bell hooks, groundbreaking feminist thinker, dies at 69

By HILLEL ITALIE
AP National Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — bell hooks, the author, educator and activist whose explorations of how race, gender, economics and politics intertwine made her among the most influential feminist thinkers of her time, has died. She was 69. Starting in the 1970s, hooks published dozens of books that helped shape popular and academic discourse. Her notable works included “Ain’t I a Woman? Black Women and Feminism,” “Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center” and “All About Love: New Visions.” Among her most famous expressions was her definition of feminism, which she called  “a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation and oppression.”