A Lifetime of Asking Hard Questions
From the Civil Rights Movement to today's fight for democracy, Judith McDaniel has spent more than sixty years writing, teaching, and organizing for justice.
Photo credit: Todd Danforth
WHERE THE QUESTIONS LED
Judith has always followed questions that challenged convention and expanded her understanding of what justice, community, and courage could be. Those questions carried her from a conservative military upbringing to the front lines of the feminist and peace movements, from the classroom to the courtroom, from helping found one of the world's oldest lesbian feminist publishers to embracing recovery from alcoholism, living openly, and continuing to build a more compassionate world.
Today, Judith writes, speaks, and shares the lessons of a life shaped by curiosity, conviction, and the belief that we are never finished becoming. She is currently working on a memoir exploring a life shaped by activism, love, reinvention, and an unwavering belief that ordinary people can help build a more just world.
Déjà vu: then and now
What can the past teach us about the present?
In her Substack, Déjà Vu: Then and Now, Judith reflects on political events and issues spanning six decades, drawing connections between the history she's lived through and the challenges we face today. Through personal stories and historical perspective, she explores what has changed, what hasn't, and why it matters.
Judith has written across genres and forms, from novels and poetry to essays and cultural criticism. Throughout her work runs a fascination with the connections between personal experience, social change, and the search for a more just world.
WHERE HER LIFE MEETS HISTORY
From the civil rights and antiwar movements to feminism, LGBTQ+ liberation, and human rights, Judith McDaniel has spent decades challenging convention and working toward a more just world.