The Feminist Press at CUNY is an American independent nonprofit literary publisher of the City University of New York, based in New York City. It primarily publishes feminist literature that promotes freedom of expression and social justice.
The press publishes writing by people who share an activist spirit and a belief in choice and equality. Founded in 1970 to challenge sexual stereotypes in books, schools and libraries, the press began by rescuing “lost” works by writers such as Zora Neale Hurston, Charlotte Perkins Gilman and Rebecca Harding Davis, and established its publishing program with books by American writers of diverse racial and class backgrounds. Since then it has also been bringing works from around the world to North American readers. The Feminist Press is the longest surviving women's publishing house in the world.
Founding and history
By the end of the 1960s, both Florence Howe and her then husband Paul Lauter had taught in the Freedom Schools in Mississippi, and Howe was already attempting to compile a women's studies curriculum for her writing students at Goucher College in Baltimore.[2] As the 1970s approached, Howe was convinced that, just as she needed texts for teaching about women, so would other educators. Her initial appeal to a number of university and trade publishers to issue a series of critical feminist biographies[3] proved of no avail. Ultimately, the Baltimore Women's Liberation, an active local group and publishers of a successful new journal, helped to raise money for the press's first publications. On November 17, 1970, the first meeting of the newly formed press was held in Florence Howe's living room.[4] The first book to be published was Barbara Danish's children's book The Dragon and the Doctor in 1971.[5] Howe saw her dreams of producing feminist biographies come true with the publication of Elizabeth Barrett Browning at the end of 1971.[5]
In the spring of 1971, Howe and her husband moved to New York, where she brought the burgeoning Press to her newly accepted professorship at the State University of New York (SUNY)/Old Westbury. The president of the school, who was interested in bringing women's studies programs to the college, allowed Howe to operate out of the corridor of one of the buildings. The press was met with excitement and support from students who worked in the small office in exchange for college work-study. Two New York City publishing professionals, Verne Moberg and Susan Lowes, contributed to the publication of three volumes of reprinted fiction released in 1972 and 1973, which Howe believed to exemplify the press's enduring commitment to producing course-adoptable books to supplement curriculums dominated by male writers.[9]
In 1972, the Feminist Press became a 501(c)3 organization with tax-exempt status[10] and in 1975, the press moved into its own headquarters in a separate house on campus, a cottage which had been faculty apartments and a garage. The Feminist Press was committed to creating a democratic workplace where staff served on the board which made all publishing and policy decisions. In addition, all paid staff received equal salaries and served on committees including editorial, finance, and marketing & distribution.
The press continued its innovative program of publishing work in three categories: feminist biographies, reprints of important works by women writers, and nonsexist children's books. For each category, the press enlisted advisory committees of distinguished feminist writers, scholars, and educators. The Reprints Advisory Committee was established in 1973 with Founding members including Roslyn Baxandall, Mari Jo Buhle, Ellen DuBois, Florence Howe, Paul Lauter, Laurie Olsen, Lillian Robinson, Deborah S. Rosenfelt, Elaine Showalter, and Catharine Stimpson.[11]
In 1973, the press received funding from the Rockefeller Foundation to survey secondary school textbooks in English and history and to plan for a project to develop supplementary texts.[11] In 1975, the press received two major grants from the Ford Foundation and the Carnegie Corporation to begin what became a seven-year project – Women's Lives/Women's Work, a groundbreaking series of 12 books and teaching guides to supplement high school English and Social Studies texts.[12][13] The series was co-published by the Feminist Press and McGraw-Hill's Webster Division. During the life of the project, the books and teaching guides were extensively tested and evaluated by teachers in schools all across the country.[14]
Books in the Women's Lives/Women's Work series, alphabetically by author:
Cantarow, Ellen with O’Malley, Susan Gushee; Strom, Sharon Hartman (1980). Moving the Mountain: Women Working for Social Change. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN0070204438.
Elsasser, Nan; MacKenzie, Kyle; Tixier y Vigil, Yvonne, eds. (1980) Las Mujeres: Conversations from a Hispanic Community Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN0912670843.
Hedges, Elaine; Wendt, Ingrid, eds. (1980) In Her Own Image: Women Working in the Arts Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN0912670738.
Hoffman, Nancy, ed. (1981) Woman’s “True” Profession: Voices from the History of Teaching. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN0912670932.
Hoffman, Nancy; Howe, Florence, eds. (1979) Women Working: An Anthology of Stories and Poems. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN0070204314.
