Overview
Rita Hauser is President of The Hauser Foundation. She is
an international lawyer, senior Partner and now of counsel
to the New York City law firm, Stroock, Stroock & Lavan.
She is known for her public service and philanthropic work.
Interested in world peace, security, and human rights, she
has served as the U.S. Representative to the U.N. Commission
on Human Rights, and on commissions affiliated with the U.S.
Department of State, The Brookings Institution and the International
Center for Peace in the Middle East. Dr. Hauser chairs The
International Peace Academy and The Advisory Board of the
RAND Center for Middle East Public Policy. She is a director
of many organizations, including: The Rand Corporation, The
International Institute For Strategic Studies in London,
The New York Philharmonic Society and Lincoln Center for
the Performing Arts. She is on the Visiting Committee of
the John F. Kennedy School at Harvard University, on the
Dean's Advisory Board of Harvard Law School, and chair of
the Advisory Board of the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations
at Harvard University. Dr. Hauser is a National Co-Chair
of the Harvard University Campaign. She holds advanced degrees
from the University of Strasbourg in France, Harvard and
NYU Law Schools, and the University of Paris Law Faculty.
About the Transcript
Rita Hauser discusses her entry into the law profession as one
of the early woman graduates of Harvard Law School in 1958
and also the difficulties of beginning a practice in international
law. She describes her background in politics and the influence
of her family. Her early support for Richard Nixon in New York
led to her chairing his campaign there in 1968, and subsequently
to her appointment as U.S. Representative to the U.N. Commission
for Human Rights. In 1972, she co-chaired his national campaign.
She describes her role as a consultant to the Task Force on
Women's Rights and Responsibilities, her advocacy for "responsible
feminism" and her role as part of the informal network
supporting Barbara Franklin's work in the White House. She
reflects extensively on the importance of hiring qualified
women, and the barriers and compromises women faced. Dr. Hauser
also compares American women's situations to those of women
in other countries and reflects on the role conflicts, stereotypes,
and lack of self-confidence that still impede women's advancement
despite the significant achievements that have been made in
opening more doors for women.
Transcript
from Audio - Rita Hauser
Interviewer: Margita White has shared with us a memorandum from her files
when she was working for Herb Klein. It was written by you
in April 1971 and discussed the emergence of responsible
feminism and the need for the administration to recognize
women's desire to participate fully and equally in the life
of America. You said in one of the quotes I love, "I do not
believe you can approach them by what they call 'kitchen
talk,'" and urged the appointment of a White House adviser
on women's affairs. Do you remember that memo and what actions
were taken?
R.
Hauser: Well,
I didn't know all the actions that were taken. Somehow it
got leaked by I don't know who, because there was a picture
of me on the front page of the Washington Post one morning
with a big headline saying "Call for Women in the Campaign
and Women in Government." And they played it up as something
very radical. I to this day don' t know how that story got
to them, but somebody obviously leaked the memo. You see
the sensitivity when I had to say responsible feminism. Because
if you just said feminism, the picture that was evoked was
the Bella Abzugs standing on the street corners. It was a
time of bra burning and all of that. So we wanted to make
very clear that that was not what we had in mind.
