Letha Dawson Scanzoni papers, 1963 -- 2019

Collection context

Creator:
Scanzoni, Letha
Abstract:
Letha Dawson Scanzoni is an evangelical feminist activist and writer specializing in topics of gender, marriage, sex education, theology, women's subordination, and lesbian and gay rights. She was a founding member of the Evangelical and Ecumenical Women's Caucus (EWC/EEWC) and editor of EEWC Update and the EEWC-CFT website from their inception to her retirement in 2013. The collection contains her research materials, publications, correspondence, and EWC/EEWC administrative and conference materials.
Extent:
7.25 linear feet (7.25 linear feet; 16 boxes and 2 oversized boxes) and 2 units (2 website crawls)
Language:
English .
Scope and content:

The collection contains Scanzoni's research, publications, correspondence, and EWC/EEWC administrative and conference materials from the 1960s-2010s.

Biographical / historical:

Letha Dawson Scanzoni was born in Pittsburgh in 1935 to a mainline Protestant family. She grew in her faith throughout her childhood, experiencing a religious awakening in high school with an evangelical group that led her to a decision to dedicate her life to Christian ministry. She originally attended Eastman School of Music at University of Rochester (1952-1954) before transferring to the Sacred Music program at the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago (1954-1956). From 1956-1983 she was married to sociologist John Scanzoni, with whom she co-wrote many academic, popular, and Christian articles and books on the sociology of gender, sexuality, and marriage. During this time she also wrote gospel tracts, bible study workbooks, and parenting articles for presses like Union Gospel Press, the Moody Bible Institute, and the American Sunday-School Union. She received her BA in Religious Studies from Indiana University (1972). In 1974, Dawson Scanzoni became one of the founding members of the Evangelical Women's Caucus, a feminist group that grew out of Evangelicals for Social Action. This coincided with the publication of a controversial book authored by Dawson Scanzoni and Nancy Hardesty, All We're Meant to Be: A Biblical Approach to Women's Liberation. At EWC national conferences from 1975-1986, she and other members pushed for lesbian inclusion in the organization and a gay rights platform, leading to a factionalization of the Caucus and the creation of the more socially conservative Christians for Biblical Equality in 1986. According to EWC/EEWC members, this conflict was precipitated by the publication of Scanzoni's Is the Homosexual My Neighbor? with Virginia Ray Mollenkott in 1978. She remained a dedicated member of EWC (later EEWC and EEWC-CFT) for forty years, organizing conferences, editing the periodical publication Update, and managing the website until her retirement in 2013. As of 2023, Scanzoni continues to occasionally write and speak about feminism, Christianity, and LGBTQ+ issues.

Access and use

Restrictions:

This collection is open for research.

Onsite storage.

Terms of access:

Some material in this collection may be protected by copyright and other rights. Information concerning copyright, fair use, and reproduction requests can be consulted at Columbia's Copyright Advisory Office.

Preferred citation:

Item description, AWTS: Letha Dawson Scanzoni papers, 1963-2019, series #, box #, folder #, The Burke Library at Union Theological Seminary, Columbia University in the City of New York.

Location of this collection:
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Contact:
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