Hazel Manross Whitman was born on September 16, 1918, in
Brooklyn, New York, to Grace (Wood) and Charles Theodore Whitman. She attended the
University of Chicago (AB, 1958) and
Columbia University (MA, 1961; PhD, 1968). While at university, she worked as an activist for
sharecroppers in Mississippi, promoted the
Indian independence movement, and was involved with the
Socialist Party of America. She received her AB after she began teaching
social studies in New York. == Career ==