Karen Stamm Papers
Call Number
Dates
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
Karen Stamm participated in several women's reproductive rights campaigns and organizations during the 1970s and 1980s. This collection consists of correspondence, reports, background papers, and publications related to her efforts with those organizations for reproductive rights and against sterilization abuse, particularly of low-income women and women of color.
Historical/Biographical Note
Karen Stamm participated in several women's reproductive rights campaigns and organizations during the 1970s and 1980s, including the National Women's Health Network (NWHN), the Reproductive Rights National Network (R2N2), the Committee to End Sterilization Abuse (CESA), and its successor, the Committee for Abortion Rights and Against Sterilization Abuse (CARASA). She received her law degree from Rutgers Law School in 1985 and practiced landlord and tenant law and estate planning.
Through NWHN, R2N2, CESA, CARASA, and other organizations, Stamm advocated for reproductive rights and affordable healthcare for all women, regardless of race or socioeconomic status. She worked to end sterilization abuse as population control and for greater transparency of sterilization practices among hospitals and municipal healthcare agencies.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged in three series: Series I: Personal and academic papers, arranged by topic; Series II: Organizations, arranged alphabetically; and Series III: Subject files, arranged alphabetically. Some materials were arranged and re-foldered before 2017.
Scope and Contents
The Karen Stamm Papers (1970-2004, bulk: 1970-1990) document Stamm's dedication to and participation in several women's reproductive health and rights organizations at national and state levels during the 1970s and 1980s. The collection also touches on tensions between advocates for abortion rights and those against sterilization abuse.
Included are correspondence, reports, pamphlets and other publications from these organizations. Also included are newspaper clippings and photocopies of clippings and articles that Stamm collected on abortion, sterilization abuse, AIDS, women's health, and related legislation.
Subjects
Organizations
People
Donors
Conditions Governing Access
Materials are open without restrictions with the exception of student papers not written by Karen Stamm. These materials are closed in compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA).
Conditions Governing Use
Any rights (including copyright and related rights to publicity and privacy) held by Karen Stamm were transferred to New York University in 1999 by Karen Stamm. Permission to publish or reproduce materials in this collection must be secured from the Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archive. Please contact tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu.
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date; Karen Stamm Papers; TAM 212; box number; folder number; Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, New York University.
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Karen Stamm to Tamiment Library in 1999. An oral history interview of Stamm conducted by Tamar Carroll was donated in 2004. The accession numbers associated with these gifts are 1999.018 and 2014.108.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Born-digital materials have not been transferred and may not be available to researchers. Researchers may request access copies. To request that material be transferred, or if you are unsure if material has been transferred, please contact tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu with the collection name, collection number, and a description of the item(s) requested. A staff member will respond to you with further information.
About this Guide
Processing Information
Materials have been arranged loosely by topic and chronologically, maintaining the order in which they were received, when possible. Folder titles have also been maintained, when possible. Student papers not written by Karen Stamm have been re-housed in a separate container.
Repository
Series I: Personal and academic papers, 1970-2004, inclusive
Extent
Scope and Contents
Series I contains correspondence, some of Stamm's law school records and papers, and an oral history interview with Stamm conducted by Tamar Carroll.
Arrangement
Materials have been arranged by topic in loose chronological order.
Correspondence and papers, 1977-1981, inclusive
Correspondence, 1979-1990, inclusive
Correspondence: Sarah Wernick, sterilization, 1982
Correspondence: Tom Shapiro, chapter draft, 1983
Correspondence: Betsy Hartmann, 1985-1986, inclusive
Notes and papers, 1980-1989, inclusive
Personal papers, 1981-1983, inclusive
Law school, 1979-1982, inclusive
Law school, background papers, 1979-1985, inclusive
Conference on Women and the Law, 1980
Law school, 1980-1984, inclusive
Rutgers Law School, 1981-1982, inclusive
Family Law papers re Lee Ann Grady, 1981-1983, inclusive
Law school notes, 1982, undated
Law school notes, undated
Law school papers, 1984
Law school, 1984, undated
Law school, 1984
Law school: civil rights, 1984
Psychiatry and the Law seminar, 1984
Law school: notes, readings, syllabi, 1973-1985, inclusive
Law school: readings, briefs (photocopies), 1865-1984, inclusive
Sterilization: legal briefs, 1970-1983, inclusive
Draft: "What are the risks of sterilization?", undated
CD-R: Karen Stamm interview by Tamar Carroll, 2004
Student papers not by Karen Stamm - CLOSED, 1976
Conditions Governing Access
CLOSED in compliance with FERPA regulations.
Student papers not by Karen Stamm - CLOSED, 1978
Conditions Governing Access
CLOSED in compliance with FERPA regulations.
