'You Don't Own Me,' A Feminist Anthem With Civil Rights Roots, Is All About Empathy

'Ever since a 17-year-old Lesley Gore sang "You Don't Own Me" in 1963, the coolly mutinous song has moved women to reject passive femininity. Many have taken up the song as a symbol of women's empowerment, but this fiercely feminist anthem was written by two men. David White died earlier this year, but John Madara, now 82 years old, says the two songwriters were disgusted by how much music written for female singers in the early 1960s centered on mooning over guys and decided to try something: "Let's write a song about a woman telling a guy off".' -- Morning Edition