Theressa Hoover

This chapter highlights the work of native Arkansan Theressa Hoover, a leading Black laywoman who challenged racial and gender barriers in both church and society. As chief executive of the financially independent 1.2-million-member United Methodist Women (1968-1990), Hoover provided direction, voice, and vision to one of the largest Christian women's organizations in the world. This role was both a locus for a career and a platform for articulating resistance to white patriarchy. An outspoken proponent of women's full participation in church policy-making bodies, and in her positions on the national boards of ecumenical organizations like Church Women United, the YWCA, the NCNW, and the National and World Council of Churches, Hoover advocated for anti-racism, feminism and LGBTQ+ rights. As much a theologian as many ordained preachers, Hoover critiqued the male-defined systems that impacted Black women in particular, showing that white feminist theology, though illustrative, was incomplete.