Document Type
Article
Publication Date
Summer 1977
Abstract
In April 1977, at a conference on children's literature at Columbia University, an editor from a commercial publishing house responded to feminist criticism of a book. The editor stated that children's books should be free of "issues" and should not be expected to respond to every "trend" that comes along, such as the women's movement. To reduce the decade-long struggle of the women's movement to the status of a gimmick or a fad was more than merely insulting; it was a comment that ridiculed the committed efforts of feminists to create a literature—and ultimately a society—where children can find role models free of debilitating sex-role stereotyping. Beyond that, the editor's attitude addressed a question that The Feminist Press has been studying for the past year: Has the women's movement had an effect on recent children's literature?