A Project of
the San Diego County Commission on the Status of Women and Girls,
the Women's Museum of California,
SDSU Women's Studies Department, and UCSD Women's Center.
Nancy Reeves
2003
Trailblazer
Nancy Reeves' pioneering work as an attorney, feminist, author, and international lecturer has been influential for over 80 years. Through her extensive publications and lectures, she has brought to universities and the general public a global awareness of gender stereotypes, connecting women's status to world events. She has published groundbreaking books and articles, most notably Womankind: Beyond the Stereotypes, for which she received first prize in literature from the California Bar Association in 1972. Her writings were used in legal textbooks and college level women's studies courses. In addition, she has lectured widely and has made guest television appearances.
Reeves became one of the first women to receive a law degree from the New York University School of Law in the 1930s. During the Depression she built her own legal practice that dealt primarily with women's issues. Soon afterwards she wrote Womankind: Beyond the Stereotypes, one of the first interdisciplinary texts for college level women's studies. The book also contributed to the creation of Women's Studies as a legitimate academic discipline. Its first chapter was included in L. Kanowitz, Sex Roles in Law and Society, the first legal textbook in the field, and Womankind's outline was in the APA Sourcebook on the Teaching of Psychology. Ms. Reeves has published articles in national publications and worldwide. Some of these include a women"s issues column for Svenska Dagbladet (Stockholm, Sweden, 1950-1952), "Women of the New Cuba" in Monthly Review (November 1960), "Women in Wonderland" in Women Speaking (London, April 1966), "The New Vision of Reality" in Cultures (UNESCO, Paris), and "What Decline in Education?" in L.A. Times (October 11). The latter publication led to Ms. Reeves' appointment on the California Board of Education.
In San Diego, Reeves has contributed to several publications, including Op-Ed items in the Union-Tribune, a monthly column in Women's Times during the 1990s, opinion pieces in the SDSU Daily Aztec and many others. Reeves was broadcast nationwide on PBS (1975) and made guest appearances on major TV discussion programs since 1963. Through her work, Reeves asked the world to analyze women's roles and examine barriers to women's equality. She carved a legitimate place for feminism within academia and worldwide. Generations of feminists and women in all walks of life are indebted to Nancy Reeves for carving a well-worn path toward equality.