Now Available: Vera Glaser papers

The American Heritage Center at the University of Wyoming has recently processed and digitized select folders from the Vera Glaser papers. Glaser was a long-time Washington D.C. reporter and an advocate for women’s rights. During President Richard Nixon’s second press conference, Glaser helped spark a remarkable chain of events when she asked Nixon, “Mr. President, since you’ve been inaugurated, you have made approximately two-hundred presidential appointments, and only three of them have gone to women. Can we expect some more equitable recognition of women’s abilities, or are we going to remain the lost sex?”

The question helped lead to the first systemic program to recruit women into federal positions, as well as the creation of the President's Task Force on Women's Rights and Responsibilities, a task force that Glaser proudly served on. The task force produced a report that consisted of twenty suggestions for improving the status of women in America. After the White House initially refused to release the report, Glaser passed on the task force findings to a fellow journalist for publication. Ultimately, nineteen of the twenty report recommendations became law, with only the Equal Rights Amendment failing to be adopted by the government.

The majority of the Vera Glaser papers consist of materials relating to her career as a journalist, including research files and published articles on American politics and women’s issues from the 1940s through the 1990s. Additionally there are a number of significant professional files, including files related to her work for Sen. Charles Potter and Sen. Kenneth Keating, the Republican National Committee, presidential committees, and various women's and journalistic organizations. The current digital collection consists of a file on the President's Task Force on Women's Rights and Responsibilities, speeches, photographs, and an oral history.