Ding! That’s the sound of the oven going off, signaling that the cookies are done. Wait, where is the oven mitt? Oh NO! The cookies, they’re burning, hurry! Hurry! OOPS, too late. One cannot simply be a female and let cookies burn, can she? Yes, she can. Throughout history women have been oppressed and confined to the kitchen and the house. Women who sought to get rights were seen as radicals and sometimes even blacklisted from their jobs for protesting. Since ancient times, women had served as the caretakers of the home, children, and husband, getting nothing in return. Society had made it an expectation that women had to be married at a certain age and at times, not even finish their education. It was frowned upon if a woman wished to do more, such as get a job, or not get married at all. During the late 1800s to the 1900s women’s rights activists such as Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, to name a few, had stepped up and fought for women’s rights to vote and be heard as a valid voice. This had been the first step towards feminism and equality. After women were given the right to vote, there was given the issue of whether women should have a place in everyday society. They were …show more content…
continued to be conveyed as weak and frail and dependent of men. Betty Friedan was a feminist and social justice leader who believed that women could do more and be more. She gave speeches and wrote books, telling women all around to step up and strive for more. She faced obstacles, wrote the famous book The Feminine Mystique, created organizations, and got involved in events to make convince women that the home isn’t the only thing in their line of sight. Opposers were against her actions, accusing her of attacking the average middle class housewife, while her only desire was to pave women a path for their greatness to shine. Her actions and determination brought on second-wave feminism and encouraged women to not be afraid to do more with their lives. Many social justice leaders have their own holidays to celebrate their dedication to their goals. Betty Friedan should be considered a hero and she should also have her own appointed holiday for all she’s done to give women of the 20th century a beacon of hope. Betty Friedan faced many obstacles throughout her journey to bring on a second wave feminism. She prevailed through all of the hardships and persevered to help women who were stuck emotionally and physically. Betty Friedan’s mom had been a mediocre housewife when Betty was raised. Sher mother had wanted to get a job and be more than just the cook and mom, she wanted a life of her own in addition to those obvious titles. Betty Friedan’s mother did not have the chance to show Betty that life could be more, but she urged her on, telling her to strive for more when her time came. Betty used this motivation from her mother and started her campaign for more social acceptance of women in the nation. Seeing her mom as an example, Betty worked hard as a freelance writer, but unfortunately this had to end. When her second child was born, Betty’s boos refused her maternity leave, giving her an ultimatum, child or job. Betty chose her child, obviously, but this caused her a lot of discomfort. It wasn’t her child’s fault, but it was the fact that she was stuck at home, not doing anything outside of those premises. She had been denied maternity leave and was forced to become a housewife, writing journals, books, and speeches at home. Betty Friedan was determined to make this right and she wrote The Feminine Mystique, a book that dealt with the issue of women failing to reach beyond just being a housewife. The book covers the topics of how second-wave feminism was a way to continue the work of the women’s rights movement and make it bigger and closer to “home”. In the book it states, “If I am right, the problem that has no name stirring in the minds of so many American women is not a matter of loss of femininity or too much education, or the demands of domesticity. It is far more important than anyone recognizes…We can no longer ignore that voice within women that says: ‘I want something more than my husband and my children and my home’”. Betty Friedan faced many hardships and had to endure setbacks throughout her life, but nothing stopped her from showing that women were meant for more. She knew that her life as a housewife was not fulfilling her dreams and expectations, so she persuaded other women who were in her position to ask themselves if they were content with the lives they lead. Betty Friedan faced obstacles and still managed to change the lives of many middle class women that were unhappy. In addition, Betty Friedan was a great social justice leader because she held a large role in the upbringing of essential organizations and events. She founded the National Organization for Women in 1966, which was an organization that discussed the current events such as the Equal Rights Movement, political and employment equality, and abortion rights. Their first convention was about abortion rights and the controversy of the topic. An online non-profit education platform, Learning to Give, states that “In 1966, she helped found the National Organization for Women (NOW) and served as the first president. Friedan wrote NOW's founding statement demanding full equality for women in American life and led the organization to support the Equal Rights Amendment for women and legalized abortion”. This action is a key event in allowing women to have a choice in abortion. The National Abortion Rights Action League was founded by Betty Friedan and Bernard Nathansen in order to continue the movement for pro-choice for women. The site of the non-profit organization, NARAL Pro-Choice America, quotes “On January 22, 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court hands down the landmark Roe v. Wade decision recognizing that the constitutional right to privacy encompasses a woman’s right to choose abortion.” At the time, abortion was not chosen by women, and women had close to no power in general while dealing