Lizzie Reis
@lzreis23.bsky.social
Historian of medicine, gender, and bioethics. Author, BODIES IN DOUBT: AN AMERICAN HISTORY OF INTERSEX and DAMNED WOMEN: SINNERS AND WITCHES IN PURITAN NEW ENGLAND. Emeritus at Univ. of Oregon and retired from CUNY. www.lizziereis.com
I did a thing on Reddit: “Ask a Historian,” about my book, Bodies in Doubt: An American History of Intersex. I’m posting it here if anyone wants to take a look. People asked lots of great questions!
From the AskHistorians community on Reddit
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www.reddit.com
September 7, 2025 at 10:20 PM
I did a thing on Reddit: “Ask a Historian,” about my book, Bodies in Doubt: An American History of Intersex. I’m posting it here if anyone wants to take a look. People asked lots of great questions!
I wrote a short response to the essay Andrew Sullivan published in the NYT a couple of weeks ago. It annoyed me for many reasons, and here are a few of them:
Our Bodies, Our Decisions: A Response to Andrew Sullivan’s NYT Essay
In a recent New York Times, author Andrew Sullivan, a conservative British-American political commentator and former editor of The New Republic, argues that the trans movement has gone too far, pro…
nursingclio.org
July 16, 2025 at 7:22 PM
I wrote a short response to the essay Andrew Sullivan published in the NYT a couple of weeks ago. It annoyed me for many reasons, and here are a few of them:
My book, Bodies in Doubt, was mentioned specifically in the NYT today — one of many books banned from the Naval Academy library. The erasure is maddening, to put it mildly.
These Are the 381 Books Removed From the Naval Academy Library
The office of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the college to adhere to an executive order from President Trump banning educational material related to diversity, equity and inclusion topics.
www.nytimes.com
April 5, 2025 at 12:40 PM
My book, Bodies in Doubt, was mentioned specifically in the NYT today — one of many books banned from the Naval Academy library. The erasure is maddening, to put it mildly.
I wrote this essay about the effort to exonerate accused “witches” in colonial Maryland. Some people think it’s frivolous in light of everything else going on. But I think that recognizing historic acts of injustice can help us to identify misguided and reckless discrimination today.
Fly Free | ARC: Religion, Politics, Et Cetera
In seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Maryland, colonial authorities tried and convicted seven women of witchcraft. One was hanged in 1685. Now, Heather Bagnall, a member of the Maryland House of Del...
arcmag.org
March 26, 2025 at 12:56 PM
I wrote this essay about the effort to exonerate accused “witches” in colonial Maryland. Some people think it’s frivolous in light of everything else going on. But I think that recognizing historic acts of injustice can help us to identify misguided and reckless discrimination today.
Reposted by Lizzie Reis
Please read and share. But especially share with folks that might not realize how critical Section 504 is to so many people. I tried to write a simple clear explanation at the break. Gift link here: www.startribune.com/why-are-repu...
February 21, 2025 at 1:11 AM
Please read and share. But especially share with folks that might not realize how critical Section 504 is to so many people. I tried to write a simple clear explanation at the break. Gift link here: www.startribune.com/why-are-repu...
M. Gessen deftly brings together many anxieties about fertility, regret, gender norms, and more. And they mentioned my work on intersex! I agree that trans rights are reproductive rights.
Opinion | The Secret Behind America’s Moral Panic
Trans rights aren’t just trans rights. They’re reproductive rights.
www.nytimes.com
November 22, 2024 at 12:22 PM
M. Gessen deftly brings together many anxieties about fertility, regret, gender norms, and more. And they mentioned my work on intersex! I agree that trans rights are reproductive rights.
Here's something to actually do:https://5calls.org/issue/oppose-cabinet-recess-appointments/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3v7Di6MhKdd8XzK2zdNUMHoTqIIKtHJymWgbKKdfv7Ai95W5rmXj8ih1I_aem_6MhvfiPd7KnHNxUO0Tzhjw
November 19, 2024 at 11:11 PM
Here's something to actually do:https://5calls.org/issue/oppose-cabinet-recess-appointments/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3v7Di6MhKdd8XzK2zdNUMHoTqIIKtHJymWgbKKdfv7Ai95W5rmXj8ih1I_aem_6MhvfiPd7KnHNxUO0Tzhjw
Many good ideas here:
wagingnonviolence.org/2024/11/10-t...
wagingnonviolence.org/2024/11/10-t...
10 ways to be prepared and grounded now that Trump has won
The key to taking effective action if Trump wins is to avoid perpetuating his goals of fear, isolation, exhaustion and disorientation.
wagingnonviolence.org
November 18, 2024 at 12:56 PM
Many good ideas here:
wagingnonviolence.org/2024/11/10-t...
wagingnonviolence.org/2024/11/10-t...
One of my colleagues, Logan McBride, produced this amazing film, “Degrees of Freedom,” premiering at the Dances With Films festival! danceswithfilms.com/DEGREES-OF-F...
DEGREES OF FREEDOM | Dances With Films
danceswithfilms.com
November 15, 2024 at 4:49 PM
One of my colleagues, Logan McBride, produced this amazing film, “Degrees of Freedom,” premiering at the Dances With Films festival! danceswithfilms.com/DEGREES-OF-F...
Reposted by Lizzie Reis
This week at Nursing Clio, Jessi Benson writes about the centrality of the “good death” to the modern hospice movement. nursingclio.org/2024/11/13/a...
A Good Death: The Modern Hospice Movement
“She was at home, this is where she wanted to be. It wasn’t easy, but it was right.” He said this to me on his mother’s back porch after I pronounced her and finished providing post-mortem ca…
nursingclio.org
November 13, 2024 at 2:35 PM
This week at Nursing Clio, Jessi Benson writes about the centrality of the “good death” to the modern hospice movement. nursingclio.org/2024/11/13/a...