Jensen, Joan M., ed. (1981) With These Hands: Women Working the Land. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN0912670908.
Kessler-Harris, Alice (1981) Women Have Always Worked: A Historical Overview. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN091267086X.
Nicholas, Susan Cary; Price, Alice M.; Rubin, Rachel (1979) Rights and Wrongs: Women’s Struggle for Legal Equality. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN0070204241.
Romer, Nancy (1981) The Sex-Role Cycle: Socialization from Infancy to Old Age. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN091267069X.
Sterling, Dorothy (1979) Black Foremothers: Three Lives. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN0070204330.
Swerdlow, Amy; Bridenthal, Renate; Kelly, Joan; Vine, Phylis (1981) Household and Kin: Families in Flux. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN0912670681.
Twin, Stephanie L., ed. (1979) Out of the Bleachers: Writings on Women and Sport. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press; New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN0070204292.
The Feminist Press also played a pioneering role in the nascent field of women's studies by providing curricular materials, bibliographies, directories, and a newsletter. The Clearinghouse on Women's Studies, established at the press, was the primary source of information until the National Women's Studies Association was founded in 1977.[15][13]
In the summer of 1985, the Feminist Press moved to the CUNY Graduate Center campus on East Ninety-Fourth Street in Manhattan, following an invitation from the school and was allowed to maintain an independent staff and board of directors.[16]
In 2001, Jean Casella became the executive director of the press, followed by Gloria Jacobs, former Ms. Magazine editor, and writer Jennifer Baumgardner, cofounder of Soapbox, Inc, and later founder of Dottir Press. Jamia Wilson was the subsequent executive director of the Feminist Press, appointed in 2017, and was both the youngest director in the press's forty-nine-year history and the first woman of color to head the organization. “I grew up reading Feminist Press books from my mother’s shelf, and they were instrumental in developing my voice as an activist and writer. It’s an honor to join this intergenerational team to enliven the Press’s intersectional vision of publishing unapologetic, accessible texts that inspire action, teach empathy, and build community,” Wilson explained upon her appointment as ED.[17] In 2022, Margot Atwell, formerly at Kickstarter, was appointed the newest executive director.[18]
Notable publishing endeavors
In 2016, the press started Amethyst Editions, a queer imprint curated by Michelle Tea that champions emerging queer and LGBT writers who employ genre-bending narratives and experimental writing styles, and complicates the conversation around American LGBTQ+ experiences beyond a coming out narrative. Tea's collection Against Memoir won the PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay in 2019.[19]Brontez Purnell, whose novel Since I Laid My Burden Down was also published by the Amethyst Editions imprint, received a Whiting Award for Fiction in 2018.[20]
The Feminist Press has also demonstrated a commitment to publishing diverse voices in translation. Among their recent bestselling translated titles are Asja Bakic's Mars, translated by Jennifer Zoble; Cristina Rivera Garza's The Iliac Crest, translated by Sarah Booker; and Armonía Somer's The Naked Woman, translated by Kit Maude. Pretty Things, a novel by Virginie Despentes that was translated from the French by Emma Ramadan, was longlisted for the 2019 Best Translated Book Award.[22]Trifonia Melibea Obono's La Bastarda, translated by Lawrence Schimel and the first novel by a woman from Equatorial Guinea to be published in English, was shortlisted for the 2019 Lambda Literary Awards in the Lesbian Fiction category.[23]
The Feminist Press also established the Louise Meriwether First Book Prize, a literary prize for debut women and nonbinary authors of color, in partnership with TAYOLiterary Magazine.[24] In 2017, YZ Chin became the first recipient of the Louise Meriwether First Book Prize for her short story collection Though I Get Home. The prize has since been awarded to Claudia D. Hernández in 2018 for Knitting the Fog and Melissa Valentine in 2019 for The Names of All the Flowers.
The Feminist Press also publishes WSQ: Women's Studies Quarterly, an interdisciplinarypeer-reviewed academic journal, based out of the City University of New York. The journal began as Women's Studies Newsletter in 1972, and in 1981 it was renamed Women's Studies Quarterly.[13] Today it is a biannual release simply called WSQ. Covering a wide array of thematic subjects within emerging women's studies, the journal has published issues such as "Technologies," "Citizenship," and "Motherhood." The subject of each issue is considered through various lenses, including psychoanalytic, legal, queer, and historical interpretations in addition to many others.
