From Grokipedia
Full articleSusan Brownmiller (born Susan Warhaftig; February 15, 1935 – May 24, 2025) was an American journalist, author, and feminist activist whose 1975 book Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape advanced the argument that rape constitutes a deliberate mechanism of patriarchal power rather than an impulsive sex crime. The work examined rape's historical role across societies, from wartime atrocities to domestic violence, positing it as a tool for male groups to subjugate female groups through instilled fear. It debunked myths attributing rape to uncontrollable lust, influencing legal changes like the criminalization of marital rape in U.S. states and the proliferation of survivor support services, while sparking widespread debate on sexual violence. Brownmiller's thesis drew criticism for essentializing male aggression as inherent and collective, as well as for racially charged analyses, such as her treatment of the Emmett Till case, which some viewed as reviving stereotypes of Black male criminality. Earlier in her career, she contributed to civil rights and anti-Vietnam War efforts before focusing on women's liberation, and later opposed pornography as a vector of misogyny, positioning her against pro-sex feminists.
In brief
Susan Brownmiller came to activism with a reporter’s habit of asking what a silence is for. Against Our Will gathered history, law, and testimony into an argument the culture could no longer file under embarrassment.
She remained a writer first. The book’s long afterlife is not a monument; it is a change in what public language is allowed to name.
Photographs
Hero photograph: Wikimedia Commons
