Women’s History Month Spotlight: Michelle Madoff
Opinionated.
Brash.
Colorful.
Feisty.
Blunt.
Several other words we can’t post here, because we’re a family-friendly blog.
Michelle Madoff heard those words, and many more, describing her work as an environmentalist and politician in Pittsburgh through the latter part of the 20th century. As a co-founder of the Group Against Smog and Pollution, Madoff embarked on a crusade to clean up Pittsburgh’s air and water. She and GASP leveraged Pittsburgh’s scientists and politicians against well-funded institutions such as Jones & Laughlin Steel and US Steel’s Clairton Coke Works to address the region’s pollution problem.
GASP bumper sticker featuring Dirty Girty
After resigning from GASP, Madoff served on several private and public pollution oversight committees, including the Allegheny County Bureau of Air Pollution Control. In the early 1970s, Madoff began to pursue elected office. Her initial runs for seats on the Pittsburgh City Council and Allegheny County Board of Commissioners ended in defeat. However, her fortunes changed when Richard Caligiuri ascended to the Mayor’s office in 1977. Madoff won the special election for Caligiuri’s former seat and was sworn into her first term as a Councilmember in May 1978. As a Councilmember, Madoff retained her straightforward attitude and made state and nation connections within the Democratic Party.
Madoff with Joe Biden
Madoff lost her bid for a fifth term in Pittsburgh City Council in 1993. She later retired to Peoria, Arizona, where she continued her environmental activism. She died on October 12, 2013.
In 1978, the University of Pittsburgh was honored to receive
Madoff’s personal papers related to her early environmental activism. We
received an additional deposit of her papers from her widower, Fred Scheske,
after her death. We have integrated documents from Madoff’s time in City
Council, as well as her later environmental activism, into that initial
collection. The Michelle
Madoff Papers, 1969-2013 (AIS.1978.03) is an invaluable asset for
researchers interested in Pittsburgh’s environmental activism, second-wave
feminism, and (of course) Madoff’s contributions to Pittsburgh’s history.
- Amy Brunner
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