Feminist Movements By Dorothy Sue Cobble, Linda Gordon, And Astrid Henry Picks Up The History

Whereas the women’s suffrage movements focused mainly on overturning legal obstacles to equality, the feminist movements successfully addressed a broad range of other feminist issues. The first dealt primarily with voting rights and the latter dealt with inequalities such as equal pay and reproductive rights. Both movements made vast gains to the social and legal status of women. One reached its goals while the other continues to fight for women’s rights.

In her report, Veronica Loveday writes about Women’s Rights Movement, during World War two, and many restrictions women faced. Women’s rights movement in the U.S. begun in the 1960s as a reaction to the decades of unfair social and civil inequities faced by women. Over the next thirty years, feminists campaigned for equality, such as equal pay, equal work , and abortion rights. Women finally gained the right to vote with the passage of the 19th amendment to the constitution in 1920.

In the year 1848 America held the first gathering dedicated to women’s rights; after decades of fighting for women’s equality, the 1920’s national election was the first for women to cast their presidential vote. The feminist movement, as a unisex advocacy, has had some successes other than voting rights, such as discrimination related to equal pay, having credit cards in their own names, terminating pregnancy, purchasing contraception or “the pill”, attending prestigious schools, becoming an astronaut or supreme court justice, and many more that have now been fixed due to this movement. So the question remains: do we still need feminism? After all, there have been many successes and several women claim they “don’t need feminism anymore”; however,

Women’s rights have evolved over time; beginning with being homemakers and evolving to obtaining professions, acquiring an education, and gaining the right to vote. The movement that created all these revolutionary changes was called the feminist movement. The feminist movement occurred in the twentieth century. Many people are not aware of the purpose of the feminist movement. The movement was political and social and it sought to set up equality for women. Women’s groups in the United States worked together to win women’s suffrage and later to create and support the Equal Rights Amendment. The economic boom between 1917 and the early 1960s brought many American women into the workplace. As women began to join

The Women's Rights Movement was a significant crusade for women that began in the late nineteenth century and flourished throughout Europe and the United States for the rest of the twentieth century. Advocates for women's rights initiated this movement as they yearned for equality and equal participation and representation in society. Throughout all of history, the jobs of women ranged from housewives to factory workers, yet oppression by society, particularly men, accompanied them in their everyday lives. Not until the end of the nineteenth century did women begin to voice their frustrations about the inequalities among men and women, and these new proclamations would be the basis for a society with opportunities starting to open for

Generations of women fought courageously for equality for decades. The ratification of the Nineteenth amendment was vindication for so many women across the country. After having spent so many years oppressed and unable to make way for themselves, women everywhere were growing tired of being unable to own property, keep their wages and the independence that an academic education gave them. The decades that ensued brought with them various female activists, men that supported them and a division of its own within the movement. The women’s suffrage movement lasted 71 years and cam with great discourse to the lives of many women who fought for the cause.

The entire Women’s Movement in the United States has been quite extensive. It can be traced back to 1848, when the first women’s rights convention was held in Seneca Falls, New York. After two days of discussions, 100 men and women signed the Declaration of Sentiments. Drafted by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, this document called for equal treatment of women and men under the law and voting rights for women. This gathering set the agenda for the rest of the Women’s Movement long ago (Imbornoni). Over the next 100 years, many women played a part in supporting equal treatment for women, most notably leading to the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, which allowed women the right to vote.

Looking back on the Progressive Era, we see many women activists and their roles in the fight for women’s rights. With the arrival of a new century also came many changes. Society was adjusting to industrialization, urbanization, a growing and powerful economy, and, of course, immigration. As a result of these changes, many people became fearful that traditional values would change as well. Progressive Reform in America began in the late nineteenth century, and an expanding job market as well as changes to the American lifestyle lead to women’s want for change in their public roles. Women activists began fighting for issues such as more opportunities for education and jobs, health advancements, and of course, voting rights. In doing so, women made great advancements in suffrage during the Progressive Era, and without a doubt, changed the nation for the better.