Series II: Organizations, 1970-1998, inclusive
Extent
Scope and Contents
Series II contains organizational notes, minutes, correspondence, reports, background briefs, flyers, questionnaires, and publications from Stamm's participation in national women's reproductive rights groups. Organizations represented include Planned Parenthood, the National Women's Health Network (NWHN), Reproductive Rights National Network (R2N2), and the Committee to End Sterilization Abuse (CESA), which evolved into the Committee for Abortion Rights and Against Sterilization Abuse (CARASA).
Arrangement
Materials are arranged in the order in which they were received, alphabetically by organization name and in loose chronological order within each organization. Publications are loosely arranged at the end of the series.
American Civil Liberties Union: Hyde Amendment, 1978
ACLU: Reproductive Freedom Project, 1980-1981, inclusive
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, 1981-1982, inclusive
Committee to End Sterilization Abuse (CESA): Statement of purpose, bylaws, 1975-1977, inclusive
CESA: Minutes, membership meetings, notes, outlines, 1975
CESA, 1975-1977, inclusive
CESA, 1975-1979, inclusive
CESA, 1975-1977, inclusive
CESA: internal documents, 1976-1977, inclusive
CESA: minutes, meetings, 1976-1977, inclusive
CESA: payments, 1976-1977, inclusive
CESA: prison inmate correspondence, 1976-1977, inclusive
CESA: international project, 1976-1977, inclusive
CESA: minutes, 1977
CESA/ Committee for Abortion Rights and Against Sterilization Abuse (CARASA): NY state lobbying efforts, 1977-1979, inclusive
CESA: GAC Intro 1105, 1977
CESA, 1977, undated
CESA: minutes, meetings, 1978
CESA: report, 1978-1979, inclusive
CESA, 1978-1980, inclusive
CESA: correspondence re Planned Parenthood, 1978-1979, inclusive
CESA: questionnaire correspondence, 1979
CESA: NYC hospitals sterilization survey, 1978-1979, inclusive
CESA: background publications, 1970-1978, inclusive
CESA: notes, drafts, undated
CESA: Karen Stamm notes on Right to Life, other topics, undated
CESA/ CARASA, 1976-1979, inclusive
CARASA: NYC sterilization issues, 1977-1980, inclusive
CARASA, 1978-1983, inclusive
CARASA, 1978-1982, inclusive
CARASA, 1978-1984, inclusive
CARASA: internal documents, 1979-1981, inclusive
CARASA: lobbying, 1979-1980, inclusive
CARASA: notes, 1980, undated
CARASA, 1980
CARASA: News & Extras, 1980-1983, inclusive
CARASA: News & Extras, 1980-1986, inclusive
CARASA: Family Protection Act clippings, 1981
CARASA: Ms. article, "Taking the Offensive", 1981
CARASA: Dollars & Sense article, 1981
CARASA: homophobia, 1981-1982, inclusive
CARASA: NYC HHC Sterilization Advisory Committee, 1981-1984, inclusive
CARASA: NYC HHC Sterilization Advisory Committee, 1981-1984, inclusive
CARASA, 1985
CARASA: case study of socialist feminist organizing, 1990
CARASA: flyers, undated
Campaign to Keep Abortion Fair, Safe and Funded in NYS, 1979-1980, inclusive
Center for Constitutional Rights Docket Report, 1978-1982, inclusive
Coalition for the Reproductive Rights of Workers, 1979-1980, inclusive
CONTROL, 1979
Coalition for the Medical Rights of Women, 1976-1980, inclusive
Coalition for the Medical Rights of Women, 1980
Coalition for the Medical Rights of Women, 1979-1980, inclusive
Coalition for the Medical Rights of Women, 1978-1979, inclusive
Committee to Defend Reproductive Rights, 1980-1982, inclusive
Consumer Health Information and Resource Center, 1979
International Women's Day, 1975
Mobilize for Women's Lives, 1989
National Abortion Rights Action League: legal abortion speaker's notebook, 1978
National Center for Health Statistics, 1976-1985, inclusive
National Center for Health Statistics: Vital Statistics Report, 1979-1980, inclusive
National Center on Women and Family Law, 1981-1982, inclusive
National Organization for Women, 1973-1998, inclusive
National Right to Life Convention, 1982
National Women's Health Network (NWHN), 1978-1980, inclusive
NWHN: background materials, 1980
NWHN: Harris Co. Hospital District, 1980-1981, inclusive
NWHN: meetings, agendas, 1980-1986, inclusive
NWHN: Senate testimony, 1980-1982, inclusive
NWHN: organizational records, 1981-1982, inclusive
NWHN: Depo Provera Project, 1980-1983, inclusive
NWHN: Sterilization Committee, 1980-1984, inclusive
NWHN paper: Sterilization Abuse, 1981
NWHN: Sterilization abuse report, 1981
