Patsy Takemoto Mink: Centering Women of Color Feminism in Congress

Judy Tzu-Chun Wu, a professor of Asian American studies at the University of California, Irvine, presented a free webinar, “Patsy Takemoto Mink: Centering Women of Color Feminism in Congress,” on October 13 at 5 p.m. (See video below.)

Patsy Takemoto Mink (1927–2002), the first woman of color to serve in the U.S. Congress, was also the namesake for the formal name of Title IX, the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act. A third-generation Japanese American from Hawai’i, Mink served for 24 years in the House of Representatives (1965–1977 and 1990–2002) and even ran for the U.S. Presidency in 1972.

Wu discussed how Mink’s identity as a woman of color from the Pacific shaped her legislative activism. Wu focused in particular on Mink’s efforts to advance feminist legislation in relation to federally subsidized childcare in the late 1960s and early 1970s with her efforts to reform welfare in the 1990s.

The event was co-sponsored by Virginia Tech’s Asian Cultural Engagement Center and the Virginia Tech Department of History. Contact Nina Ha at nha@vt.edu with any questions.