Susan Brownmiller
Encyclopedia
Susan Brownmiller is an American feminist
, journalist, author, and activist. She is best known for her pioneering work on the politics of rape
in her 1975 book Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape, Brownmiller argues that rape had been hitherto defined by men rather than women; and that men use, and all men benefit from the use of, rape as a means of perpetuating male dominance by keeping all women in a state of fear. The book received criticism from Angela Davis
, who thought Brownmiller disregarded the part that black women played in the anti-lynching movement and that Brownmiller's discussion of rape and race became an "unthinking partnership which borders on racism". In 1995 The New York Public Library selected Against Our Will as one of 100 most important books of the Twentieth Century.
Brownmiller also participated in civil rights
activism, joining CORE
and SNCC during the sit-in
movement and volunteering for Freedom Summer
in 1964, where she worked on voter registration in Meridian, Mississippi. Returning to New York, she began writing for The Village Voice and became a network TV newswriter at the American Broadcasting Company, a job she held until 1968. She first became involved in the Women's Liberation Movement in New York City
in 1968, by joining a consciousness-raising group in the newly formed New York Radical Women
organization. Brownmiller went on to co-ordinate a sit-in against Ladies' Home Journal in 1970, began work on Against Our Will after a New York Radical Feminists
speak-out on rape in 1971, and co-founded Women Against Pornography
in 1979. She continues to write and speak on feminist issues, including a recent memoir and history of Second Wave
radical feminism. In Our Time: Memoir of a Revolution (1999).
Brownmiller won an Alicia Patterson Journalism Fellowship in 1973 to research and write about the crime of rape.
Against Our Will was a highly influential book. Its basic premise was contested by some sections of the Left wing who considered it untrue that "all men benefit" from the culture of rape, and who believed rather that it was possible to organize both women and men together to oppose sexual violence.
to Mae and Samuel Warhaftig, a lower-middle-class Jewish couple. Her father was a sales clerk in Macy's
department store, and her mother was a secretary in the Empire State Building
.
As a child she attended the Ocean Avenue synagogue, and she was sent to a Hebrew School there for two afternoons a week to learn Hebrew and Jewish history. She would later comment, "It all got sort of mishmashed in my brain except for one thread: a helluva lot of people over the centuries seemed to want to harm the Jewish people. ... I can argue that my chosen path - to fight against physical harm, specifically the terror of violence against women - had its origins in what I had learned in Hebrew School about the pogroms and the Holocaust."
She had "a stormy adolescence", attending Cornell University
for two years (1952 to 1954) on scholarships, but not graduating. She later studied acting in New York City. While training as an actor, she took the stage name Brownmiller, legally changing her name in 1961.
She appeared in two off-Broadway productions.
Brownmiller's interest in journalism began with a position at a "confession magazine". She went on to work as an assistant to the managing editor at Coronet magazine (1959–1960), as an editor of the Albany Report (1961–1962), and as a national affairs researcher at Newsweek (1963–1964). In the mid-1960s, Brownmiller continued her career in journalism with positions as a reporter for NBC-TV in Philadelphia (1965), staff writer for the Village Voice (1965), and as network newswriter for ABC-TV in New York City (1966–1968). Beginning in 1968, she worked as a freelance writer; her book reviews, essays, and articles appeared regularly in publications including the New York Times, Newsday, the New York Daily News, Vogue, and the Nation. In 1968, she signed the “Writers and Editors War Tax Protest” pledge, vowing to refuse tax payments in protest against the Vietnam War.
She describes herself as "a single woman", even though "I was always a great believer in romance and partnership." "I would like to be in close association with a man whose work I respect," she told an interviewer, attributing her continued celibacy to the fact that she was "not willing to compromise."
Her papers have been archived at Harvard, in the Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America.
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
, journalist, author, and activist. She is best known for her pioneering work on the politics of rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
in her 1975 book Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape, Brownmiller argues that rape had been hitherto defined by men rather than women; and that men use, and all men benefit from the use of, rape as a means of perpetuating male dominance by keeping all women in a state of fear. The book received criticism from Angela Davis
Angela Davis
Angela Davis is an American political activist, scholar, and author. Davis was most politically active during the late 1960s through the 1970s and was associated with the Communist Party USA, the Civil Rights Movement and the Black Panther Party...
, who thought Brownmiller disregarded the part that black women played in the anti-lynching movement and that Brownmiller's discussion of rape and race became an "unthinking partnership which borders on racism". In 1995 The New York Public Library selected Against Our Will as one of 100 most important books of the Twentieth Century.