with the idea of a future child. Betty Friedan saw that a woman can’t choose how to live her life if she can’t even choose what to do with her body. As a result, she teamed up with OBGYN Bernard Nathansen and protested to legalize abortion in the first step for equality. Betty Friedan also participated in a strike for women’s equality for the fiftieth anniversary of the 19th amendment, or the year women got the right to vote. The Jewish Women’s Archives newspaper states “Ten thousand women marched down New York's Fifth Avenue on August 26, 1970…Far from a simple celebration, the march was part of a "Women's Strike for Equality" organized by veteran feminist leader Betty Friedan.” A large number of women marched with Betty Friedan to fight for the rights that should have been given to them five decades ago. Betty Friedan was the one who led the women in this strike. She had courage and knew that there were still rights being denied. After a while, more people joined the march and up to fifty thousand people were marching for this great cause. Betty Friedan founded organizations and protested for women’s rights. She was a hero and deserves her own holiday for all that she’s done. Admittedly, many people were also against Friedan’s beliefs and though that she was attacking middle class house wives and calling them useless. They believed that Betty was calling them out and questioning their usefulness. Some people believed that she was too focused on making women get out of the house than asking what the women wanted themselves. Sylvia Fleis Fava, a writer for The American Sociological Review, for example stated “These changes in attitude would culminate in a ‘new life plan.’ This neglects the fact that the changed attitudes and plans must be acted upon in the context of the total society. The woman who develops the new life plan will find few institutionalized channels by which it can be put into effect.” Sylvia and other people with s similar viewpoint to hers decided that Betty was attempting to alienate the population of women who chose from their own will to be housewives. However, Betty Friedan’s goals were not to isolate and judge the housewives. It was just to give the unhappy ones a content future. She wanted to motivate the women who felt that they needed to do more with their lives. A lot of the women Betty interviewed and met with displayed dismal reactions when asked about their occupations. In The Feminine Mystique, there were quotes from many women about how suffocated they felt. In the text it states, “A twenty-three year old mother in blue jeans said: ‘I asked myself why I was so dissatisfied…it’s as if ever since you were a little girl, there’s always been somebody or something that will take care of your life: your parents, or college, or falling in love, or having a child, or moving to a new house. Then you wake up one morning and there’s nothing to look forward to.’” This woman displayed obvious discomfort about being a housewife. She felt as if there was more she could be. She wanted to be herself and she couldn’t do that when she was confined to her home and job as the housewife. Another women stated, “The problem is always being the children’s mommy, or the minister’s wife and never being myself.” Betty Friedan worked hard to make women like her motivate themselves. She improved the lives of many because she related to them and her mother was a prime example also. She did not only focus on women. Through her research showed that mean were unhappy, too. In 1957, for the 15th reunion of her graduating class at Smith, Betty Friedan was asked to survey her classmates on how they'd used their education. She found that 89% were not using their education. Most were unhappy in their roles. Betty Friedan analyzed the results and consulted experts. She found that both women and men were trapped in limiting roles. Betty Friedan focused on the improvement of women and men that were trapped in their roles and did all she could to reach her goals, thus disproving the claim that she was targeting housewives and judging them if they did not choose the career path. Women, men, minorities, everyone has been judged and confined at least once on their life.
History has taught us that human nature is about judgement and ignorance. Betty Friedan is one influential person that has left a lasting legacy due to the second-wave feminism she introduced. Thanks to her, women had the courage to say “Yes, I can” and choose to follow their dreams without the pressure. Society had forced women to be limited in their options, but Betty Friedan took the challenge and broke society for a time being to make a path for women and their journey’s. She was very legendary and had many influences on how modern day women live. She is a hero and deserves a holiday for all her hard work and dedication to make the world a better place for women’s
acceptance.
Through the 20th century, the communist movement advocated greatly for women's’ rights. Despite this, women still struggled for equality.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Judy Seyfers Brady use a variety of rhetorical devices to sway their audiences. Each woman has a distinct style‒ Brady is satirical and frequently uses hyperbole in I Want a Wife, while Stanton is more formal and employs the ethos of the American Revolution in The Declaration of Sentiments. Overall, their pieces attack men by stating the offenses that men have committed, and declare their opposition to the offenses. They also highlight the oppression and the burden that men place on them and call for greater equality.
Nothing simply begins. Everything needs something else in order to develop and live continuously. Fire needs wood to burn, water needs heat to boil, and the women’s right movement needed abolition to begin the real fight. The women’s rights movement of the nineteenth century emerged out of abolition activism because it was not until after abolitionist groups formed and began fighting slavery that women began to realize they had no rights themselves and began their own fight.
