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Linda Hirshman      

Supreme Court Lawyer, Renowned Expert on Social Change in America & Author

Linda Hirshman is a lawyer, cultural historian and the author of The Color of Abolition: How a Printer, a Prophet, and a Contessa Moved a Nation, Reckoning: The Epic Battle Against Sexual Abuse and Harassment, Sisters in Law: How Sandra Day O’Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg Went to the Supreme Court and Changed the World, Victory: The Triumphant Gay Revolution and many other books.

Sisters in Law was a New York Times and Washington Post Best Seller and NPR pick of the year for 2015. The stage adaptation of Sisters in Law will premiere on April 3, 2019 at the Phoenix Theatre. The 2017 ABC miniseries When We Rise was based in part on the story of Victory: The Triumphant Gay Revolution.

Hirshman received her J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School and her PhD in philosophy from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and she has taught philosophy and women’s studies at Brandeis University. Her writing has appeared in the New York Times, The Washington Post, Slate, Newsweek, the Daily Beast, and POLITICO. She recently appeared on season 2, episode 7 of the hit Slate podcast Slow Burn to discuss the feminist response to the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal.

Prior to writing several bestselling books, Hirshman was an influential labor attorney. She brought three cases in front of the Supreme Court during the Burger era, including the landmark case Garcia v. San Antonio Metropolitan Transit Authority (1985). Hirshman has argued cases in front of all twelve U.S. Courts of Appeals.

She divides her time between New York City and Phoenix, Arizona.

Speech Topics


How Social Movements Succeed (And Fail)

Why Women Work

Victory: The Triumphant Gay Revolution

How Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg Went to the Supreme Court and Changed the World

Hirshman's dual biography includes revealing stories of how these trailblazers fought for their own recognition in a male-dominated profession—battles that would ultimately benefit every American woman. She also makes clear how these two justices have shaped the legal framework of modern feminism, including employment discrimination, abortion, affirmative action, sexual harassment, and many other issues crucial to women's lives.

With access to hundreds of previously unpublished letters, Hirshman sheds new light on O'Connor's role in the Bush v. Gore decision, and how together the two women, strengthened by their mutual support, transformed the Constitution and laws of the nation to make it a more equal place for millions of women.

Sisters in Law combines legal detail with warm personal anecdotes that bring these very different women into focus as never before. Meticulously researched and compellingly told, it is an authoritative account of our changing law and culture, and a moving story of a remarkable friendship.

News


'Reckoning' Follows a 50-Year Road to #MeToo - The New York Times
Linda Hirshman's new history traces a line from sexual harassment lawsuits in the 1970s to the arraignment of Harvey Weinstein.
Interview: Linda Hirshman, Author Of 'Sisters In Law' : NPR
Author Linda Hirshman's joint biography of the first and second women to serve on the nation's highest court is a gossipy, funny, sometimes infuriating and ...

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