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Liu-Wang Liming (1897–1970) was listed as Frances W. Wang in the 1920 Northwestern University yearbook.

Liu-Wang Liming

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Liu-Wang Liming was known for a time as “Frances Willard Wang.” In fact, while she was a student at Northwestern University, from 1917-1920, she went strictly by that name.

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Liu-Wang was born in Anqing, China. Her mother was president of a Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) chapter there. At the age of 12, Liu-Wang refused to have her feet bound, reportedly the first girl in her district to jettison the ancient tradition; she converted to Christianity, went to school, and won a scholarship to Northwestern University. ​

In 1916, Liu-Wang arrived in the U.S. with plans to earn her degree and then return to China to fight for women’s rights, democracy, and temperance. Through her contacts with the WCTU, Liu-Wang lived at Frances Willard’s former home on Chicago Avenue while she was in Evanston.

 

As a student at Northwestern, she was a member of the Chinese Christian Association and the YWCA. She also served as secretary for the Chinese Students’ Club and as assistant editor of the Chinese Students Monthly (the first magazine published by Chinese students in the U.S., founded in 1906). Liu-Wang earned a BA and an MS degree at Northwestern (in biology.) She met Herman Liu (Liu Zhan’en) (1886–1938) while he was working on his master’s degree at University of Chicago. (Liu later went on to earn a PhD at Columbia University.)

 

Married in 1922, the couple returned to China to witness the tumultuous changes their country was undergoing; revolution, war, counter-revolution, and upheaval. Liu-Wang held a number of posts in various organizations and worked to expand women’s rights and political representation. She organized WCTU chapters and went on the lecture circuit. She founded the Shanghai Women’s Suffrage Association and published a magazine, The Women’s Voice. In 1934, her book, The Chinese Women’s Movement, was issued. For many years she was persecuted by the Chinese government for her pro-democratic views. In 1966, the Chinese government jailed her on the accusation that she was a U.S. spy. She was later sent to a labor camp where she died in 1970. Years later, the Chinese government paid tribute to Liu-Wang, recognizing the breadth of her accomplishments and her tireless fight for women’s rights.

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