And the Spirit Moved Them

Download or read book And the Spirit Moved Them written by Helen LaKelly Hunt and published by Feminist Press at CUNY. This book was released on 2017-04-17 with total page 174 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The New York Times–bestselling author of Getting the Love You Want sends out a ‘call for renewed feminist action, based on “the spirit and ethic of love’” (Kirkus Reviews). A decade before the Seneca Falls Convention, black and white women joined together at the 1837 Anti-Slavery Convention of American Women in the first instance of political organizing by American women for American women. Incited by “holy indignation,” these pioneers believed it was their God-given duty to challenge both slavery and patriarchy. Although the convention was largely written out of history for its religious and interracial character, these women created a blueprint for an intersectional feminism that was centuries ahead of its time. Part historical investigation, part personal memoir, Hunt traces how her research into nineteenth-century organizing led her to become one of the most significant philanthropists in modern history. Her journey to confront her position of power meant taking control of an oil fortune that was being deployed on her behalf but without her knowledge, and acknowledging the feminist faith animating her life’s work.