Valerie Hudson: A feminist because of faith

She's on a list that includes President Obama and the Clintons — a list that includes everyone from the Pope to Richard Dawkins.

She is Valerie Hudson, coming in at No. 97 on Foreign Policy's annual list of the top 100 global thinkers.

Hudson, 51, mother of eight, wife to artist David Cassler, author and BYU professor, has proven to be one of the strongest voices for LDS women in academia.

She's been on 60 Minutes, examining China's one-child policy, as well as the consequences of having a high male-to-female ratio in her critically-acclaimed book, "Bare Branches: The Security Implications of Asia's Surplus Male Population."

Hudson also writes for the Mormon literati. She is the senior editor of SquareTwo, an online journal dedicated to LDS scholarship.

However, despite an impressive resume, when Foreign Policy contacted Hudson to inform her of her inclusion among the top thinkers in the world, she thought the e-mail was a phishing scam.

"I was completely blindsided," she said. "I moved the e-mail to my 'deleted items' folder. You know, those e-mails that start out, 'Congratulations, you've been selected...!'"

But she gave it a closer look before emptying her e-mail trash; after some sleuthing, she was surprised to find out the notice was legitimate.

Hudson contends Foreign Policy has "eclectic tastes" and she's thrilled that an LDS woman is on the list.

"I have often felt that LDS women have some pretty important things to say, but was anyone listening?" Hudson said. "This award gives me hope that LDS women can be heard in the public fora of our society, even at the highest levels of influence."

Hudson is currently working with a team of graduate and undergraduate students at BYU on the WomanStats Project womanstats.org. They update a massive database on the situation of women all over the world.

"Without a doubt this is the largest compilation of information on the situation of women in the world today," she said.

Hudson believes that even in the 21st century, the consequences of women being either valued or despised in a society are not widely acknowledged.

She asserts she certainly is a feminist — but is a feminist because she is a member of the LDS Church.

"I believe that LDS doctrine is the most feminist of all the Christianities," Hudson said.

But she is quick to point out that Mormons need to distinguish between church doctrine and "chapel practice" — or when doctrine is misinterpreted in such a way as to hurt women.

"As a convert to the church, I have been appalled on occasion at some of what I have found in Mormon culture concerning women," Hudson said. "Fortunately, we have general authorities who are very forthright on the equal partnership of men and women, and who are proactively clearing away some of the old, overgrown weeds in this area."

SquareTwo is another venue where old ideas are being built on, clarified or reconsidered for a growing audience. Its first issue was completed in fall of 2008, and they are currently working on their spring 2010 issue.

Part of the inspiration for SquareTwo were publications like Commentary, which approached the Jewish faith by not making religion front-and-center. SquareTwo assumes the restored gospel as the first "square" that Latter-day Saints have in common; it focuses on, as Hudson puts it, the "variety of views we might coherently articulate at square two."

Currently, SquareTwo is looking for high quality scholarly submissions on the torture issue, the Glenn Beck/Sean Hannity phenomenon and evolving concepts of nuclear deterrence; these will run alongside more doctrinal pieces, such as a piece clarifying doctrinal misconceptions about polygamy.

Hudson encourages anyone to submit, but is not looking for "blog posts." She is looking for well-reasoned essays and well-crafted reviews of films and literature.

"We don't want SquareTwo to be a final resting place for the views of LDS individuals on current affairs, but rather a springboard to launch them into public debate," she said.

If you would like to submit to SquareTwo, visit their Web site. They take submissions from 500-15,000 words.

E-mail: eschmuhl@desnews.com