Oral History Interview with Lilia Melani
“I was not interested in changing CUNY’s policies. I wanted to transform the very nature of the power structure.” – Lilia Melani
Conducted in 2019, as part of the Professional Staff Congress' (PSC) oral history initiative, this interview with Lilia Melani covered her extensive involvement in the Professional Staff Congress (PSC) and the "Melani Case", the landmark class-action suit named for her, that was brought against the Trustees of the City University of New York in 1983. The action was based on title VII and alleged sex discrimination in the Board Higher Education's employment practices.
The interview covered the formation of the CUNY Women’s Coalition in 1973, which would lead to the university responding by the convening of the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on the Status of Women led by Marilyn Gittell.
In 1983 the case was settled. Melani credited her experience in the union to her fundamentally understanding the problem of sex discrimination at the university as systemic and to have helped her become a more effective feminist.
Conducted in 2019, as part of the Professional Staff Congress' (PSC) oral history initiative, this interview with Lilia Melani covered her extensive involvement in the Professional Staff Congress (PSC) and the "Melani Case", the landmark class-action suit named for her, that was brought against the Trustees of the City University of New York in 1983. The action was based on title VII and alleged sex discrimination in the Board Higher Education's employment practices.
The interview covered the formation of the CUNY Women’s Coalition in 1973, which would lead to the university responding by the convening of the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on the Status of Women led by Marilyn Gittell.
In 1983 the case was settled. Melani credited her experience in the union to her fundamentally understanding the problem of sex discrimination at the university as systemic and to have helped her become a more effective feminist.
Source | Professional Staff Congress/CUNY (PSC)
Creator | Yellowitz, Irwin
Date Created | May 22, 2019
Interviewer | Yellowitz, Irwin
Interviewee | Melani, Lilia
Rights | Copyright Professional Staff Congress/CUNY (PSC)
Item Type | Oral History (Digital)
Cite This document | Yellowitz, Irwin, “Oral History Interview with Lilia Melani,” CUNY Digital History Archive, accessed April 28, 2024, https://cdha.cuny.edu/items/show/10642.
Creator | Yellowitz, Irwin
Date Created | May 22, 2019
Interviewer | Yellowitz, Irwin
Interviewee | Melani, Lilia
Rights | Copyright Professional Staff Congress/CUNY (PSC)
Item Type | Oral History (Digital)
Cite This document | Yellowitz, Irwin, “Oral History Interview with Lilia Melani,” CUNY Digital History Archive, accessed April 28, 2024, https://cdha.cuny.edu/items/show/10642.
