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Racial Inequality In The Feminist Movement

Decent Essays

Before this class, I was aware of feminism but also uncertain on the meaning. I knew gender inequality existed throughout history and currently. Growing up in the rural Midwest, feminism was not perceived as a positive movement. Little was taught or said about feminism in any primary education. We learned about women’s suffrage and that was it. After, taking this class, I understand that feminism is so much more than woman’s suffrage in the early 1900s. Feminism was coined in the early 20th century. It is a women’s movement with the focus of gender relationships. There has been many different waves of feminism in the United States throughout history. Liberal, Radical, Marxist and Cultural Feminism are just a few examples. Within the different waves of feminism, there has also been racial inequality. This class brought to light the racial inequality within the feminism movements. In the suffrage movement, the main contributors were wealthy white women. An example of this exclusion is the lower class immigrant women who were concerned with making a living in better working conditions than voting. The trend continued to the second-wave feminism, where white-suburban housewives were the focus of the movement. Black and Chicana women’s issues were consistently ignored during this wave. This is an important aspect of feminism because it shows that there is room for growth in the current feminism wave. Feminism should not be based on race. Throughout the waves of feminism

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