Agnes Smedley’s role in Indian independence

Agnes Smedley was an American journalist and writer and known for her novel ‘Daughter of Earth’. During World War I, she worked in the United States for the independence of India from the United Kingdom. Veronika Fuechtner talked on the topic ‘Agnes Smedley between Berlin, Bombay and Beijing: feminism, sexuality and national independence’.

“Agnes Smedley was born in Osgood, Missouri, on 23 February 1892. She worked on behalf of various causes including women’s rights, birth control and children’s welfare. She wrote six books and some novels. In her novel, ‘Daughter of Earth’ she says that all women facing freedom issues across all countries. In her writings, she always informed about the importance of equal rights for women compared to men.

In 1926, she went to China, where she is suspected of acting as a spy for the ‘Comintern’ (Communist International),” said Veronika Fuechtner. Informing about Agnes Smedley’s connection with Indian people, Veronika Fuechtner shares “Agnes went Berlin to submit some papers regarding Indian independence movement to Virendranath Chattopadhyaya, an Indian freedom fighter.

From 1920 to 1928 Agnes and Virendranath Chattopadhyaya lived together in Berlin. She also met Manabendra Nath Roy and Lala Lajpat Rai in the Indian independence movement,” “She also met Indian student Bakar Ali Mirza in Berlin and fell in love with him. When he settled in Hyderabad, they briefly negotiated their relationship in letters.

They also share their views on how revolutionary politics shaped in India in the early 20th century. In their conversations Ali told Agnes about the Hindu-Muslim tensions in India before independence and how British officials dealt with it,” she concludes.