"Reed makes Margaret Sanger, the far-from-perfect heroine of her own story, come alive. A must read for students of women’s history."--Alexander Sanger, Chair, International Planned Parenthood Council, New York
"A vivid portrait of a fascinating woman and her pioneering work for birth control . . . an historical treat for young people and an inspiration for people of all ages."--Ruth Roemer, JD, UCLA School of Public Health; Past President, American Public Health Association
"Miriam Reed’s intriguing selections from Sanger’s papers and correspondence bring Sanger back to life in all her brilliance, passion, power, foibles, and eccentricities."--Glorida Feldt, President, Planned Parenthood Federation of America
"Invaluable collection of [Sanger’s] seminal, intelligent, and compassionate writings, . . . accompanied by Reed’s vibrant and illuminating commentary and a charming introduction by Sanger’s granddaughter Margaret Sanger Lampe."--Donna Seaman, Booklist
"The book deftly showcases Sanger's grit and determination and will be a welcome addition to feminist literature."--Publishers Weekly
Margaret Sanger
Her Life in Her Words
by Miriam Reed, Ph.D.
Foreword by Margaret Sanger Lampe
Margaret Sanger’s shorter writings
are chronologically arranged, with introductions
that provide an historical and social context
making accessible her life and her legacy.
On October 16, 1916, Margaret Sanger opened the first Birth Control clinic in America, in defiance of the repressive Comstock laws that forbade the distribution of obscenities, "obscenities" referring to any information on, or devices for, the purposes of contraception. Despite the jail term that followed, repeated arrests, and unrelenting opposition, Margaret Sanger went on to found what was to become Planned Parenthood Federation of America and, later, the International Planned Parenthood Federation, national and international organizations that support a woman’s right to control her fertility and ensure that every child is a wanted child.
In Margaret Sanger: Her Life in Her Words, Miriam Reed brings insightful historical and personal commentary to a broad selection of Sanger’s letters, articles, and speeches in what is virtually a new genre of biography. For Reed's introductions, read alone, are an incisive and complete biography of Margaret Sanger the woman. Read in conjunction with Sanger's own writings, the reader catches the essence of Sanger herself, as only the reading of her own words makes possible. Without the introductions to supply the context, however, the Sanger writings alone would be far less accessible to the average reader.
These personal writings of Sanger, buttressed by Reed's introductions, document Sanger's involvement in the need for contraception and the untold story of Sanger’s world-wide influence. In the twenty-first century, Margaret Sanger’s vision of women empowered is as valid and controversial as it was in the early twentieth.
Copyright @ 2001 Miriam Reed Productions