The Rise of Women's Transnational Activism

What characterised women's international co-operation in the interwar period? How did female activists from different countries and continents relate to one another? Marie Sandell here explores the changing experiences of women involved in the major international women's organisations - including the International Council of Women, International Alliance of Women, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, and the International Federation of University Women - as well as the changing compositions and aims of the organisations themselves. Moving beyond an Anglo-American focus, Sandell analyses what the term 'international sisterhood' meant in this broader context, which for the first time included women from the beyond the Western world. Focusing on shifting identities, this book investigates how notions of 'sisterhood' were played out, and contested, during the interwar period and will be invaluable reading for scholars of women's history and twentieth-century world history.

Marie Sandell teaches Modern History on the University of London International Programme. She holds a PhD from Royal Holloway, University of London.

Chapter 1 Introduction
PART I: ESTABLISHING THE FRAMEWORK
Chapter 2 'Common empathy and purpose': the internationalisation of the women's movement prior to 1919
Chapter 3 'Girdling the earth': international women's organisations in the 1920s
Chapter 4 'Lacking a truly international spirit': women's organisations in the 1930s
PART II: THEMES OF EDUCATION, TRAVEL AND REGIONALISATION
Chapter 5 'Uniting educated women from all nations': the International Federation of University Women
Chapter 6 'Fact-finding, recruitment and support': the travels of international women's organisations in the interwar period
Chapter 7 'Regional versus International': the challenge of regional women's organisations from the late 1920s
Chapter 8 Conclusion - Uneasy Sisterhood?