Caroline Bird (American author)

Caroline Bird (1915-2011) was an American author and feminist.^[1]

She became the youngest member of the Vassar College class of 1935 at age sixteen, but left after her junior year to marry; she later earned a B.A. at the University of Toledo and an M.A. in comparative literature at the University of Wisconsin.^[1] She married Edward A. Menuez in 1934 (divorced in 1945); married J. Thomas Mahoney in 1957 (died 1981). ^[2]

Her writings include The Invisible Scar (1966), Born Female: The High Cost of Keeping Women Down (1968), Everything a Women Needs to Know to Get Paid What She’s Worth (1973), Case Against College (1975), The Crowding Syndrome: Learning to Live With Too Much and Too Many (1976), Enterprising Women (1976), What Women Want (1979), The Two-Paycheck Marriage (1979), Second Careers (1992), and Lives of Our Own (1995).^[1] Her book The Invisible Scar, about the Great Depression, was named by the American Library Association as one of the 100 most significant books of the year.^[1]

According to Fred R. Shapiro, the first time the term "sexism" appeared in print was in Bird's speech "On Being Born Female", which was published on November 15, 1968, in Vital Speeches of the Day (p. 6).^[3] In this speech she said in part, "There is recognition abroad that we are in many ways a sexist country. Sexism is judging people by their sex when sex doesn't matter. Sexism is intended to rhyme with racism. Women are sexists as often as men."^[3]

Bird was a consultant to the National Commission on the Observance of International Women’s Year in 1977 and was the chief writer of its report, The Spirit of Houston (1978).^[1]

In 1979, the Supersisters trading card set was produced and distributed; one of the cards featured Bird's name and picture.^[4]

The Caroline Bird Papers, 1915-1995, are held at the Archives and Special Collections Library, Vassar College Libraries.^[1]

References