Book Talk: Winning the Earthquake

The Ash Center invites you to a book talk with Lorissa Rinehart, author of Winning the Earthquake: How Jeannette Rankin Defied All Odds to Become the First Woman in Congress. 

The discussion will be moderated by Alex Keyssar, Matthew W. Stirling Jr. Professor of History and Social Policy.

This event is co-sponsored by the Women and Public Policy Program.

About the book

Born on a Montana ranch in 1880, Jeannette Rankin learned early how to work hard, connect with people, and inspire collective purpose—skills that helped her become the first woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. In her first term, she introduced the legislation that would eventually become the Nineteenth Amendment.

Across her two nonconsecutive terms (1917 and 1941), Rankin championed women’s rights, workers’ protections, democratic reforms, and peace through disarmament. One of Congress’s most committed pacifists, she famously voted against U.S. entry into both World War I and World War II, believing “you can no more win a war than you can win an earthquake.”

Although she broke barriers and reshaped American politics, Rankin has often been overlooked. Winning the Earthquake restores her to the historical record, illuminating the life of a suffragist, peace activist, and reformer whose convictions never wavered.

Lunch will catered and available by 11:45 am.