Miriam M. Johnson (January 12, 1928 – November 21, 2007) was an American sociologist and professor emerita of the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

's Sociology Department.

Life

Miriam Johnson was born Miriam Massey in Atlanta, Georgia, on January 12, 1928, to Leola and Herbert Massey. While attending the

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

, she met

Benton Johnson Benton Johnson (born 1928) is an American sociologist and professor emeritus of the University of Oregon's Department of Sociology. Life Benton Johnson is the son of Guy Benton Johnson and Guion Griffis Johnson. He was named Guy Benton Joh ...

. They were married in 1951. In 1955 they had a son (Shannon), followed by a daughter (Rebekah) in 1957. Johnson died on November 21, 2007, in

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2020 United States Census, Eu ...

, at the age of 79 of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

after a short illness.

Career

Johnson was educated at Georgia State College for Women at Milledgeville, and the

, where she studied sociology and met her husband

. In 1948 she pursued graduate studies at

Radcliffe College Radcliffe College was a women's liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and functioned as the female coordinate institution for the all-male Harvard College. Considered founded in 1879, it was one of the Seven Sisters colleges and he ...

with advisor

Talcott Parsons Talcott Parsons (December 13, 1902 – May 8, 1979) was an American sociologist of the classical tradition, best known for his social action theory and structural functionalism. Parsons is considered one of the most influential figures in sociol ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

's Department of Social Relations, earning a PhD. in 1955. She taught at the Women's College of the University of North Carolina (now the

University of North Carolina at Greensboro The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG or UNC Greensboro) is a public research university in Greensboro, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. UNCG, like all members of the UNC system, is a stand-al ...

) until 1953. Johnson and her husband moved to Oregon in 1957, when he joined the

faculty. She returned to sociological work in 1972, with a particular emphasis on gender and family roles. In 1973, she helped organize the University of Oregon's

Center for the Study of Women in Society The Center for the Study of Women in Society (CSWS) at the University of Oregon in the United States supports feminist research, teaching, activism and creativity. Established in 1973, it is a non-profit partnership between the Associated Studen ...

, and later served as its director. Her last book, ''Strong Mothers, Weak Wives'', was published in 1988.Johnson, Miriam M. 1988. ''Strong Mothers, Weak Wives: The Search for Gender Equality''. Berkeley, California: University of California Pres

/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Miriam 1928 births 2007 deaths American sociologists Georgia College & State University alumni Radcliffe College alumni University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni University of North Carolina at Greensboro faculty University of Oregon faculty American women sociologists 20th-century American women 21st-century American women

Life

Career

See also

References