Women Reshaping Human Rights: How Extraordinary Activists Are Changing the World

(Paperback)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

In Women Reshaping Human Rights ,ordinary yet extraordinary women tell their stories, in their own words. Their deeds span continents and have profoundly affected millions worldwide.Readers will meet Vera Laska, who as a teenager joined the resistance against the Nazis in Czechoslovakia; Dai Qing, who fights the Communist Party's grip upon the media and government in the People's Republic of China; and Juana Beatrice Gutierrez and the Mothers of East Los Angeles, who challenge drug dealers and toxic polluters threatening their neighborhood. Professor Bouvard provides a complete biography of every activist. The stage is thus set for each individual, who recounts real-life stories of courage that sadly until now have gone unnoticed. Finally we hear the voices of those who have transformed the quest for human rights. This volume is divided into five sections: Confronting Authoritarian Governments, Struggling with Race and Ethnicity, Seeking Enviromental Justice, Upholding Women's Rights as Human Rights, and Making the World Safe for Childern.

Reviews

Finally, we hear the voices of those who have transformed the quest for justice.Women Reshaping Human Rights is compelling reading and an essential addition to every women's studies reference shelf and reading list. * Midwest Book Review *
A compelling account of the experience of extraordinary contemporary women who have reshaped national and international agendas. . . . The human rights movement can only rejoice for having such defenders and teachers. -- Elsa Stamatopoulou, human rights lawyer, Center for Human Rights, United Nations
Bouvard uses the voices of courageous activists to tell a powerful story of the global struggle to expand human rights. A magnificent contribution to our understanding of how determined women can make the world accept universal ideals. -- Robert Pastor, Emory University
These are stories of triumph over tyranny, over harassment and abuse, overat the very leastpolitical and social roadblocks on several continents. Riveting. -- Rose Styron, poet and human rights activist
Deeply interesting. . . . Extraordinary acts of courage, compassion and political skill, grew out of the ability to see the relationship between everyday activities and larger political imperatives. These stories both instruct and inspire. -- Mary L. Shanley, Vassar College
Thought-provoking and energizing. The activists cover a half century of work in making each woman's part of the world a more just place and joining peoples throughout the world in their efforts to advance more broadly defined human rights * Choice Reviews *

Author Bio

Marguerite Guzm^n Bouvard is a resident scholar with the Women's Studies Program at Brandeis University. She is the author of books in the fields of political science, psychology, women's studies, and poetry.