The Evolution of Self-Help in the Women's Health Movement
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DUDLEY SHOTWELL, HANNAH GRACE, Ph.D. Empowering the Body: The Evolution of Self-help in the Women’s Health Movement (2016) Directed by Dr. Lisa Levenstein. 244 pp. This dissertation is the first historical examination of the women’s health self-help movement in the late twentieth century. In the late 1960s, feminists across the country started to criticize and resist the constraints of male dominated healthcare controlled by physicians. They began forming self-help groups where they demystified their bodies by conducting their own physical examinations and reading medical literature. Some groups disseminated information by holding self-help presentations and publishing their findings. Others opened feminist health clinics and formed ongoing groups in which women conducted their own gynecological examinations and abortions, monitored their fertility, and performed donor sperm inseminations. Some self-help activists worked to influence mainstream healthcare by training medical students and holding inspections of hospitals and clinics. Women of color and indigenous women adapted self-help techniques to explore how systemic racism and colonialism shaped their mental and physical health and address problems in their communities such as fetal alcohol syndrome. In the 1990s, young women continued to spread information about self-help by creating underground publications called “zines.” By participating in the self-help movement, women around the United States created an alternative healthcare system that continues to shape healthcare today. EMPOWERING THE BODY: THE EVOLUTION OF SELF-HELP IN THE WOMEN’S HEALTH MOVEMENT by Hannah Grace Dudley Shotwell A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy Greensboro 2016 Approved by Dr. Lisa Levenstein Committee Chair © 2016 Hannah Grace Dudley Shotwell APPROVAL PAGE This dissertation written by Hannah Grace Dudley Shotwell has been approved by the following committee of the Faculty of The Graduate School at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Committee Chair__________________________________ Lisa Levenstein Committee Members________________________________ Danielle Bouchard ________________________________ Greg O’Brien ________________________________ Thomas Jackson ____________________________ Date of Acceptance by Committee __________________________ Date of Final Oral Examination ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am forever in debt to the members of my committee. Lisa Levenstein encouraged me to explore a challenging reproductive rights topic and read every word of every chapter many times. I left every meeting with her inspired to draw deeper connections and to probe further into the sources. Her work as an historian, a teacher, and an activist constantly inspires me. Danielle Bouchard made me think about and critique feminist thought in new ways. Her calm presence and easy-going demeanor made every interaction with her a pleasure. She has enriched this project by asking me to challenge my own assumptions about feminism. When I was a Master’s student, Greg O’Brien encouraged me to pursue a Ph.D. I am so grateful that I was able to undertake my entire graduate experience, including the dissertation, with his unwavering support and guidance. The seeds of this project began in Tom Jackson’s research colloquium during my first year at UNCG. He took great interest in my research into the Jane Collective and encouraged me to look further into a reproductive health topic. He has been an invaluable ally and a font of great ideas for six years. Dozens of archivists and reference librarians have made this experience a wonderful one. Kelly Wooten introduced me to the Atlanta Feminist Women’s Health Center Records, where I first learned about the concept of self-help. She and the staff at the Sallie Bingham Center at the Rubenstein Library have made me feel welcome for years. Kären Mason took Midwestern hospitality to the next level, hosting an impromptu gathering of archivists and interns at the Iowa Women’s Archives when I was visiting. iii Their enthusiasm for my project spurred me on through a long week of archival research. One summer, I returned home to North Carolina after a trip to Detroit, and I discovered that hundreds of the photos of archival documents that I had taken were blurry and unusable. Kristen Chinery and the staff at the Reuther Library tracked down each of these documents, then made copies and shipped them to me. Amanda Straus at Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America and Nancy Young and Amy Hague at Sophia Smith helped me make the most of a long trip research trip to Massachusetts; they and their colleagues worked patiently with