Brownmiller also participated in civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
activism, joining CORE
Congress of Racial Equality
The Congress of Racial Equality or CORE was a U.S. civil rights organization that originally played a pivotal role for African-Americans in the Civil Rights Movement...
and SNCC during the sit-in
Sit-in
A sit-in or sit-down is a form of protest that involves occupying seats or sitting down on the floor of an establishment.-Process:In a sit-in, protesters remain until they are evicted, usually by force, or arrested, or until their requests have been met...
movement and volunteering for Freedom Summer
Freedom Summer
Freedom Summer was a campaign in the United States launched in June 1964 to attempt to register as many African American voters as possible in Mississippi which had historically excluded most blacks from voting...
in 1964, where she worked on voter registration in Meridian, Mississippi. Returning to New York, she began writing for The Village Voice and became a network TV newswriter at the American Broadcasting Company, a job she held until 1968. She first became involved in the Women's Liberation Movement in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1968, by joining a consciousness-raising group in the newly formed New York Radical Women
New York Radical Women
New York Radical Women was an early second-wave feminist group that existed from 1967–1969.NYRW was founded in New York City in the fall of 1967, by Shulamith Firestone and Pam Allen. Early members included: Ros Baxandall, Carol Hanisch, Patricia Mainardi, Robin Morgan, Irene Peslikis, Kathie...
organization. Brownmiller went on to co-ordinate a sit-in against Ladies' Home Journal in 1970, began work on Against Our Will after a New York Radical Feminists
New York Radical Feminists
New York Radical Feminists was a radical feminist group founded by Shulamith Firestone and Anne Koedt in 1969, after they had left Redstockings and The Feminists, respectively. Firestone's and Koedt's desire to start this new group was aided by Vivian Gornick's 1969 Village Voice article, "The...
speak-out on rape in 1971, and co-founded Women Against Pornography
Women Against Pornography
Women Against Pornography was a radical feminist activist group based out of New York City and an influential force in the anti-pornography movement of the late 1970s and the 1980s....
in 1979. She continues to write and speak on feminist issues, including a recent memoir and history of Second Wave
Second-wave feminism
The Feminist Movement, or the Women's Liberation Movement in the United States refers to a period of feminist activity which began during the early 1960s and lasted through the early 1990s....
radical feminism. In Our Time: Memoir of a Revolution (1999).
Brownmiller won an Alicia Patterson Journalism Fellowship in 1973 to research and write about the crime of rape.
Against Our Will
Against Our Will is a feminist book which argues that rape "is nothing more or less than a conscious process of intimidation by which all men keep all women in a state of fear." In order to write this book, after having helped to organize the New York Radical Feminist Speak-Out on Rape on January 24, 1971, and the New York Radical Feminist Conference on Rape on April 17, 1971, Susan Brownmiller, an experienced journalist, spent four years investigating rape. She studied rape throughout history, from the earliest codes of human law up into modern times. She collected clippings to find patterns in the way in which rape is reported in various types of newspapers, analyzed portrayals of rape in literature, films, and popular music, and evaluated crime statistics.Against Our Will was a highly influential book. Its basic premise was contested by some sections of the Left wing who considered it untrue that "all men benefit" from the culture of rape, and who believed rather that it was possible to organize both women and men together to oppose sexual violence.
Biography
Brownmiller was born in BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
to Mae and Samuel Warhaftig, a lower-middle-class Jewish couple. Her father was a sales clerk in Macy's
Macy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
department store, and her mother was a secretary in the Empire State Building
Empire State Building
The Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark skyscraper and American cultural icon in New York City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. It has a roof height of 1,250 feet , and with its antenna spire included, it stands a total of 1,454 ft high. Its name is derived...
.
As a child she attended the Ocean Avenue synagogue, and she was sent to a Hebrew School there for two afternoons a week to learn Hebrew and Jewish history. She would later comment, "It all got sort of mishmashed in my brain except for one thread: a helluva lot of people over the centuries seemed to want to harm the Jewish people. ... I can argue that my chosen path - to fight against physical harm, specifically the terror of violence against women - had its origins in what I had learned in Hebrew School about the pogroms and the Holocaust."
She had "a stormy adolescence", attending Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
for two years (1952 to 1954) on scholarships, but not graduating. She later studied acting in New York City. While training as an actor, she took the stage name Brownmiller, legally changing her name in 1961.
She appeared in two off-Broadway productions.
Brownmiller's interest in journalism began with a position at a "confession magazine". She went on to work as an assistant to the managing editor at Coronet magazine (1959–1960), as an editor of the Albany Report (1961–1962), and as a national affairs researcher at Newsweek (1963–1964). In the mid-1960s, Brownmiller continued her career in journalism with positions as a reporter for NBC-TV in Philadelphia (1965), staff writer for the Village Voice (1965), and as network newswriter for ABC-TV in New York City (1966–1968). Beginning in 1968, she worked as a freelance writer; her book reviews, essays, and articles appeared regularly in publications including the New York Times, Newsday, the New York Daily News, Vogue, and the Nation. In 1968, she signed the “Writers and Editors War Tax Protest” pledge, vowing to refuse tax payments in protest against the Vietnam War.
She describes herself as "a single woman", even though "I was always a great believer in romance and partnership." "I would like to be in close association with a man whose work I respect," she told an interviewer, attributing her continued celibacy to the fact that she was "not willing to compromise."
Her papers have been archived at Harvard, in the Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America.
Books
- Shirley Chisholm: A Biography (Doubleday, 1970)
- Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape (Simon and Schuster, 1975/Fawcett Columbine 1993)
- Femininity (Linden Press/Simon & Schuster, 1984)
- Waverly Place (Grove Press, 1989)
- Seeing Vietnam: Encounters of the Road and Heart (Harper Collins, 1994)
- In Our Time: Memoir of a Revolution (Dial Press, 1999)
External links
- Susan Brownmiller.com
- Jewish Women and the Feminist Revolution from the Jewish Women's Archive
- Susan Brownmiller Papers.Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University.
- a critique of Against Our Will by a black feminist