''The Socialist Woman'' (1907–1914) was a monthly magazine edited by Josephine Conger-Kaneko. Its aim was to educate women about

socialism Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

by discussing women's issues from a socialist standpoint. It was renamed ''The Progressive Woman'' in 1909 and ''The Coming Nation'' in 1913. Its contributors included Socialist Party activist

Kate Richards O'Hare Carrie Katherine "Kate" Richards O'Hare (March 26, 1876 – January 10, 1948) was an American Socialist Party activist, editor, and orator best known for her controversial imprisonment during World War I. Biography Early years Carrie Katheri ...

, suffragist

Alice Stone Blackwell Alice Stone Blackwell (September 14, 1857 – March 15, 1950) was an American feminist, suffragist, journalist, radical socialist, and human rights advocate. Early life and education Blackwell was born in East Orange, New Jersey to Henry Browne ...

, orator

Eugene V. Debs Eugene Victor Debs (November 5, 1855 – October 20, 1926) was an American socialist, political activist, trade unionist, one of the founding members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), and five-time candidate of the Socialist Party o ...

, poet

Ella Wheeler Wilcox Ella Wheeler Wilcox (November 5, 1850October 30, 1919) was an American author and poet. Her works include the collection '' Poems of Passion'' and the poem "Solitude", which contains the lines "Laugh, and the world laughs with you; weep, and you ...

, and other notable writers and activists.

History

Josephine Conger-Kaneko founded ''The Socialist Woman'' when she was living in Chicago, home of the national office of the

Socialist Party of America The Socialist Party of America (SPA) was a socialist political party in the United States formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party of America ...

. When she published the first issue in June 1907, she had only 26 subscribers. At the time, only about 2,000 women belonged to the male-dominated Socialist Party, and party leaders made little effort to welcome women or address their concerns. Conger-Kaneko believed that women were essential to the success of the socialist movement, and set out to educate women about socialism by creating a magazine that would appeal to a female audience:

''The Socialist Woman'' exists for the sole purpose of bringing women into touch with the Socialist idea. We intend to make this paper a forum for the discussion of problems that lie closest to women's lives, from the Socialist standpoint.

Both Conger-Kaneko and her husband, Kiichi Kaneko, were feminists who supported the

women's suffrage movement Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Several instances occurred in recent centuries where women were selectively given, then stripped of, the right to vote. In Sweden, conditional women's suffra ...

, and the magazine reflected their views. Conger wrote editorials, poetry, and news articles about socialism and women's rights. Before his death in 1909, Kaneko co-edited the magazine and contributed essays on women's issues around the world. Many noted activists and writers contributed to the magazine, including Socialist Party activist

, suffragist

, union leader

, and poet

, among others. The magazine received no funding from the Socialist Party, and supplemented its subscription fees by carrying advertisements for books, periodicals, anti-Catholic tracts, hair tonics,

patent medicines A patent medicine (sometimes called a proprietary medicine) is a non-prescription medicine or medicinal preparation that is typically protected and advertised by a trademark and trade name, and claimed to be effective against minor disorders a ...

, and the like. Conger-Kaneko wanted to reach as broad an audience as possible, and she often printed articles by suffragists whether they were socialists or not. Racial equality and issues such as lynching were rarely mentioned, however, and contributors often displayed the casual racism that was common among American whites at the time. In 1908, Conger-Kaneko and her husband moved to

Girard, Kansas Girard is a city in and the county seat of Crawford County, Kansas, Crawford County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 2,496. History Girard was founded in the spring o ...

. The '' Appeal to Reason'', a socialist newspaper for which she had edited a women's column, was based in Girard, and its publishing house agreed to produce ''The Socialist Woman'' free of charge. The move freed Conger-Kaneko to focus more of her attention on editing, and over the next year she made several changes designed to bring in new readers. She began publishing fictional stories as well as news, and published special issues devoted to teachers, temperance, and

child labor Child labour is the exploitation of children through any form of work that interferes with their ability to attend regular school, or is mentally, physically, socially and morally harmful. Such exploitation is prohibited by legislation w ...

''The Progressive Woman''

Hoping to reach new readers, Conger-Kaneko changed the magazine's name to ''The Progressive Woman'' in March 1909. The change had the desired result, and by 1910 ''The Progressive Woman'' had between 12,000 and 15,000 subscribers, reaching readers as far away as Japan, Australia, China, Mexico, Canada, and Sweden. Special issues sold as many as 18,000 copies. In 1910 she published a controversial issue on "white slavery" (

forced prostitution Forced prostitution, also known as involuntary prostitution or compulsory prostitution, is prostitution or sexual slavery that takes place as a result of coercion by a third party. The terms "forced prostitution" or "enforced prostitution" app ...

) and nearly lost her mailing privileges. When the ''Appeal to Reason'' reorganized in 1911, she had to look elsewhere for a publisher. She returned to Chicago, where she reached an agreement with the Woman's National Committee (WNC) of the Socialist Party whereby they would provide limited financial support for the magazine.

''The Coming Nation''

In October 1913, she renamed the magazine ''The Coming Nation'', stating that there was no longer any need to target a specifically female audience. (Another magazine by the same name was defunct by that time.) The magazine fell victim to political infighting within the WNC, and its last issue was published in July 1914.

