II. WOMEN’S RIGHTS

BACKGROUND

Early Women’s Rights Movement

• Began in late 1800s– Fight for right to• Vote• Obtain equality in education and jobs

• Term “feminism” first used in 1895 to describe economic, political, and social equality of men and women

• Feminists are those who believe in this and their actions to bring it about

• Stereotype of women married, at home, and raising children prevailed through the 1950s– Was not always an accurate reflection

• Many women had worked out of necessity during WWII and continued to work after the war

• By 1965 38% of women worked outside the home

Role of Education• The number of women receiving higher education

degrees nearly doubled between 1950 and 1970– Wanted to put their education to work

• Faced discrimination in job hunting– Employers concerned women would quit job to have

children– Employers felt a woman’s only role should be at home

• Women who did find work were often underemployed– Working a job that requires skills below ability– Women earned approximately 57 cents for every dollar

earned by a man in an identical job by 1973

Impact of the Civil Rights Movement

• Provided women inspiration and served as a model for how to achieve equality– Women working during the Civil Rights Movement

gained skills that they could transfer to the Women’s Movement

• Civil Rights Act of 1964– Included terminology to prohibit discrimination based on

gender• Initially included to prevent the bill from being passed

WOMEN ORGANIZE

The Feminine Mystique

• During the Civil Rights Movement women began to meet to discuss how they could play a larger role in the movement

• Betty Friedan’s 1963 book called The Feminine Mystique shocked the nation and mobilized many suburban women into action– Written to subordinate middle class women who society

deemed had everything but felt unhappy– Encouraged women to ask “is this all?” and to recognize

that they could have more if they wanted it

NOW

• 1966 group of 28 business women, including Friedan, established the group the National Organization for Women (NOW)

• Goal was to “take action to bring women into full participation in mainstream American society”

• Demands of NOW– Fair pay– Equal job opportunities– Attacked marketing

campaigns they considered portrayed a false image of women

– Balanced marriage where parenting and household chores were shared

• After four years the organization had over 15,000 members

Response to NOW• Some women felt it was too extreme• Others believed it only favored white, middle class

women• Still others considered the organization too soft in

its actions

Impact of Feminism• Opened availability of knowledge to women– Our Bodies, Ourselves• Handbook for women’s health issues sold 200,000 in first year

of publication• 12th edition published in 2005 and has sold over 3 million

copies• Today has expanded to work with women in third world

countries to bring about health care change

– Ms. Magazine• Founded by Gloria Steinem• First issue in 1972 sold out in eight days• Sharp contrast to traditional women’s magazines such as Good

Housekeeping and Ladies’ Home Journal

Political Changes• 1972 Higher Education Act– Included a prohibition against admissions discrimination based

on gender• Assisted women in gaining admission to military academies and

increased the number of women entering jobs in the fields of business, law and medicine

• National Women’s Political Caucus– Formed to expand women’s participation in politics– Helped Shirley Chisholm

• The first African American women elected to Congress • Ran for Democratic presidential nomination in 1972

– Paved the way for Geraldine Ferraro to be selected as Democratic presidential candidate Walter Mondale’s running mate in 1984

Radical Feminists

• Promoted stronger goals for the Women’s Movement including– End of what they viewed as

male domination– Rejection of• Men• Marriage• Childbearing

Roe v. Wade

• Abortion was a divisive issue among NOW members• 1973 Supreme Court ruled– Abortion was legal based on the constitutional right to

privacy– Struck down state laws banning abortion in the first

three months of pregnancy• Allowed states to regulate abortion after three months

– Most controversial Supreme Court ruling to date

Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)

• First written by Alice Paul in 1923• Would make discrimination based on gender illegal• In 1972 it passed both the House and Senate but

was only ratified by 35 (out of the 38 necessary) states

• 1982 deadline to ratify the ERA initially ended it– However in 2009 Carolyn Maloney (Democratic

Representative from New York) reintroduced the amendment

Opposition to the Women’s Movement• Phyllis Schlafly led the opposition movement to

the passage of the ERA– Felt it eliminate women’s right to • Alimony• Exemption from military service• Women’s only colleges and universities

• Some women felt that – The Women’s Movement undervalued their role as

homemakers– NOW assumed that all women were unhappy in

traditional roles