Case women historians honored for their 2004, 2005 books
on topics of grassroots activism in public housing and women in science
October 20, 2005 | For more information: Susan Griffith 216-368-1004
Case Western Reserve University historians Miriam Levin and Rhonda Y. Williams received a surprise at the beginning of the semester. Both have learned their recent books are being recognized and honored in major book prize competitions.
Via a phone call and letter, William was notified that she earned the Letitia Woods Brown Memorial Prize from the Association of Black Women Historians for her book, The Politics of Public Housing: Black Women's Struggles Against Urban Inequality. Oxford University Press nominated her monograph for the prize she will receive this month during the annual conference of the Association for Study of African American Life and History in Buffalo, N.Y. This honor recognizes the best book, anthology or article in the field of African-American women's history.
Levin learned Defining Women's Scientific Enterprise, her recent book that examines the rise of women in sciences from the early 1800s through World War II, was submitted by her publisher, University Press of New England, as its nomination for the Pulitzer Prize in the nonfiction category of American history.
Oral histories of women in public housing
In her book, Williams, Case associate professor of history, examined the role women took on as grassroots activists to improve the conditions of public housing during the rise between "its bookend years" in the 1930s with New Deal legislation through the early 1990s with the onset of welfare reform and the demise of traditional public housing.
Focusing on her home city of Baltimore, Williams told the story of public housing activism through the oral histories of more than 50 women who wage battles with housing officials to better living conditions. Their stories are set in the context of their times, reflecting social, political and economic influences that have impacted public housing at the local, state and federal levels.
While doing research as a graduate student, the former newspaper reporter with the Charlotte Observer came across documents that revealed to her what appeared as an "oxymoron" about women in public housing. She continued to see names of African-American women listed on the minutes and as members of resident committees who lead movements and spoke out against management.
"In the public's eye, these women were perceived as idle, lazy, lethargic, having no sensibilities or concerns about their wellbeing and breeding large families, but what I found was something much more complicated and different from that stereotype," said Williams.
Years of research brought her into contact with such people as one of the first public housing activists, Clara Gordon, who watched the construction of the Poe Homes in Baltimore and yearned to live in the new subsidized housing when it opened in the 1940s. Gordon and her family became new residents in one of the townhouses, and later she became active in mothers' clubs and neighborhood organizations that improved her and her children's circumstances through educational programs.
Other women, such as Shirley Wise and Goldie Baker who are described by Williams as "dynamos," were active in the 1960s and 1970s and became important voices for political change, giving rise to the "active voice" of tenants who challenged and held management accountable for housing conditions.
Williams' book, her first monograph, launched the interdisciplinary series, Transgressing Boundaries: Studies in Black Politics and Black Communities. She is also the co-editor, with Julie Buckner Armstrong, Susan Hult Edwards and Houston Roberson, of Teaching the American Civil Rights Movement: Freedom's Bittersweet Song.
Women trailblazing into science
A "pleased" Levin, also a Case associate professor of history, will have to wait months to learn whether she reaches the finals of the Pulitzer Prize competition. She said, "It is truly an honor to be nominated by my press which is noted publisher in the field of American history, but now the competition begins."
Her case study of Mount Holyoke College's successful education of women in the sciences over the past 150 years now must compete to reach the finals against nominations from other publishers who have advanced their books into one of America's most recognized literary honors. Finalists are selected from the submissions by a jury committee.
Mount Holyoke's success in educating women for science opportunities in teaching and research has been matched by no other university in the country.
Levin found at the center of Mount Holyoke's tradition has been its ability to adapt to cultural, economic and religious constraints, while pushing for advancement when cracks in the system appear, allowing women to fill that void.
At Mount Holyoke College's founding in 1837 by Mary Lyon, the educator pursued the college's mission as a "castle of science" for women. Levin examined Mount Holyoke's advancement of sciences through the dimensions of religion, gender, geography and pedagogy.
"Miriam Levin splendidly enriches our understanding of women in American science and higher education. By skillfully and convincingly weaving together issues of religious values, gender and professionalism, she make a superb contribution that will be highly valued by a wide audience," said Robert Kargon, the Willis K. Shepard Professor of History of Science at The Johns Hopkins University.
In addition to this latest book, Levin is the author of Cultures of Control, When the Eiffel Tower Was New and Republican Art and Ideology in Late 19th Century France.
Levin joins two faculty members who have had books that were past Pulitzer Prize nominees: Ted Steinberg for Acts of God: The Unnatural History of Natural Disasters and David Hammack for Power and Society: Greater New York at the Turn of the Century.
About Case Western Reserve University
Case is among the nation's leading research institutions. Founded in 1826
and shaped by the unique merger of the Case Institute of Technology and Western
Reserve University, Case is distinguished by its strengths in education, research,
service, and experiential learning. Located in Cleveland, Case offers nationally
recognized programs in the Arts and Sciences, Dental Medicine, Engineering,
Law, Management, Medicine, Nursing, and Social Work. http://www.case.edu.
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