Essay about The Issues Facing the Third Wave Feminism Movement

speaks exclusively about the different “waves” of feminism. The first and second wave are often coupled with the abolition of slavery and the civil rights movement respectively. This is so because many women were petitioning for these things and then realizing that they themselves do not have these simple freedoms. This thinking sparked the women’s movement. The first wave had one ultimate goal of attaining citizenship for women, most importantly the right to vote, which was achieved in August of 1920. The Second wave valued the equality of men and women. The Third wave was about bring feminism everywhere one went instead of mass movements. The fourth wave, which we are in right now, has become much more modernized with the creation of social media, which helps the word spread faster leading to change

- “The main issues we face today were prefaced by the work done by the previous waves of women. We are still working to vanquish the disparities in male and female pay and the reproductive rights of women. We are working to end violence against women in our nation as well as others. We are still fighting for acceptance and a true understanding of the term ‘feminism,’ it should be noted that we have made tremendous progress since the first

It began in the early 1990s and is continued to the present day. It is an "individual movement" in the sense that its purpose includes redefining what it is to be a feminist. It attempts to expand feminism to include women with a diverse set of identities, recognizing that women are of "many colors, ethnicities, nationalities, religions and cultural backgrounds". Rebecca Walker said the "Third Wave" is to highlight the focus on queer and non-white

However, during this wave the economic independence for women was also a central concern because at this time, American women could not own property. The second wave, also known as the liberation movement, was in the late 1960s to early 1970s. This is when the term “feminist” emerged. Many achievements were made during this wave such as the Equal Pay Act, the Women’s Educational Equity Act, and Title IX. This helped gain gender equality in universal sports, and on an economic and educational standpoint. Although this was a successful time period for women, some argue that the movement did not speak for women of minorities. The third wave is generally dated from 1980 to present time. Third wave feminists continue to fight for many legal and institutional advances that second wave feminists aimed for. While second wave feminists commonly consisted of upper-class, heterosexual white women, the third wave feminists are more diverse (Healey 2003).

In the late 19th and early 20th century, the early feminists’ focal concern was women’s suffrage. During this time, most women in the United States did not have many economic and political rights. Back then priorities of women were to take care of their homes, families, and husbands. These earlier feminists, also known as the first wave feminists, simply wanted a voice and this led to the women’s suffrage movement. By 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment finally passed and gave women the right to vote (Kotef). This successful movement influenced women everywhere in the world and continued to powerfully inspire women throughout the 20th century (Kotef). By the latter half of the century, the second wave of feminism arose. It included the voice of African-American women because this wave occurred during the civil rights movement. Second wave feminism also included important issues such as sexual and reproductive rights, legal abortions, birth control pills, and the passing of the Equal Pay Act (1963). All feminists live to create ideologies and movements that support the equality of women, but it is clear that second wave feminists were substantially different in their aims than earlier feminists (Gizberg). The goal of this paper is to analyze the main elements of second wave feminism and compare it to the works of earlier feminists. This will show the multifaceted development of second wave feminism.

Women now were educated, voting, and even aiding their states during war times. In the U.S. many activists were fighting for similar issues addressed by the predecessors, however they were able to take things further, since there was a precedent. Instead of just gaining access to higher education, Second-Wavers were pushing for Women’s Studies classes and departments, and for prominent historical women to be included in academia. Women in the U.S. were also beginning the enduring battle of saving the environment. “Second-Wave feminists brought internal attention to the problems caused by violence against women and by poor environmental practices.”

“Today, the average full-time working woman earns just 77 cents for every dollar a man earns…in 2014, that’s an embarrassment. It is wrong” (Kessler). Nearly every American has heard this claim, or at the very least, others like it. So widespread is the sentiment, that even President Obama himself has repeated it. Many contemporaries point to the widespread availability and acceptance of facts such as these as one of the major accomplishments of modern feminism. However, within the apparent shining bastion of social justice lies a dark shadow; a truth that many would prefer go ignored. Third wave feminism, as a movement, in contrast to first and second wave feminism, is a failure because of its lack of a central, uniform, well defined platform, its inability to win popular support, and its focus on social aspects rather than legal or political ones.

