‘Fly With Me,’ a new documentary tracing the struggles of 1950s and 60s flight attendants for equality, respect and decent pay and working conditions had its premiere yesterday on U.S. public broadcasting stations and is now streaming on PBS’s online services.
While we’ve certainly come a long way from the days when ‘stewardesses,’ as they were called then had to be young, single, and ‘glamorous,’ while dealing with low pay and airline advertising that pictured them as sexy ‘cocktail waitresses in the sky,” the film makes it clear that didn’t happen by itself.
The video documents their struggles to be recognized as professionals and for equal and equitable pay and rules. Among those seen are one of the first Black flight attendants (it took a lawsuit and four years waiting) and flight attendants who were first in line to file a complaint the day the Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission opened its doors.
These days, flight attendants and their union are frequently heard as advocates not only for their own conditions but weighing in on safety issues that affect passengers as well. ‘Fly With Me’ lights the path from then to now.
