{"id":47885,"date":"2024-09-13T05:08:00","date_gmt":"2024-09-13T11:08:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/?p=47885"},"modified":"2024-09-13T09:11:00","modified_gmt":"2024-09-13T15:11:00","slug":"sonia-johnson-a-mormon-feminist-a-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesandseasons.org\/index.php\/2024\/09\/sonia-johnson-a-mormon-feminist-a-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Sonia Johnson: A Mormon Feminist, a Review"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Sonia Johnson: A Mormon Feminist<\/em><\/a> by Christine Talbot is a provocative and insightful entry in University of Illinois Press\u2019s Introductions to Mormon Thought <\/em>series. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

The subject of this biographic monograph\u2014Sonia Johnson\u2014was and is an individual who inspires strong reactions and many different emotions among Latter-day Saints, and any biography of her is likely to evoke those same reactions. Sonia was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who came to believe that patriarchy was a sham and advocated for the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) in the United States in the 1970s and early 1980s. That advocacy came into conflict with the Church, which, under Spencer W. Kimball\u2019s direction, opposed the ERA and organized its members in efforts to fight ratification in states across the country. Sonia believed that some of the tactics the Church used to do so were underhanded or dishonest and went to the press to expose these, much to the chagrin of Church leaders. As a result of some of her activities and statements, Sonia was excommunicated in 1979. Given her high-profile status, this not only affected Sonia, but had a chilling effect on Latter-day Saint feminists and signaled that they were not welcome in the Church (much as the excommunication of the September Six or Kate Kelly would do later on).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unlike other entries in the series, this one is unique in that the subject is still alive. Thus, Christine Talbot not only had access to primary documents and secondary sources, but also the subject herself. The book follows the standard format for the series of an introductory chapter that offers a brief biographical sketch, three body chapters that focus on major themes in the figure\u2019s thought (in this case, chapters on disciplining Mormon feminists; the gendered ethics of revelation, religion, and politics; and gender, honesty and accountability), and a short concluding chapter that provides a reader\u2019s guide or a bibliographic essay that introduces readers to the figure\u2019s most important works. In doing so, it provides a very accessible introduction to a key figure in 20th century Latter-day Saint history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given the historical nature of Sonia\u2019s impact on Latter-day Saint thought, Sonia Johnson: A Mormon Feminist<\/em> shares some common content with other books dealing with Latter-day Saint feminism, Church discipline and boundary maintenance, and 20th century Latter-day Saint history. For example, The September Six and the Struggle for the Soul of Mormonism<\/em> by Sara M. Patterson shares some discussion of the ways in which Sonia Johnson\u2019s excommunication highlighted some boundary maintenance processes employed by Church leaders and how those have continued in examples, like the September Six. Ben Park\u2019s American Zion<\/em> covered Sonia Johnson\u2019s excommunication as an aspect of 20th century Latter-day Saint history and the struggle over the position of women in the Church. And the anthology Mormon Feminism: Essential Writings<\/em>, edited by Joanna Brooks, Rachel Hunt Steenblik, and Hannah Wheelwright offers some coverage of the life of Sonia Johnson and includes a few key essays that she wrote as an introduction to her thought and its impact on Latter-day Saint feminism. By virtue of its exclusive focus on Sonia, Sonia Johnson: A Mormon Feminist<\/em> is able to dive deeper into the her life and thought than these other books, but it does share some of the same content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I mentioned up front, Sonia Johnson is an individual who inspires strong reactions and many different emotions among Latter-day Saints. I view myself as a moderate feminist and I felt a range of emotions as I engaged with this book. I felt frustration over the Church\u2019s anti-ERA and anti-feminist position that it staked out at that time and the ways in which that position was enforced (including the questionable methods behind the excommunication of Sonia). At the same time, I also felt repelled by some of the more radical positions that Sonia staked out in response. Such reactions, however, can be seen as a testament to Christine Talbot\u2019s well-researched and well-written work in capturing Sonia\u2019s life and thought in this excellent, if at times disturbing, book. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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For more of my reviews and copost about entries in the University of Illinois Press\u2019s Introductions to Mormon Thought <\/em>series, see the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n