Event

"May It Please Her Honor": The United States’ First Women Judges, 1870-1960

Seminar History of Women, Gender and Sexuality Online Event
Tuesday, February 21, 2023 5:00 PM - 6:15 PM EST
At MHS

Author: Elizabeth D. Katz, Washington University School of Law
Comment: Virginia Drachman, Tufts University

This is a online event.

Between 1870 and 1960, at least 120 women served as judges in the United States. At the time of their service, these pathbreakers attracted significant attention because they seemed to embody the promise and perils of women’s increasing political and professional power. Today nearly all are forgotten. This project provides the most comprehensive account of the country’s first women judges, unearthing the obstacles that impeded women’s equal access, as well as the strategies women pursued to join the country’s judicial benches.

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