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Review
| Women at The Hague: The International Congress of Women and Its Results, edited by Harriet Hyman Alonso. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 2003. 91 pages. $12.95, paper.
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| One of the fruits of the latter twentieth-century liberation movements has been to broaden the scope of recorded history. One description of this expansion is revisionist history. Others view the expansion as speaking a particular history for the first time from perspectives that have been lost or silenced through the ages. For example, in a powerful 1992 video about the Ghost Dance and the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre, The Lakota Times describes the tape's presentation as "the first of its genre to record—not rewrite—history from the Lakota perspective" (Laurie Schmidt, ed., "Wiping the Tears of Seven Generations," San Francisco: Kifaru Productions, 1992). A recent publication from the University of Illinois Press, Women at The Hague: The International Congress of Women and Its Results, is in the same category as the Lakota video. Women at The Hague is a reprint of the original 1915 document whose three authors personally participated in the International Congress of Women: Jane Addams, Emily Balch, and Alice Hamilton. In this work, they describe their impressions and opinions about the Congress itself as well as the fascinating post-conference activities of the participants. Through the reprint, along with an excellent introduction by Harriet Hyman Alonso, we are fortunate to have current, easy access to a significant publication recording the International Congress of Women through the eyes and pens of women who were there. And, truly, these voices are as needed in 2004 as they were in 1915. |
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The original purposes of the Congress and the subsequent publication of this 1915 work were to take steps to end WWI and institute conditions for a perpetual peace. Significantly, this gathering in the Netherlands was the only international meeting of any kind held during WWI and one that included representation from both the neutral and the "belligerent" nations. Along with observers, almost 1500 women, and a few men, from twelve countries attended. The gathering itself was impressive as was the intentional aftermath—several representatives from the Congress were commissioned to travel to the United States and several European nations to personally present the peace principles and agenda proposed by the women. In addition to the nations and heads of state that received face-to-face visits, the women sent the principles by postal mail to thirty-two other countries, including Japan. |
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With any edited edition, especially a reprint, a good introduction such as Alonso's is vital. She skillfully provides considerable detail about the authors and the Congress itself yet not so much as to lose her audience's interest. This is especially important when dealing with students at the high school or undergraduate levels. Biographical sketches of Addams, Balch, and Hamilton hold a special place in Alonso's introduction. She explains: "To fully appreciate the book, it is helpful to have some background on the lives of the three women and the roles they assumed in the newly organized US women's peace movement, which led to their presence at The Hague" (vii–viii). The remaining components of the introduction are equally informative and pertinent: a synopsis of the Congress itself, a discussion of the women's awareness of how war affected men and women differently, a first-rate summation of the 1915 text and its chapters, and a report on "peace activities after the Congress." |
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The entire reprint text plus the introduction would be an appropriate text for undergraduate and graduate courses in several disciplines—American History, Women's Studies, Peace Studies, Internationalism, and even Gender Issues. The introduction can be utilized by itself. For example, it would be appropriate as a high school reading since it is only thirty-nine pages and provides such a comprehensive view of the Congress. Additionally, at all three levels (high school, undergraduate, graduate), the introduction is an excellent lecture source and guide for class discussion. The appendices of the original text also provide excellent supplemental information about the Congress and its aftermath. I applaud the publisher for resurrecting an interesting, relevant piece. The published proceedings from this phenomenal peace conference, held in the midst of WWI, are a most worthy restoration of a primary source. It is worthy to note, however, that Prometheus Books published a similar reprint just six months prior to this edition. While both reprints are currently on the market, I found the Alonso work less expensive and more readily available. |
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| New Foundations Nonviolence Center, Denver, CO |
Tisa M. Anders |
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