 barbara ehrenreich (;the cmu pronouncing dictionary born august 26, 1941) is an american writer and political activist who describes herself as "a myth buster by trade", and has been called "a veteran muckraker" by the new yorker. during the 1980s and early 1990s she was a prominent figure in the democratic socialists of america. she is a widely read and award-winning columnist and essayist, and author of 21 books. ehrenreich is perhaps best known for her 2001 book nickel and dimed: on (not) getting by in america. a memoir of ehrenreich's three-month experiment surviving on minimum wage as a waitress, hotel maid, house cleaner, nursing-home aide, and wal-mart clerk, it was described by newsweek magazine as "jarring" and "full of riveting grit", and by the new yorker as an "exposÃ©" putting "human flesh on the bones of such abstractions as 'living wage' and 'affordable housing'". ==early life== ehrenreich was born barbara alexander to isabelle oxley and ben howes alexander in butte, montana, which she describes as then being "a bustling, brawling, blue collar mining town". in an interview on c-span, she characterized her parents as "strong union people" with two family rules: "never cross a picket line and never vote republica
1941_births 20th-century_American_novelists 20th-century_women_writers American_anti-war_activists American_atheists American_bloggers American_columnists American_essayists American_historians American_humanists American_political_writers American_pro-choice_activists American_relationships_and_sexuality_writers American_socialists American_women_journalists American_women_novelists American_women_writers Anti-poverty_advocates Feminist_studies_scholars Guggenheim_Fellows Living_people Members_of_the_Democratic_Socialists_of_America People_from_Butte,_Montana Reed_College_alumni Rockefeller_University_alumni Socialist_feminists Women_bloggers Women_columnists Women_essayists Women_historians Workers\'_rights_activists