Hi: I'm a Jewish author, public speaker, feminist leader, and lawyer. I was born in Berlin, Germany, of Polish parents, with whom I came to the U.S. to escape the Holocaust. In the U.S., I became one of the founders of the Second Wave of the women's movement. I was a founder of NOW and the first woman attorney in the Office of the General Counsel at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
I have traveled to many parts of the world as an "American specialist" on women's rights for the then-U.S. Information Agency. I thought your officers and members would be interested to know about my memoir, "Eat First--You Don't Know What They'll Give You, The Adventures of an Immigrant Family and Their Feminist Daughter," if they don't know of it already. The book, written with a Jewish/Yiddish flavor and a light touch, has received rave reviews and been used as a textbook at two universities. A couple of years ago, I was one of the honored guests at the annual meeting of the Association of Jewish Librarians at the L'Enfant Plaza Hotel in Washington, D.C. I don't know whether that's a different organization from yours or the same one. A press release about my memoir follows and further information is available on my website at http://www.erraticimpact.com/fuentes. Best regards, Sonia FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Sonia Pressman Fuentes Mar. 1, 2004 tel. 941-379-6215 e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] website: http://www.erraticimpact.com/fuentes EAT FIRST--YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY'LL GIVE YOU The Adventures of an Immigrant Family and Their Feminist Daughter EAT FIRST--YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY'LL GIVE YOU, written with warmth and humor, is the story of Sonia Pressman Fuentes, one of the pioneers of the Second Wave of the women's movement, and her family. Fuentes was born in Berlin, Germany, of Polish parents, with whom she came to the U.S. as a child to escape the Holocaust. Her memoir reveals how this five-year-old immigrant in 1934 grew up to become the first woman attorney in the Office of the General Counsel at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in 1965, one of the founders of the National Organization for Women (NOW) in 1966, the highest-paid woman at the headquarters of two multinational corporations--GTE and TRW, and an international speaker on women's rights for the U.S. Information Agency. The story begins with the wedding of Fuentes' parents, Hinda and Zysia Pressman, in Piltz, a town in Poland. It goes on to the adventures of the Pressmans and Fuentes in Berlin, Antwerp, the Bronx, the Catskills, Miami Beach, Los Angeles, Cleveland, Stamford (Connecticut), and Washington, D.C. Along the way, Fuentes had encounters with Pat Ward (a notorious call girl in the '50s), Betty Friedan, Harry Golden, Dr. Cecil Jacobson (a prominent geneticist convicted on 52 counts of perjury and fraud), and many others. At forty-two, she married a man from Puerto Rico and 1 1/2 years later, her Puerto Rican-Jewish daughter was born. She tells about it all in Eat First. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Sonia Pressman Fuentes graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Cornell University in1950 and first in her class at the University of Miami School of Law in 1957. She had a 36-year career as an attorney and executive with the federal government and multinational corporations. She drafted many of the EEOC's initial landmark guidelines and decisions. In addition to being one of the founders of NOW, she was also a founder of Federally Employed Women (FEW). In November 1966,Betty Friedan presented her with the Veteran Feminists of America (VFA) Medal of Honor in recognition of her work to improve the status of women. Currently, she serves on the Board of Trustees of the National Woman's Party (NWP) and on its Distinguished Scholars Panel, and on the advisory committee of VFA. Since her retirement in 1993, she has pursued an active career as a writer and public speaker. On October 10, 1999, Fuentes received the 1999 Women at Work Award given by Wider Opportunities for Women (WOW) in Washington, D.C. Prior awardees include Glenn Close, Jane Fonda, Katie Couric, and Hillary Rodham Clinton. On March 21, 2000, Fuentes was one of five women inducted into the Maryland Women's Hall of Fame for the year 2000. She is included in Women of Achievement in Maryland History, published in October 2002. Her article on how being an immigrant affected her life is included in 120 HIAS Stories, published in July 2002. In 1950, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees included Fuentes in its Gallery of Prominent Refugees. I walk in the footprints of Sonia Pressman Fuentes. Patricia Ireland, then-president, NOW Evoking a tear here and a chuckle there, with her heartwarming wit and wisdom, Sonia Pressman Fuentes recounts the story of a Jewish family, her family, from her grandparents' origin in a shtetl in Poland right through her own career as a founder of NOW and beyond. Gus Tyler, columnist, contributing editor, The Forward Sonia Pressman Fuentes played a major role in the birth of the new women's movement and her tales of its early days will delight historians and those who are curious about the beginnings of this great social movement. Fuentes is a born storyteller, with a particular knack for seeing the humorous aspects of her life. Dr. Bernice Sandler, Senior Scholar, Women's Research and Education Institute I referred to you just the other day (as I frequently do) as one of the "great, unsung heroes" of the women's and civil rights movements. You single-handedly persuaded Roosevelt, Edelsberg, me and others to take sex discrimination seriously, which, without you, we would not have done. Charles T. Duncan, former General Counsel, EEOC; former Corporation Counsel of the District of Columbia; former Dean, Howard University School of Law Eat First was used as a textbook at Cornell University and at American University. The book was published in paperback and hardback by Xlibris Corporation and is also available as an e-book for downloading or on a CD. It is also available from amazon.com and in the U.K. from amazon.co.uk. Information on purchasing the book is available at the end of my home page on my website. -- Sonia Pressman Fuentes Public speaker, author "Eat First--You Don't Know What They'll Give You, The Adventures of an Immigrant Family and Their Feminist Daughter" 4633 Longwater Chase Sarasota, FL 34235-7124 tel. 941-379-6215 e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] website: http://www.erraticimpact.com/fuentes =========================================================== Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to: Hasafran at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu SUBscribing, SIGNOFF commands send to: Listproc at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu Questions, problems, complaints, compliments;-) send to: galron.1 at osu.edu Ha-Safran Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
