This week we are mourning the loss of women’s rights activist and state Rep. Lois Reckitt of South Portland, who passed away at the age 78. Reckitt fought for five decades for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment and served as the longtime director of Family Crisis Services in Portland and an advocate for women suffering from domestic abuse. Reckitt also served as the state coordinator of the National Organization for Women (NOW) and was a founder of the first Maine chapter of the National Organization for Women, Maine Women’s Lobby, and the reproductive rights group Maine Right to Choose.
“Representative Lois Galgay Reckitt will be remembered as a towering figure who advocated for equality for all women and girls, for domestic violence survivors, and for the LGBTQ+ community,” said Adam Goode, Legislative and Political Director of the Maine AFL-CIO. “In addition to that legacy, she had a rock solid record supporting labor unions and working class issues in the Maine House of Representatives. She knew that unions were one of the key ways for women to win economic security. We send our condolences to Lois’ family.”
“Lois was a close friend, a true champion for women’s rights, workers’ rights and a trailblazer in advocating for victims of domestic violence,” said Matt Beck, former labor representative for IBEW Local 1837. “When it came to supporting working people and their unions, she was an automatic ‘yes.’”
Jason Shedlock, President of the Maine Building and Construction Council, recalled how popular Reckitt was with union members when she showed up at a labor event.
“These big, tough union men and women stopping in their tracks to make way for and to grab her attention for even a brief moment of thanks, to seek advice, ask for her help, etc. And she delivered,” she said. "And while she had a powerful voice sometimes her voice had the biggest impact when it was quiet. She knew how to calibrate that voice to get results for working families.”