How Does Feminism Helped Shape Women's Rights?

The Birth Control Movement of 1912 in the United States had a significant impact on Women’s Reproductive Rights. Women in the 1800s would frequently die or have complications during or after childbirth. Even if the woman would have died, they would still have a great amount of children. As the years progressed into the 1900s, the amount of children being born dropped. Because of this, birth control supplements were banned, forcing women to have a child that she was not prepared for or did not want to have in the first place.

Early feminism was typically focused only on white women, likely because racism was still extremely prominent at the time feminism began emerging. It was not until Kimberlé Crenshaw introduced the term “intersectionality” in 1989 that feminism started to look at oppressed group’s needs (Nash, 2008, 2). Intersectionality is a way of thinking that acknowledges that when a person has identities that belong to more than one oppressed group, it impacts their quality of life more negatively. In this paper, I will argue that intersectionality is important in the discussion of feminist theories and activism because it ensures that feminism is for all women, not just a select group of them. Intersectionality has changed the way the feminist movement handles the overlapping of different identities, which has helped feminist theorists understand the experiences of women of colour much more clearly. While intersectionality has a very important role in the conversation and practice of feminism, there are certainly critiques of the concept that should be brought up. These critiques, however, can offer a way to improve the study of intersectionality.

Looking back with a historical lens, it’s evident that the fight for women’s rights has progressed in a step wise process. The nineteenth amendment opened a new door of opportunities for women to take advantage of. In modern times, the continued push for equal rights is evident through the fight for reproductive rights and equal pay. Even with the right to vote, women are still being under represented and out of control when it comes to their reproductive rights and in the workplace. Opposing beliefs regarding feminism have prevented the progression of more gender equality in the United States. What originally started as a plea for a political voice helped to shape the history of the nation. Women’s suffrage paved the way for countless groups and further feminist

Before the introduction of modern birth control, gender roles emphasized the responsibility of women to conceive and raise children. Although this began to change in the in the mid-twentieth century, with the introduction of the first hormonal birth control pill, Enovid, taking place in 1960, it was not readily accessible during that time period (Buttar and Seward, 2009, p. 1-3). This did not change during the time period immediately following the introduction either; five years after the introduction of Enovid, there was still controversy surrounding the use of contraceptives. In the Supreme Court case of Griswold v. Connecticut, the legality of birth control on the market was debated, and the case concluded with the allowance of hormonal contraceptives, but it was limited to married couples only under the right of marital privacy (George and Lewis, 2016, p. 1). The controversy and secrecy that surrounded the use of birth control shortly after its introduction indicates that although it was certainly present and used in society during this time period, it still carried the negative social connotations of the past, which prevented it from being socially normalized. In contrast, the standardization of birth control in society took place decades later, from approximately the 1990 to 2010s.

The rapid population growth during the Industrial age was not being checked. It was illegal to obtain any type of birth control or abortion. Throughout early history infanticide was a method of contraception as it was the only way to limit the amount of children to raise and keep the. Population from exploding. The great amount of women becoming pregnant of due to lack of birth control was staggering. Sadler worked tirelessly to bring the right for woman’s contraception. By 1913 women’s death from childbirth exceeded any other cause of death. Sadler stated, “America has a law since 1873 which prohibits by criminal statute the distribution and regulation of contraceptive measures. It follows, therefore, that America stands at the head of all nations in the huge number of abortions.”pgf.67. Sadler sought to have the development of a contraceptive pill. She had the assistance of Gregory Pincus who was willing to do the research to develop a pill, and Katherine McCormick who funded the scientific search for a pill. 1960 the first birth control was developed and approved by the FDC to be used as a means of contraction. Her life work was realized prior her death. This development changed the world of population growth and gave a woman a right to control her own desires for child birth or

Fight for Your Rights: Feminism Throughout the Decades Women have historically had a rocky relationship with governmental, cultural, religious, and social rights. The Women’s Rights movement has been in effect since approximately 1792, with the publication of the first feminist work, “A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, by British writer Mary Wollstonecraft” (“Women’s Rights Movement”). While social changes have occurred and more progressive laws have been put into place throughout the years, there is still not equality between the sexes. Additionally, gender roles in different countries differ greatly. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the major causes and concerns of the Women’s Rights movements throughout the decades, as well as denote the differences between more progressive societies and their less accepting counterparts.

In conclusion, women have made a critical improvement to the circumstances in their lives through feminism. Primarily, men used to run everything as they considered themselves superior to women, but through feminism movements, women have been able to acquire equal rights to men, and are still striving to acquire more rights that men take for granted. Feminism is a philosophy that has helped women to acquire equal rights in the society. In addition, feminism is gaining equal opportunities and rights for both men and women, and allowing women to have control of their lives, and the women have achieved this. Feminism had a huge impact on the lives and roles of women in the society. Many women got sick of the strict home life that had been implicated on them by men. They got tired of staying at home and taking care of the family and domestic chores as their only work and decided enough is enough, things had to change. Women wanted equality between men and women in addition to equal opportunities in education, and employment opportunities. Feminism has played a great role on the everyday role of women in the

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.

Adam Gronowski Mrs. Albanese Writing 3 20 November 2014 How Did the Women’s Suffrage Movement Change Societies View on Women? Introduction Societies view on women has changed drastically over the past few centuries. During the eighteenth century, women were looked down upon and were treated poorly and unfairly. They had far less rights than men did at the time. They could not vote, could not receive formal schooling and could not hold any political positions. Women were seen as pathetic humans who could not work laborious jobs and were only useful in the house. Slowly, times started to change for the better. Groups of women formed together and fought against the unfairness. These women fought for their rights and for the rights of all women in the country. Their goal was to change the way society treated them and perceived them. So I then wondered, How Did the Women’s Suffrage Movement Change Societies View on Women? Fighting for equal rights was a tough process that took many years, and over time women received the equal rights that they had longed for. Society now puts women on the same playing field as men and no longer does society treat women like second class citizens.

How Have Women’s Rights Improved Over the Last Century? 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.

One of the greatest devices in the emancipation of women was the birth control pill. It was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1960 and liberated women by allowing them to restrict, postpone, or block, pregnancy, and motherhood. According to our textbook. "Within five years of the pill's approval, some six million women were using it" (U.S. History 884). The fact that the birth control pill gave women options never available to them before made it an attractive choice. For the first time, they could choose to further their education or have a career. As a result, the staggering number of births also known as the Baby Boomer Generation ended in 1964.

History of Abortions Prior to 1973 and the legalization of medical professionals performing abortions, women had to fight for many reproductive rights, including birth control for all females, not just married couples. As far back as 1821, states follow

Since the mid-1800's, women in the United States and around the world have organized political movements to obtain the same social, economic, and political rights that men have traditionally enjoyed. These feminist movements have sought to change the laws to prevent discrimination against women and to provide them with equal opportunities in all aspects of life, including education, employment, and government representation.

How did the feminist movement address the issues surrounding women’s rights in terms of their bodies? Women were starting to make progression in equality in terms of jobs and pay but still lacked to reform on issues that surrounded women and control they lacked in society over their bodies. One of

For many years, women have aimed for gaining equality with men. They’re opportunities were taken away because of the fact that they were women. Overtime feminism has expanded and diversified in many different aspects including approach and priorities. The changes in them are result of many different social economic groups of women because of the various goals set for methods of creating change, which are implemented within the movement. The feminist movement has been trying to give equal rights to women who have been destitute of their equality and privileges that man have never given them. Feminism is beneficial to men, women, and their families because it is allowing everyone to have an equal opportunity in life to achieve all they can without any discrimination based on their sex.