Piazzale Aldo Moro, 5, 00185 Roma RM, Italy
Rita attended the Sapienza University of Rome, Italy, where she earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Biology.
3009 Broadway, New York, NY 10027, United States
Between 1952 and 1953, Rita studied at Barnard College.
3009 Broadway, New York, NY 10027, United States
Between 1952 and 1953, Rita studied at Barnard College.
Piazzale Aldo Moro, 5, 00185 Roma RM, Italy
Rita attended the Sapienza University of Rome, Italy, where she earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Biology.
(Rita Arditti co-edited this work together with Renate Due...)
Rita Arditti co-edited this work together with Renate Duelli Klein and Shelly Minden.
https://www.amazon.com/Test-tube-women-What-future-motherhood/dp/0863580300
1984
("Searching for Life" traces the courageous plight of the ...)
"Searching for Life" traces the courageous plight of the Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo, a group of women, who challenged the ruthless dictatorship, that ruled Argentina from 1976 to 1983.
https://www.amazon.com/Searching-Life-Grandmothers-Disappeared-Argentina-ebook/dp/B003AU4F8A
1999
activist biologist educator scientist author
Ethnicity:
Rita descended from a Sephardic Jewish family, that had emigrated from Turkey.
Rita Arditti was born on September 9, 1934, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She was a daughter of Jacques Arditti and Rosa (Cordovero) Arditti. Rita had two sisters - Edith and Alicia.
In 1952, Rita came to the United States and attended Barnard College in New York City for one year. After that, she went to the Sapienza University of Rome, Italy, where she earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Biology.
In 1958, Rita began her career as a research scientist at the Istituto Superiore di Sanità in Rome, Italy, a post she held till 1961. Between 1962 and 1965, she held the same position at the International Laboratory of Genetics and Biophysics in Naples.
In 1965, Arditti came to the United States, where, the same year, she was made a postgraduate fellow at Brandeis University's Biochemistry Department, where she remained until 1966. Also, it was in 1966, that Rita left for Cambridge, where, the same year, she was appointed a research associate at Harvard Medical School's Department of Bacteriology and Immunology. She remained in that position till 1972. Also, during the time, when Rita was working at Brandeis University and Harvard Medical School, she co-founded two activist groups - Science for the People and the Women’s Community Cancer Project.
During the period from 1971 and 1973, Rita served as an Assistant Professor of Biology at Boston University. After developing a course at Boston University, entitled "Biology and Social Issues", in which she taught biological principles and the various ways, in which they may be used in society to perpetuate inequality, she became involved with the feminist movement and co-founded, with three other women, New Words, a women’s bookstore, in Cambridge, in 1974. Starting as a single room, rented from a restaurant on Kirkland Street, the store expanded to include an impressive collection of books, talks and lectures, in a new location on Hampshire Street, contributing to build a strong community of women and to participation in civic dialogue. After 28 years of operation, the New Words bookstore was eventually transformed into the Center for New Words, its mission being "to use the power and creativity of words and ideas to strengthen the voice of progressive and marginalized women in society". The center was closed in 2002.
Moreover, it was in the late sixties and early seventies, that Rita became involved with other socially active scientists in the group "Science for the People", that sought to expose the connections between science, the Vietnam War and politics.
It was in the 1980’s, that Rita’s interest in the intersection of science and politics took her to the human rights arena, when she agreed to translate for a Boston tour of the "grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo". Rita was moved by the women’s search for grandchildren, who had disappeared under Argentina’s military dictatorship from 1976-1983.
From 1981 till 1982, Arditti acted as an adjunct associate professor of women's studies at the University of Massachusetts.
Throughout her adulthood, Rita’s commitment to feminist causes and her attention to science’s role in society never ceased. In 1991, she co-founded the Women’s Community Cancer Project (WCCP), which focused both on women’s issues and on the environmental causes of cancer.
In her later years, Arditti was an Emeritus faculty member of the Union Institute and University, where she taught for 30 years. In addition, Rita served as a member of the board of directors of Sojourner Feminist Institute.
Rita Arditti was an outstanding biologist, feminist, human rights activist, environmentalist and educator. She was the author of a renowned publication "Searching for Life: The Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo and the Disappeared Children of Argentina" (1999). This work raised international awareness of the risks Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo took to recover their grandchildren, who had disappeared during Argentina’s brutal dictatorship. Also, the book was used to support the grandmothers' nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Rita Arditti was honored at the 2005 Women Who Dared event in Boston.
During her lifetime, Rita received several awards, including the Jessie Bernard Wise Women Award in 1994 and Peace and Justice Award in 1999.
("Searching for Life" traces the courageous plight of the ...)
1999(Rita Arditti co-edited this work together with Renate Due...)
1984Rita was a member of Science for the People, a left-wing socialist organization, that emerged from the antiwar culture of the United States in the late 1960's.
Quotations: "I believe we need a new kind of science, a science, that would show love and respect for its subjects of study and that would stress harmony and communication."
Rita was a feminist, human rights activist and environmentalist.
Physical Characteristics: Rita lived with metastatic (Stage IV) breast cancer for over 30 years.
In her early years, Rita was married to Mario Muchnik, a writer, publisher and photographer, whom she would later divorce. They gave birth to one son - Federico Muchnik. In 1980, Rita met Estelle Disch and they were partners for the rest of Rita’s life.