With the advancement of suffrage to equal pay, over the last century, women’s rights have progressed immensely. Through historic marches and demonstrations across the United States, women protested for their equal place in politics and social progress. Despite the fear-mongering components used in achieving these rights, women’s rights are still thoroughly debated within society today. Over the last century, incredible and unreachable goals have been fulfilled for women, such as the right to vote and a sense of equal state in the “Free World,” and can only improve in the years to come.

The 1920’s, also known as the “roaring twenties” consisted of multiple movements and changes in attitudes about the formerly traditional values society held during this time period. Shifts with women's suffrage, equality amongst races, and the ending of traditional household roles were prevalent through the years, sparking controversy between those who valued the old and those who valued the new. Significant changes amongst the way women’s suffrage and traditional household values were viewed began to occur during the twenties (Document B). Women were finally seen on the same playing field as men, and although they weren’t considered “equal” by any means, they were making notable progress.

From the 1880’s to the 1920’s, the Progressive Era was a period in American history where women’s suffrage gained the most momentum. Due to justified Progressive Era reforms and the creation of various organizations during this time, women were able to successfully protect people who were, for example, immigrants, poor, and African Americans belittled by the norms of society. With the full participation of American women, they exercised their full rights as citizens to create public institutions and shape public policy. Redefining the social structure, these middle-class women received support from other women which essentially led to changes of the rights of and treatment of American women in society. Thwarted by a male-dominated society, pleas for better treatment and equal rights made by women in the forms of protests, conventions, parades, and speeches, were often seen as foolish and meaningless. However, women’s unrelenting efforts combined with the atmosphere of reform resulted in positive outcomes such as the right to vote, the creation of new educational opportunities, and the introduction of better working conditions for women, which drastically impacted the way women apply themselves in society today.

Society has long since considered women the lessor gender and one of the most highly debated topics in society through the years has been that of women’s equality. The debates began over the meaning between a man and woman’s morality and a woman’s rights and obligations in society. After the 19th Amendment was sanctioned around 1920, the ball started rolling on women’s suffrage. Modern times have brought about the union of these causes, but due to the differences between the genetic makeup and socio demographics, the battle over women’s equality issue still continues to exist. While men have always held the covenant role of the dominant sex, it was only since the end of the 19th century that the movement for women’s equality and the

In my reflection, I realized the massive strides that have been made since the early 1900s. Society today is closer to embodying liberal feminism, where men and women should have equal rights (Source 3 page 61). Women can not only vote now, but they can also join the military, attend college, hold government positions, and work as executives—all opportunities that were either illegal or unheard of a century ago. During women’s suffrage, society more closely resembled a cultural feminism, where men and women have different images of rights (Source 3 page 61). The majority of men held the belief that they were superior to women—in the classroom, in the workplace, in the home, in government—while women were fighting to prove they were equal.

Throughout the majority of their campaign, the idea was overshadowed by the topic of slavery. Despite the large amount of men who were afraid that women would start wearing pants, the Nineteenth Amendment was passed, which finally gave women the right to vote. During this time, women broke away from the tradition of not speaking about politics, which showed the concept of individualism in their social movement. Today, women’s rights is still a huge concept through the Feminist Movement, which pushes that men and women are equal beings. The movement covers many different topics, but in summary, feminists have “advocated for the dignity, intelligence, and basic human potential of the female sex” (www.pacificu.edu). Due to the fact that feminism advocates for all sexes to have equal rights, which comes from intuition, the movement is directly related to Transcendentalism. After the Transcendentalist movement, movements like Human Rights, Women’s Suffrage, and Feminism have kept the concepts of individualism, self-reliance, and intuition alive in today’s society.

Unquestionably, feminism will be seen by historians as one of the strongest social movements of the twentieth century. Ideas that the rights of women should be included among the rights of all people existed as a coherent set since the late 1860s and culminated in women’s right to vote in the early twentieth century (Stromquist, 2009).