Rebecca Chalker (born 1943) is a health writer and

women's rights activist Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

who is the author of several books on women's health issues.

Early life and education

Chalker completed a BA in 1966 and an MA in 1975 from

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...

, Tallahassee. She served in the Peace Corps from 1966 to 1967 as a teacher in Iran at the Tehran School of Social Work. Chalker was a vocal critic of United States policy towards Iran, and in 1979 she was arrested along with other activists for hanging a "U.S. Imperialism Get Your Bloody Hands Off Iran" banner on the Washington Monument. She traveled to Tehran as a member of the "Send the Shah Back—Hands Off Iran Delegation" in support of the

Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynas ...

and the occupation of the United States embassy in Iran. After her return to the United States, she and Eileen Schnitger (a fellow member of the Feminist Women's Health Center) disrupted the Women's National Powerlifting Championships while wearing "Send the Shah Back" t-shirts.

Writing career

Chalker's books include ''The Complete Cervical Cap Guide'', ''Overcoming Bladder Disorders'', and ''A Women's Book of Choices: Abortion, Menstrual Extraction, RU-486''. She has also written ''The Clitoral Truth'', about genital anatomy and ways to enhance sexual responses. In 1993,

Le Anne Schreiber Le Anne Schreiber (August 4, 1945 – May 31, 2019) was an American journalist who was an ESPN ombudsman. Schreiber replaced George Solomon in this position, who had served for twenty-one months as ombudsman. Schreiber had a two-year contract as ...

writes in '' The New York Times'' about ''A Woman's Book of Choices'', that "there is one incontrovertible fact of abortion in America: for more than a century, American women's access to safe abortions has been controlled by doctors and legislators. In defiance of that pattern, Rebecca Chalker, an abortion counselor and the author of a number of popular medical books, and

Carol Downer Carol Downer (born 1933 in Oklahoma) is an American feminist lawyer and non-fiction author who focused her career on abortion rights and women's health around the world. She was involved in the creation of the self-help movement and the first self- ...

, a lawyer and the executive director of the Federation of Feminist Women's Health Centers, have issued a declaration of independence." Chalker is a professor at Pace University in New York City and continues to lecture on women's health and

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

issues.

Works

Books

* * * (2nd edition published 2018) * *

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chalker, Rebecca American health and wellness writers American women non-fiction writers Living people 1943 births Florida State University alumni Pace University faculty 20th-century American women writers American anti-war activists American women academics 21st-century American women