“Sisters, O Sisters” is a feminist rallying cry sung by Yoko Ono with music by John Lennon and the band Elephant’s Memory. It was released by Apple Records in 1972 on the album Some Time In New York City after having been performed for the first time at the famous Free John Sinclair rally that took place in Michigan on December 10, 1971.

The feminist revolution was in full swing at the time of the record’s release. That same year the supreme court declared sex discrimination to be unconstitutional, The Equal Rights Amendment was making it’s way through the House and Senate, and Ms. Magazine was launched. Yoko even released a passionate manifesto the year before titled, The Feminization of Society where she challenged society in no uncertain terms:

This society is the very society that killed female freedom: the society that was built on female slavery. If we try to achieve our freedom within the framework of the existing social set-up, men, who run the society, will continue to make a token gesture of giving us a place in their world.

While her manifesto was powerfully written to provoke serious thought she was also hopeful in interviews she did at the time when discussing feminism, saying:

There will be a time when the opposite sex will understand that we care for them, too. And we understand them, too.

Music critics were not very supportive of “Sisters, O Sisters”, however that didn’t stop John and Yoko from performing the song live and on television on David Frost’s and Mike Douglas' shows. The song has endured in spite of the critical comments and has continued to inspire a whole new generation of feminists since its creation. In 2007 the feminist electroclash band, Le Tigre covered “Sisters, O Sisters” with Yoko Ono for Ono’s album, Yes, I’m a Witch.

When it comes to women, Yoko says:

We are a very important energy that the society can use. To denigrate us or to abuse us or to sweep us under the rug is not beneficial for the society itself.