Belle Moskowitz: Feminine Politics and the Exercise of Power in the Age of Alfred E. Smith - Softcover

Perry, Elisabeth Israels

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0415905451 ISBN 13: 9780415905459

Publisher: Routledge, 1992

Synopsis

Belle Moskowitz restores to history the career of a remarkable woman who achieved unprecedented influence and power in American politics many decades before the contemporary era. As political advisor to Alfred E. Smith, four-term governor of New York and presidential candidate, Moskowitz played a crucial role in both state and national politics throughout the 1920s.

Belle Moskowitz's achievement resulted from a career, begun in 1900, in settlement work, social reform, and industrial and labor relations. Rising to political prominence without the benefit of family or personal connections, she represents a singular achievement among American women of her era. Her career shows that, despite women's general absence from elective or appointive office, they have nonetheless played crucial roles in American political life.

About this title

About the Author

Elisabeth Israels Perry teaches in the History Department at Vanderbilt University. In 1991-92, she is holding the Daniel M. Lyons Chair in American History at Brooklyn College-City University of New York.

Review

"This compact, compassionate biography honors an extraordinary life. . . In view of the imposing obstacles she overcame, Moskowitz's achievements 50 years ago ought to encourage the pragmatic women in politics today." —David Seidman, New York Times Book Review

"Belle Moskowitz belonged to a remarkable generation of skillful, energetic women whose reforming labors helped create modern urban liberalism in this century. . . . This is a fine introduction to a figure, who, like her compatriot Eleanor Roosevelt, defined the politics of her era as much as did the men who held high office."—Michael Kazin, Washington Post

Edition details

• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication date: 1992
• ISBN 10: 0415905451
• ISBN 13: 9780415905459
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 304