Page 1 of 3 
 
Washington Women’s Heritage Project records, 1900-2000 
University of Washington Libraries Special Collections 
Eleanor Josephine Danner Bilimoria 
May 13, 1985 
Cassette 6, Side 2 
 
 
Elizabeth Gallery-Fox  00:02 
This is side two of tape two, interview three, and Eleanor is going to speak a little bit about her 
granddaughter. 
 
Eleanor Danner Bilimoria  00:10 
Yes, I didn't say much about Liza Ann Wilcox, who is now 19 and a student at Oberlin College. 
Liza took her junior year of high school at Kodaikanal, went to India all by herself, spent the 
year, something I would never have been able to do at her age. She had one year at Oberlin and 
then a half year at the University of Washington and is finishing up the second year at Oberlin 
College. She's very interested in women's issues, and I think will be going to Nairobi to the 
International Women's Decade conference in July of '85.  
 
Eleanor Danner Bilimoria  01:11 
[Tape cuts] It's pitiful, and at both Ellensburg and Houston conferences, I saw women doing 
what the men had told them to do. And men don't have these experiences. They don't they don't 
understand the issues. What else did you ask [laughs]? 
 
Elizabeth Gallery-Fox  01:43 
What are you doing in your life to bring yourself a support system or relief or sense of of unity or 
progress with women? Or women in general, what are the strongest ways women can, one, like 
you said, which I think is-- which I agree with you so highly, is women beginning to separate 
themselves from men and begin to validate and see themselves and make their own decisions and 
think independently? That's real critical. I'm not sure what I'm getting at, but the force of women 
now that we're in the '80s and we've peeked out of the '70s, it seems like women are integrated 
into a lot of different positions now in society. But where's our force? Where's-- because there's 
still so much inequity and oppression.  
 
Eleanor Danner Bilimoria  02:57 
Yes, definitely. The thing I most want to see, and probably won't live to see, is to get women at 
international conferences on the summit level. I don't think a peace conference should be held 
without women from all countries, and I realize in the beginning they're going to be the Jeane 
Kirkpatricks and the Margaret Thatchers. And that will have to be the first step, I suppose. But if 
Page 2 of 3 
 
we can get women from all nations together, perhaps we can get peace. Men aren't going to get 
it. 
 
Elizabeth Gallery-Fox  03:41 
So you see peace as a real critical issue for-- 
 
Eleanor Danner Bilimoria  03:44 
Very critical. Look around the world. Greed over territory, greed over power. It's incredible. 
Leonard Swidler -- was his name -- called it-- was talking about the religious issue, 2000 years of 
male myopia, intellectual myopia. Hopefully something will come out of the conference in 
Nairobi. We will see. Liza is going to go, I think.  
 
Elizabeth Gallery-Fox  04:25 
Oh, she is! Are you gonna go?  
 
Eleanor Danner Bilimoria  04:27 
No. 
 
Elizabeth Gallery-Fox  04:29 
How old is Liza now? 
 
Eleanor Danner Bilimoria  04:31 
She's 19.  
 
Elizabeth Gallery-Fox  04:31 
Oh, neat. That's exciting for her. Well, one final thing, what do you see in life in general that 
makes life great to live? I mean, looking back, what is the attitude or the character to make life 
exciting, an adventure? 
 
Eleanor Danner Bilimoria  05:04 
I think every woman needs to reach her capacity. I think the exciting part is being confident in 
yourself and doing the thing that you want to do. Sometimes it's hard to find out what you want 
to do, but I would never be happy being fettered, restricted.  
 
Elizabeth Gallery-Fox  05:37 
Okay, well, Eleanor, is there anything you'd like to the end of the interview?  
 
Eleanor Danner Bilimoria  05:49 
You've been a wonderful interviewer.  
 
Elizabeth Gallery-Fox  05:51 
You've been a wonderful interviewee [they laugh]. You've stolen the show right out of my lap, 
which I'm glad, because [laughs] I'm not a very good conductor. Okay, so we'll end here.  
 
Eleanor Danner Bilimoria  06:09 
Very good.  
Page 3 of 3 
 
 
Elizabeth Gallery-Fox  06:10 
Thank you very much. 
 
Eleanor Danner Bilimoria  06:11 
You're very welcome. 
 