me as I barreled through box after box on a whirlwind self-help treasure hunt. This research would not have been possible without funding from several generous sources. I am very grateful for the Joseph Bryan Jr. Fellowship, the Sophia Smith Travel-to-Collections Fund Grant, the Linda and Richard Kerber Travel Grant for Research in the Iowa Women’s Archives, the Graduate Student Research Travel Grant from the Graduate Student Association, the Allen W. Trelease Graduate Fellowship in History from the History Department, Graduate Student Travel Grants from the History Department, a Summer Research Assistantship from the Graduate School, and the Sally and Alan Cone Award from the Women’s and Gender Studies Department. I have been fortunate to attend a university that supports its graduate students wholeheartedly. “Writer’s Bootcamp” organizers Laura Drew and Laura Chesak supplied venues for writing, food, support, and excellent cheerleading. Without the patient help of Valeria Caviness, I likely would have thrown in the towel and typed the whole iv dissertation on a typewriter. Mark Elliott organized an invaluable dissertation group; thanks so much to him and everyone in the group who read and commented on chapters. My colleagues in the UNCG History Department made many contributions to this project. Justina Licata has been a dear friend and colleague and part of my entire graduate student journey; she has been wonderful company on trips to conferences, a great sounding board for ideas about feminism and history, and an all around good time. Maggy Williams has been a great long-distance colleague; for months, she kept me on pace with a daily writing tracker, and for years, she has provided a shining example of scholarship and hard work. Joseph Ross has provided boundless moral support, encouragement, and entertainment in the form of two of the sweetest kids I have ever had the privilege to know. Ginny Summey, Jamie Mize, and Sarah McCartney offered advice, challenged my ideas in classes, listened to me complain, made me laugh, and cheered me on. Classes with Chuck Bolton, Angela Robbins, Linda Rupert, Loren Schweninger, Asa Eger, Jill Bender, Colleen Kriger, and Lisa Tolbert shaped my ability to think like an historian. The History Department at UNCG runs smoothly because of the tireless efforts of the office staff, Laurie O’Neill, Kristina Wright, and Dawn Avolio. This three-woman juggling act never ceases to amaze me. A huge thanks to the Women’s and Gender Studies department at UNCG for providing new opportunities for me to grow as a feminist and scholar. Mary Morgan encouraged me to think about feminist research in new ways. Elizabeth Keathley saved me from a red-tape disaster. Sarah Hamrick and Isabell Moore kept all of us on track. v A variety of self-help activists generously offered their time and expertise for interviews. Becky Chalker went out of her way to copy old videos and newspaper articles to share with me. In addition to spending hours answering my interview questions, she and Carol Downer corresponded with me by email regularly when I had questions. Marion Banzhaf offered her home and personal papers for my research. These three women, along with Loretta Ross, Byllye Avery, Laura Jimenez, and Francie Hornstein greatly enriched this project by sharing their memories and stories of the self- help movement. My family made this and every struggle worthwhile. Mickey Dudley bragged about me to everyone who would listen and teared up with pride at each milestone. Martha Dudley has always been the very definition of a strong, independent-minded woman. It would be impossible to find two more generous and supportive parents on this earth. Julia Dudley Haley made me laugh on a daily basis. Claire Shotwell Wolf called me on all of my nonsense. I am so lucky to have sisters who both support and entertain me. Bobby Wolf and Jared Haley provided opportunities for debates about feminism, health, and liberal politics. Martha and Dave Shotwell, my aunts, uncles, grandparents, and cousins supported me with love and encouragement. Amanda Nantz and Emily Hoffman shared countless meals, long conversations, beautiful walks, and ceaseless support. Carter Shotwell has been my cheerleader, sounding board, confidante, and favorite comedian. His commitment to feminism, social justice, and education inspire me every day, and he challenges me more than anyone else I have ever known. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABBREVIATIONS IN THE NOTES ……………………………………………….… viii COMMON ABBREVIATIONS…………………………………………………………. ix CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION: HOW A SMALL, CONTROVERSIAL INITIATIVE BECAME A MOVEMENT THAT RESHAPED WOMEN’S HEALTHCARE ……………………………………………….... 1 II. THE ORIGINS OF GYNECOLOGICAL SELF-HELP……...…...………… ....17