Before SWE members shared their opinions in online message boards, comment sections, or on social media, they recorded those thoughts in letters to the editor of SWE’s publications. Although these letters often took the form of book recommendations and job postings in the Society’s early years, in later decades the semiregular column became a soapbox for members to publicly discuss and debate the larger issues of the day.
Members used the forum to call for the inclusion of disabilities in SWE’s definition of diversity, changes to the Society’s membership requirements, and improved child care options at SWE conferences. They debated the best way to influence the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment and to push back against sexist advertising in professional publications. They criticized the prohibition of male speakers at the 1979 national convention (as it was called at the time) and the abundance of articles in SWE’s magazine written by male authors in the early 1990s. They discussed larger social issues, including the feasibility of raising a family while maintaining a career, their experiences with gender stereotypes, and the utility of hiring quotas. In doing so, their letters provide a snapshot of members’ professional concerns decades ago and offer a reference point when considering the progress SWE, and society at large, has made in years since.
– Troy Eller English, SWE Archivist
