A radical reappraisal of the life and work of Jeannette Rankin, the first woman to serve in the U.S. Congress.
Rankin has understandably been celebrated for improving government diversity. However, she did not fit in comfortably with that body’s chauvinistic routine, encountering hostility to her ideas, to her gender, and even to her presence during the two terms that she was able to serve. This book shows that she is better understood as a radical: a feminist, a pacifist, an advocate for the rights of the poor, a supporter of Irish nationalism, an American Civil Liberties Union leader, and a keen labor union ally.
Publication date: November 6, 2026
Introduction
1 The Rankin Family
2 Campaigner for Women’s Right to Vote
1 Washington State
2 California
3 New York State
4 Montana
3 First Woman in Congress
1 Republican and Progressive
2 Election Strategies
3 Floored
4 Women and Children
5 Ireland
6 Running for Senate
4 Labor Union Champion
1 Miners on Strike in Montana and Arizona
2 Wages and Hours
5 Lobbying and a Return to Congress
1 Zurich
2 Friendships
3 Centralia and the ACLU
4 War and Peace
5 Reelection, Lend-Lease, and Pearl Harbor
6 Pacifism Forever
1 India and Other Influences
2 The Jeannette Rankin Brigade
Conclusion: Jeannette Rankin: a Radical Unfailingly Miscast