Widerberg, Siv (1973). I'm Like Me: Poems for people who want to grow up equal. Translated by Verne Moberg. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. ISBN9780912670089.
Chopin, Kate (1974). The Storm and Other Stories. Edited and with an introduction by Per Seyersted. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. OCLC 3104145.
Klein, Norma (1974). A Train for Jane. Illustrated by Miriam Schottland. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. ISBN9780912670348.
Mason, Bobbie Ann (1975). The Girl Sleuth: a feminist guide. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. OCLC 1154562966.
Chevigny, Belle Gale (1976). The Woman and the Myth: Margaret Fuller’s life and writings. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. ISBN9780912670430.
Maury, Inez (1976). My Mother the Mail Carrier/Mi Mamá la Cartera. Translated by Norah E. Alemany. Illustrated by Lady McCrady. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. ISBN9780912670232.
Smedley, Agnes (1976). Portraits of Chinese Women in Revolution. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. ISBN9780912670447.
Rosen, Ruth; Davidson, Sue eds. (1977). The Maimie Papers. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. Published with The Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe College, Cambridge, Massachusetts. ISBN9781558611436.
Phelps, Ethel Johnston (1978). Tatterhood and Other Tales: stories of magic and adventure. Illustrated by Pamela Baldwin Ford. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. OCLC 1036888564.
Showalter, Elaineed. (1978). These Modern Women: autobiographical essays from the twenties. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. ISBN9781558610071.
Wilson, Michael (1978). Salt of the Earth: A screenplay. Commentary by Deborah Silverton Rosenfelt. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. OCLC 1036858969.
Hurston, Zora Neale (1979). I Love Myself When I Am Laughing . . . And Then Again When I Am Looking Mean and Impressive: a Zora Neale Hurston reader. Edited by Alice Walker. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. ISBN9780912670669.
Irwin, Hadley (1979). The Lilith Summer. Old Westbury, New York: The Feminist Press. ISBN9780912670515.
Pussy Riot (2013). Pussy Riot!: a punk prayer for freedom: letters from prison, songs, poems, and courtroom statements, plus tributes to the punk band that shook the world. New York: The Feminist Press. ISBN9781558618343.
The Feminist Press has launched multiple book series. Women Writing Africa was begun in 1994 with funding from the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations,[13] and the four-volume series was completed in 2009. Like the two-volume Women Writing India, the series is composed of regionally unique women's literature. The Femmes Fatales series, featuring pulp, mystery, and noir novels by women writing in the 1930s, '40s, and '50s was launched in 2003.
↑ Howe, Florence (July 2014). "Lost and found – and what happened next: some reflections on the search for women writers begun by The Feminist Press in 1970". Contemporary Women's Writing. 8 (2): 136–153. doi:10.1093/cww/vpt022.
Zora Neale Hurston was an American writer, anthropologist, folklorist, and documentary filmmaker. She portrayed racial struggles in the early-20th-century American South and published research on Hoodoo and Caribbean Vodou. The most popular of her four novels is Their Eyes Were Watching God, published in 1937. She also wrote more than 50 short stories, plays, an autobiography, ethnographies, and many essays.
Alice Malsenior Tallulah-Kate Walker is an American novelist, short story writer, poet, and social activist. In 1982, she became the first African-American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, which she was awarded for her novel The Color Purple. Over the span of her career, Walker has published seventeen novels and short story collections, twelve non-fiction works, and collections of essays and poetry.
Their Eyes Were Watching God is a 1937 novel by American writer Zora Neale Hurston. It is considered a classic of the Harlem Renaissance, and Hurston's best known work. The novel explores protagonist Janie Crawford's "ripening from a vibrant, but voiceless, teenage girl into a woman with her finger on the trigger of her own destiny".
Gloria Naylor was an American novelist, known for novels including The Women of Brewster Place (1982), Linden Hills (1985) and Mama Day (1988).
Florence Rosenfeld Howe was an American author, publisher, literary scholar, and historian who is considered to have been a leader of the contemporary feminist movement.
Lorraine Bethel is an African-American lesbian feminist poet and author.
Tillie Lerner Olsen was an American writer who was associated with the political turmoil of the 1930s and the first generation of American feminists.
