Sophonisba Breckinridge: Championing Women's Activism in Modern America (Women, Gender, and Sexuality in American History)

Sophonisba Breckinridge's remarkable career stretched from the Civil War to the Cold War. She took part in virtually every reform campaign of the Progressive and New Deal eras and became a nationally and internationally renowned figure. Her work informed women's activism for decades and continues to shape progressive politics today. Anya Jabour's biography rediscovers this groundbreaking American figure.

After earning advanced degrees in politics, economics, and law, Breckinridge established the University of Chicago's School of Social Service Administration, which became a feminist think tank that promoted public welfare policy and propelled women into leadership positions. In 1935, Breckinridge's unremitting efforts to provide government aid to the dispossessed culminated in her appointment as an advisor on programs for the new Social Security Act. A longtime activist in international movements for peace and justice, Breckinridge also influenced the formation of the United Nations and advanced the idea that "women's rights are human rights." Her lifelong commitment to social justice created a lasting legacy for generations of progressive activists.|

CoverTitle PageCopyrightContentsPreface: Forgotten FeministAcknowledgmentsIntroduction: "A Woman's Work" and "The Work of the World"Chapter One. Becoming a Breckinridge: A Kentucky ChildhoodChapter Two. Preparation for Citizenship: An "All-Around Girl" at Wellesley CollegeChapter Three. Striving for the Ideal: Female Achievement and the Family ClaimChapter Four. Academic Activism: Social Science and Social Reform in Progressive-Era ChicagoChapter Five. The Other Chicago School: The School of Social Service AdministrationChapter Six. Defining Equality: Fairness and FeminismChapter Seven. Women against War: An International Movement for Peace and JusticeChapter Eight. The Potential and Pitfalls of Pan-American FeminismChapter Nine. Toward a National Minimum: Women Building the Welfare StateChapter Ten. "A&B": A Productive PartnershipEpilogue: Passionate PatienceNotesIndexBack cover|

Anya Jabour is Regents Professor of History at the University of Montana. Her books include Topsy-Turvy: How the Civil War Turned the World Upside Down for Southern Children and Scarlett's Sisters: Young Women in the Old South.