Helen
Milliken, 89, passed away this morning from ovarian cancer. She was the wife of
former Michigan Gov. William Milliken. She was known as “dignified, styling,
deferential to her husband… outspoken, passionate, and unyielding.” She was
receiving hospice care in Traverse City where she lived in retirement.
She
was born in Colorado in 1922 and is best remembered as Michigan’s leading
proponent of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). On one occasion, instead of
joining the 1980 Republican National Convention in Detroit, she attended a
protect march outside the convention in order to decry the decision to remove
pro-ERA language from the GOP’s platform. Her activism on women’s issues was
partially influenced by her daughter, whose concerns about equal treatment and
opportunity for women grew throughout college and law school.
She was also a leading advocate for the arts and
environment. She was the founder and longtime president of Artrain, which
promoted public support for the arts.
Milliken is survived by her husband and son. Her
daughter died of cancer in 1993.
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