan for the Senate in 1976. (Retrospectively, I wish that guy had never won that first time, or ever served in that in office.)