Donna Allen (activist)
# Donna Allen (activist)

Donna Allen (August 19, 1920 – July 19, 1999) was an American pioneer feminist, civil rights activist, historian, economist, and founder of the Women's Institute for Freedom of the Press.

## Biography

Allen was born in Petosky, Michigan on August 19, 1920, to Caspar and Louis Rehkopf. In 1943, Allen graduated from Duke University, majoring in history and minoring in economics. In 1953, she earned her master's degree in economics from the University of Chicago. Finally, in 1971, she received a Ph.D. in history from Howard University. Her dissertation was on national health insurance. Allen founded the Women's Institute for Freedom of the Press in 1972. Allen died at age 78 on July 19, 1999.

## The Donna Allen Award for Feminist Advocacy

The Donna Allen Award for Feminist Advocacy is given in Allen's honor by the Commission on the Status of Women for the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC). The award was created in 2001. It recognizes feminist media activists who promote women's rights and freedoms. Some recipients of this award are: 2001 – Award Created 2002 – no winner on record 2003 – Ammu Joseph, Women's Feature Service 2004 – Rita Henley Jenson, Women's eNews 2005 – Michelle Weldon, Northwestern 2006 – no winner on record 2007 – no winner on record 2008 – Caryl Rivers, Boston 2009 – Carolyn Byerly, Howard 2010 – Pamela Creedon, Iowa 2011- ? 2012 - ? 2013 – Soraya Chemaly 2014 - Barbara Friedman and Anne Johnston 2015 – Tania Cantrell Rosas-Moreno 2016 – Stine Eckert 2017 – Carolyn Bronstein 2018 – Petula Dvorak 2019 – Tracy Everbach 2020 – Susan Leath 2021 – Maria Marron

## Writings

### Books

* Women Transforming Communications: Global Intersections; (Edited with Ramona R. Rush, Susan J. Kaufman, eds.) (SAGE Publications, 1996).OCLC 469788564
* Communications at the Crossroads: The Gender Gap Connection; (Edited with Ramona R. Rush) (Ablex Publishing Corporation, 1989).
* Fringe Benefits: Wages or Social Obligations?; (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University, 1964).

### Periodicals

* Media Report to Women; (1972–1987) : Editor.

## Awards

| Year | Award | Issued By |
| - | - | - |
| April 1978 | Broadcast Preceptor Award | Broadcast Communication Arts Department |
| March 16, 1979 | Journalistic Excellence | Capital Press Women |
| September 25, 1979 | National Headliner Award | Women in Communication, Inc |
| November 14, 1983 | A Women Striving for Equity and Peace | The Wonder Woman Foundation Awards |
| October 7, 1987 | For Preserving Documents to the History of American Journalism | American Journalism Historians Association |
| July 1988 | Award for Outstanding Contribution to Women in Communication | Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication |
