Judith Levine (born 1952) is an American author, journalist, civil libertarian and co-founder of the

National Writers Union National Writers Union (NWU), founded on 19 November 1981, is the trade union in the United States for freelance and contract writers: journalists, book and short fiction authors, business and technical writers, web content providers and poets. ...

, a

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits (s ...

contract A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to ...

and

freelance ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance ...

writers, and

No More Nice Girls ''No More Nice Girls'' is the third studio album from Hang on the Box. It was released on September 27, 2007 in China. Track listing Personnel *Wang Yue – Vocals *Yang Fan – Guitar *Yilina – Bass *Shen Jing – Drums A drum kit ...

, a group dedicated to promoting

abortion rights Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pre ...

through street theater. She is a board member of the

National Center for Reason and Justice The National Center for Reason and Justice is a United States national non-profit organization disseminating information to the public about claims of injustice in the current criminal justice system and facilitating financial and legal assistance ...

and the

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the ...

chapter of the

ACLU The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1920 "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States". ...

. Levine has written on sex, gender, aging, consumerism, and culture for dozens of national magazines and newspapers, including '' Harper's'', ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', '' Vogue'', '' AARP The Magazine'', and '' salon.com''. Her column "Poli Psy" in the Vermont weekly '' Seven Days'' was named Best Political Column in 2006 by the

Association of Alternative Newsweeklies The Association of Alternative Newsmedia (AAN) is a trade association of alternative weekly newspapers in North America. It provides services to many generally liberal or progressive weekly newspapers across the United States and in Canada. AA ...

.2006 AltWeekly Award Winners Announced
, ''

'', June 16, 2006 She also has written columns for ''

New York Woman ''New York Woman'' was a magazine that blended features on fashion and the arts, literary and humorous essays, and consumer-oriented services pieces such as reviews of restaurants, shops or films. Its target audience was intelligent women living ...

'' and ''

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''. Levine is best known for her 2002 book '' Harmful to Minors: The Perils of Protecting Children From Sex'', in which she suggests liberalization of

age-of-consent The age of consent is the age at which a person is considered to be legally competent to consent to Human sexual activity, sexual acts. Consequently, an adult who engages in sexual activity with a person younger than the age of consent is u ...

laws in the United States and the conception of minors as sexual beings, which Levine argues is extant in Western Europe. Levine argues for weakening most United States laws governing possession of

child pornography Child pornography (also called CP, child sexual abuse material, CSAM, child porn, or kiddie porn) is pornography that unlawfully exploits children for sexual stimulation. It may be produced with the direct involvement or sexual assault of a chi ...

, the access of

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...

s to minors, and conduct classified as

statutory rape In common law jurisdictions, statutory rape is nonforcible sexual activity in which one of the individuals is below the age of consent (the age required to legally consent to the behavior). Although it usually refers to adults engaging in sexual ...

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

commentators have heavily criticized her work; its publication by the

University of Minnesota Press The University of Minnesota Press is a university press that is part of the University of Minnesota. It had annual revenues of just over $8 million in fiscal year 2018. Founded in 1925, the University of Minnesota Press is best known for its boo ...

caused controversy in the

Minnesota state legislature The Minnesota Legislature is the bicameral legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota consisting of two houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives. Senators are elected from 67 single-member districts. In order to account for decenni ...

. The book was also widely praised by advocates of liberalization and educators. It won the 2002 ''Los Angeles Times'' Book Prize and was named by SIECUS, the

Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States The Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, or simply SIECUS, is a national, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., dedicated to advancing sex education through advocacy, policy, and coalition building. SIECUS ...

, as one of history's most influential books about sexuality. Levine is also the author of ''My Enemy, My Love: Women, Men, and the Dilemmas of Gender'' (originally published as ''My Enemy, My Love: Man-Hating and Ambivalence in Women’s Lives'', 2009), in which she analyzes traditional

gender role A gender role, also known as a sex role, is a social role encompassing a range of behaviors and attitudes that are generally considered acceptable, appropriate, or desirable for a person based on that person's sex. Gender roles are usually cen ...

s and the relationship between

misogyny Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. It is a form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the societal roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practiced ...

and

feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

; ''Do You Remember Me?: A Father, A Daughter, and a Search for the Self'', a memoir of her father's affliction with Alzheimer's disease and a critique of the medicalization of aging; and '' Not Buying It: My Year Without Shopping'', a witty journal in which she examines

consumerism Consumerism is a social and economic order that encourages the acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing amounts. With the Industrial Revolution, but particularly in the 20th century, mass production led to overproduction—the ...

and anti-consumerist movements. ''Not Buying It'' has been translated into five languages.

References

External links

JudithLevine.com
Official site * Radio interviews by

Doug Henwood Doug Henwood (born December 7, 1952) is an American journalist, economic analyst, author, and financial trader who writes frequently about economic affairs. Until 2013 he published a newsletter, ''Left Business Observer'', that analyzes economics ...

(links to

MP3 MP3 (formally MPEG-1 Audio Layer III or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III) is a coding format for digital audio developed largely by the Fraunhofer Society in Germany, with support from other digital scientists in the United States and elsewhere. Orig ...

and streaming audio files): *
On ''Not Buying It''
March 23, 2006. *

July 22, 2004. *

May 30, 2002. {{DEFAULTSORT:Levine, Judith 1952 births Living people American political writers American abortion-rights activists Jewish American writers 21st-century American Jews