The Columbia Documentary History of American Women, 1941-2000

by Harriet Sigerman

From the Hoover vacuum cleaner to the fax machine, from the pill to reproductive rights, from Rosie the Riveter to Martha Stewart and Hillary Rodham Clinton, American women have grappled with a sometimes dizzying rate of social and economic change and continually shifting conceptions of gender. This collection of documents seeks to chronicle the exciting and tumultuous recent history of American women, beginning with the watershed event of World War II and the lasting impact of the war effort on women's social and economic opportunities. Subsequent documents speak to the ideas and changes brought about by the women's movement; the challenges to and defense of reproductive rights; the backlash against feminism in the name of family values; and new visions for women's lives in the twenty-first century.