Barbara Ellen Johnson was an American literary critic and translator, born in Boston. She was a Professor of English and Comparative Literature and the Fredric Wertham Professor of Law and Psychiatry in Society at Harvard University. Her scholarship incorporated a variety of structuralist and poststructuralist perspectives—including deconstruction, Lacanian psychoanalysis, and feminist theory—into a critical, interdisciplinary study of literature. As a scholar, teacher, and translator, Johnson helped make the theories of French philosopher Jacques Derrida accessible to English-speaking audiences in the United States at a time when they had just begun to gain recognition in France. Accordingly, she is often associated with the "Yale School" of academic literary criticism.
Barbara T. Christian was an American author and professor of African-American Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. Among several books, and over 100 published articles, Christian was most well known for the 1980 study Black Women Novelists: The Development of a Tradition.
Marita Golden is an American novelist, nonfiction writer, professor, and co-founder of the Hurston/Wright Foundation, a national organization that serves as a resource center for African-American writers.
Charlotte Osgood Mason, born Charlotte Louise Van der Veer Quick, was a white American socialite and philanthropist. She contributed more than $100,000 to a number of African-American artists and writers of the Harlem Renaissance, equal to more than $1 million in 2003. This was especially critical during the Great Depression, when foundation support declined. She helped young artists become established.
Valerie Boyd was an American writer and academic. She was best known for her biography of Zora Neale Hurston entitled Wrapped in Rainbows: The Life of Zora Neale Hurston. She was an associate professor and the Charlayne Hunter-Gault Distinguished Writer-in-Residence at the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia, where she taught narrative nonfiction writing, as well as arts and literary journalism.
"Sweat" is a short story by the American writer Zora Neale Hurston, first published in 1926, in the first and only issue of the African-American literary magazine Fire!!. The story revolves around a washerwoman and her unemployed husband.
Karla Francesca Holloway is an American academic. She is James B. Duke Professor of English & Professor of Law at Duke University, and holds appointments in the Duke University School of Law as well as the university's Department of English, Department of African & African American Studies, and Program in Women's Studies. Holloway is a member of The Wintergreen Women Writers Collective
Zelda Lockhart is a contemporary African-American writer, speaker, teacher and researcher. Her latest novel Trinity was published in July 2023. She is the director of LaVenson Press and Her Story Garden Studios. Her recent books include Diamond Doris: The True Story of the World’s Most Notorious Jewel Thief by Doris Payne with Zelda Lockhart (2019), and 20/20: A Living & Learning poetry collection (2017). She is the author of three novels: Fifth Born (2003), Cold Running Creek (2006), and Fifth Born II: The Hundredth Turtle (2010). Her first novel was published to critical acclaim and was a finalist for an award—for a debut novel—from the Zora Neale Hurston/Richard Wright Legacy Foundation. Her novels emphasize the struggles, sexual trauma, and triumphs of African and Native American women historically and contemporarily. Her research focuses on inquiries into intergenerational healing and the ways creating personal experience-based literature while consuming personal experience-based literature has the potential to be emotionally, psychologically, and socially transformative for individuals. Areas of interest are Black women and girls, Native populations, people of color, LGBT individuals and financially disenfranchised people. In her position as director of LaVenson Press and Her Story Garden Studios, Lockhart seeks to create a space where women can "self-define through writing and publishing." She is currently Associate Professor of Creative Writing and African American Literature at North Carolina Central University.
Bernice L. McFadden is an American novelist. She has also written humorous erotica under the pseudonym Geneva Holliday. Author of fifteen novels, she is an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at Tulane University in New Orleans.
All the Women Are White, All the Blacks Are Men, But Some of Us Are Brave (1982) is a landmark feminist anthology in Black Women's Studies printed in numerous editions, co-edited by Akasha Gloria Hull, Patricia Bell-Scott, and Barbara Smith.
Emma Langdon Roche was an American writer and artist, best known for her work Historic Sketches of The South (1914).
Ann Graves Tanksley is an American artist. Her mediums are representational oils, watercolor and printmaking. One of her most noteworthy bodies of work is a collection based on the writings of African-American novelist and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston. The Hurston exhibition is a two hundred plus piece collection of monotypes and paintings. It toured the United States on and off from 1991 through 2010.
The Zora Neale Hurston/Richard Wright Foundation is an American literary nonprofit organization that supports the development and careers of Black writers. The Foundation provides classes, workshops, an annual conference, and offers the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award and the North Star Award, among others. Writer Marita Golden and cultural historian Clyde McElvene founded the organization in 1990.
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