Rosalind Pollack Petchesky (born August 16, 1942) is an American

political scientist Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

, and Distinguished Professor of Political Science at Hunter College,

City University of New York The City University of New York (CUNY, pronounced , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven ...

. She is the founder of the International Reproductive Rights Research Action Group (IRRAG).

Early life and education

Rosalind Pollack Petchesky was born in

Bay City, Texas Bay City is a city and the county seat of Matagorda County, Texas, United States. The population was 17,614 at the 2010 census and 18,061 at the 2020 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of ...

to Roberta Friedman and Simon Pollack. Petchesky graduated from

Smith College Smith College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Women's colleges in the United States, women's college in Northampton, Massachusetts, United States. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smit ...

''summa cum laude'', and has a Ph.D. in political science from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

. She previously taught at

Ramapo College Ramapo College of New Jersey (RCNJ) is a Public university, public liberal arts college in Mahwah, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. As of the fall 2021 semester, there were a total of 5,732 students enro ...

Career

Petchesky is known for incorporating differing theoretical frameworks, including ethics, political philosophy, history, political science, and others, into the study of reproductive rights. From 1972 to 1987 she was Professor of Political and Social Theory at

of New Jersey. In 1987 she was hired as Professor of Political Science and Coordinator of Women's Studies at

Hunter College Hunter College is a public university in New York City, United States. It is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York and offers studies in more than one hundred undergraduate and postgraduate fields across five schools ...

in New York. Petchesky lectures widely and is the author/editor of many professional articles and numerous books. Petchesky is on the international advisory board of '' Signs'', an international journal in women's and gender studies.

Activism

Petchesky was the oldest person arrested at

Grand Central Terminal Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal station, terminal located at 42nd Street (Manhattan), 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York Ci ...

, October 27, 2023, in a protest calling for a

ceasefire A ceasefire (also known as a truce), also spelled cease-fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions often due to mediation by a third party. Ceasefires may b ...

in the 2023 Gaza conflict. She organized a group of more than 30 Jewish seniors to participate. She was also among a group of 18 Jewish elder women who chained themselves to the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

front gate prior to the annual Hanukkah party.

Awards

*1995

MacArthur Fellows Program The MacArthur Fellows Program, also known as the MacArthur Fellowship and colloquially called the "Genius Grant", is a prize awarded annually by the MacArthur Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to typically between 20 and ...

Works

* The first edition was winner of the American Historical Association's 1984 Joan Kelly Memorial Prize in Women's History. Second revised edition: 1990. * * * * * *
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* * Petchesky R. P. & Alexander M. (2014). ''Debt''. Feminist Press at the City University of New York. * Farmer, E., Petchesky, R. P., Sills, S., & Erakat, N. (2021). ''A land with a people : Palestinians and Jews confront Zionism : a collection of personal stories, history, poetry, and art''. Monthly Review Press.

References

External links

Rosalind Petchesky papers
at the

Sophia Smith Collection The Sophia Smith Collection at Smith College is an internationally recognized repository of manuscripts, photographs, periodicals and other primary sources in women's history. General One of the largest recognized repositories of manuscripts, a ...

, Smith College Special Collections {{DEFAULTSORT:Petchesky, Rosalind P. American political scientists American political philosophers Smith College alumni Columbia Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni Ramapo College faculty Hunter College faculty MacArthur Fellows Living people 1942 births American women political scientists