Happy Birthday, Marie Equi. This year it’s different.

Today in 1872 – 143 years ago – Marie Diana Equi was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts. She was the fifth child and fifth daughter of John Equi of Fornaci di Barga, Italy and Sarah Mullins of County Tyrone, Ireland.

The Civil War had ended seven years earlier and industrialization surged ahead. New Bedford – once the enormously wealthy whaling capital of the world - was beginning its transition to a textile manufacturing powerhouse. Marie Equi entered a world of incredible tumult and change, and she would thrust herself into the critical issues of her times.  

Today I’m happy to present, along with Oregon State University Press, the cover for the much-anticipated biography of Marie Equi, due for publication in the early fall 2015.

The cover images evoke both the harsh consequences of Equi’s radicalism and the camaraderie and intimacy of other women she sought throughout her life. At the top is her mugshot from San Quentin State Prison taken when she began her sentence for opposing World War I, and at the bottom is a photo showing her arm in arm with other women, elated by the acquittal of Elizabeth Gurley Flynn on charges of inciting a riot.

For your courage and compassion, Marie Equi, here’s a birthday toast and gift to you.