Tough Ladies: Sons About Their Mothers

I actually mirror myself on her a bit, especially because of her strong character, her stubbornness and her perseverance.
- Dixie Dansercoer -
A housekeeper is the one who runs the household, which requires real managerial skills. My mother and her entire generation, were managers avant la lettre.
-Ferre Wyckmans -
1948. Belgian women gain the right to vote. A year later, they cross out the representatives of their choice for the first time. A milestone on the road to equal rights.
Now, sixty years later, a number of well-known and lesser-known, but committed men write about their mothers: each and every one of them tough ladies. They were in the prime of their lives then, although that was not always easy just after the war. A generation of women who in most cases had fewer opportunities to study and build a career than today. Did they work their socks off at home or in the factory? What did politics mean to them? What values ​​did they pass on and pass on to their sons? Did they influence their children's commitment? And what exactly makes them such tough ladies?
The legacy of these mothers is meticulously recorded in letters and testimonies. Strong and lasting memories of sons. Often they are very grateful and proud, sometimes they look back on the past with mixed feelings.
HILDE PAUWELS is a freelance journalist at De Standaard and various magazines. Professor MARC HOOGHE, Department of Political Science at KU Leuven, writes a commentary piece.
With the support of the office of Flemish Minister for Equal Opportunities Kathleen Van Brempt.