Notable contributors

* Ruby Archer * J. Mahlon Barnes *

* Winnie Branstetter * James F. Carey *

Ida Crouch-Hazlett Ida Crouch-Hazlett (born Ida Estelle Crouch, c. 1870 – 1941) was an American political activist prominent in the suffrage and socialist movements. Crouch-Hazlett is best remembered as a prominent orator and organizer for the Socialist Party ...

Floyd Dell Floyd James Dell (June 28, 1887 – July 23, 1969) was an American newspaper and magazine editor, literary critic, novelist, playwright, and poet. Dell has been called "one of the most flamboyant, versatile and influential American Men of Letters ...

Charles Fremont Dight Charles Fremont Dight (1856–1938) was an American medical professor and promoter of the human eugenics movement in the U.S. state of Minnesota.Collins, Bob"Minnesota’s eugenics past" Minnesota Public Radio News. August 1, 2011. Dight Avenue, a ...

Abigail Scott Duniway Abigail Jane Scott Duniway (October 22, 1834 – October 11, 1915) was an American women's rights advocate, newspaper editor and writer, whose efforts were instrumental in gaining Women's suffrage in the United States, voting rights for women in ...

Charlotte Perkins Gilman Charlotte Anna Perkins Gilman (; née Perkins; July 3, 1860 – August 17, 1935), also known by her first married name Charlotte Perkins Stetson, was an American humanist, novelist, writer, lecturer, early sociologist, advocate for social reform ...

* George D. Herron * Gertrude Breslau Hunt * Robert Hunter *

Robert G. Ingersoll Robert Green Ingersoll (; August 11, 1833 – July 21, 1899), nicknamed "the Great Agnostic", was an American lawyer, writer, and orator during the Golden Age of Free Thought, who campaigned in defense of agnosticism. Personal life Robert Inge ...

* George Ross Kirkpatrick *

Alexandra Kollontai Alexandra Mikhailovna Kollontai (; , ; – 9 March 1952) was a Russian revolutionary, politician, diplomat and Marxist theoretician. Serving as the People's Commissar for Welfare in Vladimir Lenin's government in 1917–1918, she was a highl ...

* Walter Lanfersiek * Lena Morrow Lewis *

Anna A. Maley Anna Agnes Maley (January 6, 1872 – November 28, 1918) was an American school teacher, journalist, editing, newspaper editor, and activism, political activist. One of a small number of top female leaders of the Socialist Party of America dur ...

* Theresa Malkiel * Mila Tupper Maynard *

Octave Mirbeau Octave Henri Marie Mirbeau (; 16 February 1848 – 16 February 1917) was a French novelist, art critic, travel writer, pamphleteer, journalist and playwright, who achieved celebrity in Europe and great success among the public, whilst still app ...

Dora Montefiore Dorothy Frances Montefiore (; 20 December 1851 – 21 December 1933), known as Dora Montefiore, was an English-Australian women's suffragist, socialist, poet, and autobiographer active in Britain. Early life Born Dorothy Frances Fuller at Ke ...

* Caroline Nelson * Pauline M. Newman *

Peter Rosegger Peter Rosegger (original ''Roßegger'') (31 July 1843 – 26 June 1918) was an Austrian writer and poet from Krieglach in the province of Styria. He was a son of a mountain farmer and grew up in the woodlands and mountains of Alpl. Rosegger (o ...

Charles Edward Russell Charles Edward Russell (September 25, 1860 – April 23, 1941) was an American journalist, opinion columnist, newspaper editor, and political activist. The author of a number of books of biography and social commentary, he won the 1928 Pulitzer P ...

Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from the 188 ...

* May Wood Simons *

Upton Sinclair Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. (September 20, 1878 – November 25, 1968) was an American author, muckraker journalist, and political activist, and the 1934 California gubernatorial election, 1934 Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

* Langdon Smith *

Rose Pastor Stokes Rose Harriet Pastor Stokes (née Wieslander; July 18, 1879 – June 20, 1933) was an American socialist activist, writer, birth control advocate, and feminist. She was a figure of some public notoriety after her 1905 marriage to Episcopalian milli ...

* M. Carey Thomas * Lester F. Ward * Fred D. Warren * J. A. Wayland *

Clara Zetkin Clara Zetkin (; ; ''née'' Eißner ; 5 July 1857 – 20 June 1933) was a German Marxist theorist, communist activist, and advocate for women's rights. Until 1917, she was active in the Social Democratic Party of Germany. She then joined the Inde ...

Image gallery

Image:The Socialist Woman magazine cover March 1908.jpg, Cover of ''The Socialist Woman'', March 1908, featuring the family of

Toshihiko Sakai was a Japanese socialist. He advocated opposition to the Russo-Japanese War, founded the Heiminsha and published the newspaper ''Heimin Shimbun''. He formed the Japan Socialist Party and the Japanese Communist Party, and became the first gene ...

. Image:The Progressive Woman magazine cover October 1909.jpg, Cover of ''The Progressive Woman'', October 1909, featuring May Wood Simons. Image:Cartoon on the cover of The Progressive Woman March 1912.jpg, Cartoon in ''The Progressive Woman'', March 1912. Image:Cartoon in the Coming Nation December 1913.jpg, Cartoon in ''The Coming Nation'', December 1913.

References

External links

Full text of issues from 1908–1913
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Socialist Woman, The Monthly magazines published in the United States Defunct political magazines published in the United States Defunct feminist magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1907 Magazines disestablished in 1914 Defunct magazines published in Chicago Socialist magazines Socialist Party of America publications Socialism in Illinois