Third wave feminists are somewhat different from first and second wave feminists, who were quite rigid in their beliefs about feminism and often alienated women who did not conform to their ideas. One major change is some third wavers enjoy dressing up with makeup and revealing clothing. Karaian & Mitchell (2010) state that The third wave says it is perfectly okay to wear high heels, lipstick and show off your body, if you choose to. This is in opposition to the second wave feminists who believed doing this would be bowing down to oppression. Feminists of today are less interested in rules and more focused on their own identities. These third wave feminists are now women of color, women with disabilities, obese women and trans women and they are complicating the idea of what femininity is They are pushing the envelope with what we perceive as the feminine body. In addition, Karaian & Mitchell report there is a This speaks to being more inclusive and open to a broader scope of “women”. As mentioned

Towards the end of the twentieth century, feminist women in America faced an underlying conflict to find their purpose and true meaning in life. “Is this all?” was often a question whose answer was sought after by numerous women reaching deeper into their minds and souls to find what was missing from their life. The ideal second-wave feminist was defined as a women who puts all of her time into cleaning her home, loving her husband, and caring for her children, but such a belief caused these women to not only lose their identity within her family but society as well. The emotions that feminist women were feeling at this time was the internal conflict that caused for social steps to be taken in hopes of

Some of the major issues that broadened the debate for the second wave femanism were sexuality, family, the workplace, social issues, and reproductive rights (Foster 72). The Third-Wave Feminism challenged the second wave 's "essentialist" definitions of femininity, which was often seen as one universal female identity and over emphasized the experiences of upper middle class white women, and began to introduce women of color and other cultures in developing nations (Drake, Heywood 49). This wave is also resposible for reclaiming sexuality (Drake, Heywood 53) Both movements brought about major changes that affected women 's personal life at home, job opportunities, and culture changes, causing us to changed the way we talk and think. As a result, most of today 's women now believe that their options are/should be as open as men’s. Although femanism was present in both decades, the issues women brought foward and how those issues effected them are different. Linda Hogan 's People of the Whale and Karen

“First wave” of feminism in 1920 advocated women’s suffrage, whereas the “Second wave” targets the societal issues that women in the 21st century are facing. Betty Friedan wrote The Feminists Mystique after World War II exposing female repression and later founded the National Organization for Women (NOW) which ignited the second wave of the feminist movement. Consequently, it became noticeable that women were in multiple wars, as a result branches of feminists were formed (i.e. Liberalist, Marxist, and Socialist). Misogyny’s evolution has its own significant role in the feminist movement, stirring conversations today that affect feminist ideologies. However, in order to fully comprehend what affects second wave feminism along with the tactics utilized by feminists, one must first become acquainted with the many forms.

Feminists from this wave pushed for reforms that created equal opportunity, as well as legislation protecting women against sexual harassment, and more awareness in society about the ever-so present gender discrimination. In the third wave of feminism, there was a discord of sorts with the previous waves that focused primarily on white middle class women as well as not focusing on the concerns that women of color, lesbians, and working class. The argument that the third wave had was aimed towards college students that believed in the fair treatment of women in all countries, not just America as well as other issues regarding the stance of the environment and the well-being of animal rights. I believe that feminism as an ideology is still needed in our society but not to an extent where it seems like its extreme feminism targeting men in specific

While the second wave seemed centered on the rights of upper middle class white women, the third wave embraced women of all races, classes, and cultures. Many more specialized types of feminism arose from this wave, such as ecofeminism, which combines environmentalism and feminism, and womanism, which is aimed toward the rights of women of color. While the third wave has ended, there are still many active feminist movements happening today.

Feminism has become the great issue in this modern era. The emerging of second wave feminism in the late 60s had bring a huge impact toward the position of women in the society. Women are free from the male values, while women have the equal rights in politic. Women also can quit from their domestic sphere. The movement of feminism still continues in the early 90s. The women’s movement experience a phase which the ideology of feminism had changed to be Third Wave Feminism. It is because the existence of poststructuralists, postmodern and postcolonial theories in that era. Third Wave Feminism focus on popular culture which has been construed as a form of post feminist backlash (Gillis and Munford ; p. 2 ,

When referring to the history of feminism in the manner of the first, second, or third wave, one is undermining the experiences that were ongoing during, in middle of, and before those waves that history defines. What ideologies of oppression were being spoken of to raise awareness and whose experience was being excluded/diminished? The articulation of feminism in using the metaphor of waves to describe how the ideologies peaked and rescinded, is incorrect because it focuses only on the voices of those who were able to bring their problems to the surface and excludes those who had a different experience or may have brought awareness in a quieter manner. There are many feminisms and each interpretation is defined by the collective oppression, rather than looking at the situation in an individual perception, which is what creates disagreements and division between feminists. Many definitions of feminism, feminisms, exist simultaneously because it is evolving as fast (or, well, as slow) as the world is changing and if one group of people are to speak of others experience of oppression (or lack of) in place of them, the result can be the glossing over of experiences and therefore, undermine experiences of others.