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 entitlement of women have become more prevalent. “The general consensus at the time was that men were more capable of dealing with the competitive work world they now found themselves thrust into. Women, it was assumed, were unable to handle the pressures outside of the home. They couldn’t vote, were discourages from working, and were excluded from politics. Their duty to society was raising moral children, passing on the values that were unjustly thrust upon them as society began to modernize” (America’s Job Exchange, 2013). Although there have been many improvements in the changes of women’s equality towards the lives of women’s freedom and rights in society, some liberals believe that women have a journey to go before they receive total equality. After WWII, women continued to progress in there crusade towards receiving equality in many areas such as pay and education, discrimination in employment, reproductive rights and later was followed by not only white women but women from other nationalities ...
Throughout history women have suffered from inequalities that differentiate from men, including the right to vote among many others. When New Zealand granted women the right to vote it empowered women from other countries to fight for the vote, where Europe and the Unites States then fought for women’s rights changing them forever. Many suffrage groups were formed, throughout the U.S and Europe, to fight for women’s rights. Two major events, Seneca Falls, and a parade led by Alice Paul, created a turning point for women’s rights.
...s" and not to discriminate on the basis and premise of sex. Even though few women benefitted from the scheme, Justice Stewart noted that "veteran's status's not uniquely male." Furthermore, the law placed many men who were not veterans at a disadvantage as well.
The passage of time allows for great change in the world. Given enough time, a desert can become a sea and a plain can become a mountain if the conditions are right. Human society can be compared to these natural phenomenon in the idea that society can have radical changes given the right forces and allowed enough time. This can be seen in the great revolutions of the world such as the Industrial Revolution, an economic boom, the American Revolution, a political movement, and the Civil Rights Movement, a social revolution. The focus of this research is how the feminist movement has been and is viewed but the American public and how it has affected the economic and social standing of women in the past three generations. Through the interviews of Patricia Santangelo, Barbara Santangelo, and Larissa DePamphilis, this investigation hopes to analysis the differing views on feminism, gender roles, and educational and economic opportunities for women in the generations of the Baby Boomers, Generation X, and Generation Y.
Discrimination based on gender or sex is a common civil rights violation. Discrimination continues to exist in all forms, despite the efforts to eliminate it. Skin color, religion, and sex are the central components of discrimination in the world. One specific area that has shown great improvements over time is gender equality. Throughout world history, women have been viewed as inferior to men. In the United States, women were not allowed to join the military or vote. The United States has made great strides in providing equal opportunity to all genders. In spite of the several laws and acts congress has passed, women are still viewed as subordinate people. Judith Lorber, Shari Dworkin, Bianca Grohmann, as well as Christopher Greenwell and
In a society where equality is constantly fought over, there are bound to be disputes. Feminism, the movement to create empowerment and equal rights for women, has been criticized by those who argue who, what, and how feminism should be fought with. Many conservative feminists believe that succumbing to men’s pleasure is never the answer, whereas “lipstick” feminists believe that they should be able to use all of their essence in order to establish equality. However, society needs both women and men equally. Feminism shouldn’t focus on how women reach that equality, but rather to reach that point of equality in the first place; with anything they got.
Since the nineteen hundredths women in America have been fighting for equality within the workplace. Popular belief would make you believe that today woman are equal to men in every aspect in the workplace. Although, this concept should be true in a lot of the cases it is not. This project assignment will reveal how even today woman are still fighting for equality and how gender roles still play an important part within the workplace.
The United States government should pass an Equal Rights Amendment to guarantee equality for both men and women.
What would you have done if an important woman in your life couldn't have her voice be heard? Would you help fight for her rights? Would you be okay that her voice wasn't heard, and continued on with your life? Would you be against her having any rights that you would try to maintain the imbalance in society instead? Women in the 1840s had no rights. They could not vote, own property, receive an education or participate in any professions such as a doctor, lawyer, or politician. It was time that they finally took a stand when in 1848 Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott organized the first national women's rights convention in Seneca Falls, New York. It would take about 72 years for the United States to
Women have fought through torture, blood, sweat, and tears to help women stand strong in our
The noun " feminism " is derived from the French in the 19th century . It refers to the campaign at first but now women have been endowed with greater meaning when it is used extensively in many places. Feminism was born because there are those who feel that women have been oppressed by injustice exists between man and woman . Oppression of women is a human act under social institution and it is not biologkal . Thus, the women themselves able to change this situation .
In an advertisement published in Vogue Paris in February 2009, Steven Klein photographs fashion model Lara Stone in a manner that brought much controversy to the world about women and violence. In the photograph, a fashionably clad woman in lingerie is forcibly held down by a naked man, while a police officer poses suggestively on her legs and points a gun in her face. This advertisement seems excessively violent for a fashion magazine that young girls and the majority of the mainstream world idolize. By condoning and making the type of violence that is popular in fashion magazines ‘cool’, people begin to recreate the scenes in these photographs in real life because they are constantly exposed to it. Furthermore, this constant exposure to violence