Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

Spring 5-1-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

May 2026

Department

History

College Granting Degree

Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters

Department Granting Degree

History

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Jermaine Scott

Abstract

Louise Thompson Patterson, in her life as an activist, represented an extraordinary few who found the world she existed in lacking, and spent her life trying to change it, not only to better her own life, but to focus on the lives and problems of those who were seemingly disconnected from her. By following Louise Thompson Patterson’s political development, and examining her work as an activist of class, race, and gendered issues, her own development of the idea of “triple exploitation” or “triple oppression” is clear not only in her actions but in her writing. Through her experiences in the CPUSA, her founding and leadership in the Sojourners for Truth and Justice, and her work in the Free Angela Davis movement, Thompson Patterson was able to apply intersectional analysis to both her political writings, as well as a practical application in her mobilization work.

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