NWHN, 1981-1982, inclusive
NWHN: Sterilization Abuse Committee, 1981-1982, inclusive
NWHN: Reproductive Rights Committee, 1981-1983, inclusive
NWHN: executive director's report, 1982
NWHN: legislation, Hatch amendment, 1982
NWHN, 1982-1983, inclusive
NWHN: hospital sterilization questionnaires, I, 1981-1983, inclusive
NWHN: hospital sterilization questionnaires, II, 1983, undated
NWHN: hospital sterilization questionnaires, III, 1983
NWHN: hospital sterilization questionnaires, IV, 1983
NWHN: hospital sterilization questionnaires, V, 1983
NWHN: hospital sterilization questionnaires, VI, 1983
NWHN: hospital sterilization questionnaires, VII, 1983
NWHN Network News, 1978-1983, inclusive
NWHN Network News, 1982-1990, inclusive
NWHN Network News, 1984-1990, inclusive
NWHN Reproductive Rights Committee, 1984-1985, inclusive
NWHN Reproductive Rights Committee, undated
NWHN abortion rights organizing kit, undated
NWHN Boston Conference on Women and Health, 1975
New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (NYC HHC), 1975-1979, inclusive
NYC HHC guidelines, 1975-1979, inclusive
NYC sterilization survey of hospitals, 1977
NYC HHC: sterilization regulations, annual report, 1978-1990, inclusive
NYC HHC, 1979
NYC HHC, 1979
NYC HHC : sterilization guidelines, 1982-1992, inclusive
NYC HHC: Hysterectomy Consent Committee, 1982
NYC HHC: statistics, 1982-1988, inclusive
NYC women's newsletters, 1980-1981, inclusive
NYS legislation affecting women, 1984
NYS sterilization legislation, 1978-1985, inclusive
NYS sterilization legislation, 1979-1985, inclusive
NYS sterilization legislation, 1986-1989, inclusive
NYS Task Force on Young Women, 1977
Planned Parenthood: Papers and policy statement, 1969-1976, inclusive
Planned Parenthood: Brochures and pamphlets, 1968-1979, inclusive
Planned Parenthood: Brochures and pamphlets, 1973-1977, inclusive
Planned Parenthood: General, 1975-1980, inclusive
Planned Parenthood: International student program seminars, 1976-1978, inclusive
Planned Parenthood: General, 1976-1990, inclusive
Planned Parenthood: Feminist Women's Health Center letters, 1977
Planned Parenthood: General, 1977-1979, inclusive
Planned Parenthood: World Population Washington Memo newsletters, 1978
Planned Parenthood: Fact-finding forums, 1978
Planned Parenthood: Justice Fund, 1978
Planned Parenthood: NYS Legislature voting records, 1978
Planned Parenthood: Human Problem of Abortion: Medical and Legal Dimensions, 1979
Planned Parenthood: Family planning legislative conference trip, 1979
Planned Parenthood: Alan Guttmacher Institute, 1979-1980, inclusive
Planned Parenthood: Litigation updates, 1991-1994, inclusive
Reproductive Rights National Network (R2N2), 1980-1981, inclusive
R2N2, 1981
R2N2 newsletter, 1981-1983, inclusive
R2N2: slideshow on sterilization, population control, imperialism, 1981-1982, inclusive
R2N2 HEW 1979 sterilization regulations, 1982
R2N2, 1982
Sterilization & Informed Rights Consent Project, 1976
Women's National Abortion Action Coalition, 1972-1973, inclusive
YMCA/NGO National working seminar on Population Development, 1978-1979, inclusive
Health Right Women's Health Forum newsletter, 1974-1979, inclusive
Newsletters, general, 1972-1981, inclusive
Newsletters, general, 1974-1986, inclusive
Leaflets, brochures, 1970-1982, inclusive
Boston Women's Health Book Collective (BWHBC), 1979
BWHBC packet 24, 1979-1980, inclusive
BWHBC packet 25, 1980
BWHBC packet 26, 1980
BWHBC, 1980
BWHBC, 1980
Family Planning Perspectives, 1977-1978, inclusive
George Washington University Population Reports
George Washington University Population Reports
George Washington University Population Reports
George Washington University Population Reports
Health Pac
Notes from the Third Year
Triple Jeopardy, Third World Women's Alliance
Reproductive rights publications
Population publications
Women's health publications
Publications, miscellaneous
CESA Demonstration Banner
Series III: Subject files, 1970-1990, inclusive
Extent
Scope and Contents
Series III consists of clippings, photocopies, articles, and background papers Stamm collected on subjects pertaining to reproductive rights and women's health.
Arrangement
Subject files are arranged in the order in which they were received, alphabetically by subject. Clippings are minimally arranged chronologically. Some files were arranged before 2017.