During the 1960’s there was a lot of major events that happened in the United States. The 1960’s was known as a decade of “culture and change”, there were lots of political and cultural changes. (Anastakis, 22) One particular movement that was important to society and the country was the Women’s Movement also called the “Feminism Movement”. The first women movement which happened a few decades before focused on gender equality and overcoming different legal problems. The 1960’s women’s movement focused more on different issues such as family, sexuality, workplace issues, and also rights of reproductively. (MacLean, 45) I chose to cover this topic because women have always been influential throughout history, and I being a woman it is important to know about our rights and who paved the way for us. Women in the sixties were very limited on what they did. A woman was expected to marry in her twenties, and then start a family with her husband. A woman’s main duty was to raise her children, and focus on the home. Author Stephanie Coontz states in her book about sixties women, “The women is not to expect a whole lot out of life. She is someone’s keeper she is her husband and her children’s keeper.” (Coontz, 42) Back in those days, the husband was the head of the household; he made all of the decisions. If there was a divorce to take place the wife would end up with nothing, all the husband’s earnings and property belonged to the husband. Even though, most women in the sixties were housewives there was a small percent of women who actually worked. Statistics shows that thirty eight percent of women worked jobs such as nursing, teaching, or being a secretary. (Bureau Statistics, 1960-1961) In this era, women were only allowed thes... ... middle of paper ... ... Zucker, A. N. and Ostrove, J. M. (1998), Political Participation and Feminist Consciousness Among Women Activists of the 1960s. Political Psychology, 19: 349–371. doi: 10.1111/0162-895X.00108 Collins, Gail. When Everything Changed: The Amazing Journey of American Women from 1960 to the Present. New York: Little, Brown & Company, 2009. Coontz, Stephanie. A Strange Stirring: The Feminine Mystique and American Women at the Dawn of the 1960s. New York: Basic Books, 2011. 42. Friedan, Betty. Life So Far: A Memoir. New York: Touchstone, 2000. 375. MacLean, Nancy. The American Women's Movement, 1945–2000: A Brief History with Documents (2008) Rosen, Ruth. The World Split Open: How the Modern Women's Movement Changed America. New York: Viking Penguin, 2000. 196. Schlafly, Phyllis. "'Equal rights' for women: wrong then, wrong now." Los Angeles Times, 8 April 2007.
Schlafly, Phyllis. “‘Equal rights’ for women: wrong then, wrong now.” Los Angeles Times, April 8, 2007. http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-op-schafly8apr08,0,6143259.story.
Kim E Nielsen. "Book Review of Belle Moskowitz: Feminine Politics and the Exercise of Power in the Age of Alfred E. Smith, and: No Place for a Woman: A Life of Senator Margaret Chase Smith, and: Barbara Jordan: American Hero." Feminist Formations, Fall 2001, 205.
Salisbury, Joyce E. and Andrew E Kersten. “Women in the United States, 1960–1990.” Daily Life through History.ABC-CLIO, 2014. Web. 19 Jan. 2014.
Like stated earlier, gender roles in the 50’s were very strict and narrow-minded. That being said, women were extremely limited in their role in society. First of all, women were expected to be homemakers. By homemaker, I mean the women w...
In conclusion, the Women’s Right Movement was a success event in the American history. The changes of the r
But when the “Women’s Movement,” is referred to, one would most likely think about the strides taken during the 1960’s for equal treatment of women. The sixties started off with a bang for women, as the Food and Drug Administration approved birth control pills, President John F. Kennedy established the President's Commission on the Status of Women and appointed Eleanor Roosevelt as chairwoman, and Betty Friedan published her famous and groundbreaking book, “The Feminine Mystique” (Imbornoni). The Women’s Movement of the 1960’s was a ground-breaking part of American history because along with African-Americans another minority group stood up for equality, women were finished with being complacent, and it changed women’s lives today.
The Women’s Movement was not just about women, but society as a whole. There have been a lot of changes to society over the past few years. Social roles, the media, and the right of women’s choice have impacted both women and society. For starters, social roles were impacted. Women were able to become professional tennis players, lawyers, and doctors and along with these powerful roles, the battle of the sexes has spilled over into homes.
“When the 1960s came along with it, the thought that women could have a say in their government, that they could perhaps leave the home without feeling guilty about leaving their children alone, and that they could receive a job and earn wages
"Rediscovering American Women: A Chronology Highlighting Women's History in the United States." Issues in Feminism. Ed. Sheila Ruth. Mountain View: Mayfield Publishing Company, 1998. 494-509.
Hymowitz, Carol, and Michaele Weissman. A History of Women in America. New York: Bantam, 1978. Print.
In 1966 the world of an American woman was limited in almost every aspect, from her workplace, to even her family life. Women were to follow
The late 1970’s marked major transitions for American culture and world culture alike. The wildly brazen Punk music, that defined the decade, was moving out and the famed Rock ‘n’ Roll of the 80’s was getting its launch. Jimmy Carter, and his less than notable presidency, would guide the country through it. More importantly, the United States was in the midst of the second wave of feminism. The second wave extended from the original struggle for suffrage. It broadened the fight, questioning sexuality, gender roles, reproductive rights, rights in the workplace, and the women’s place in the family. Women were also beginning to appear in a plethora of previously male dominated fields. From politics to authorship, women were breaking boundaries
American society had a significant impact on the construction of women’s identities during this time period (Holt 1). However, the image and role of women were changing slowly. In the Sixties, people were trying to fight for their right and speak out for what is right and wrong to the world. The American Sixties was a year of change for the United States.
Locke, Jillian L. "Feminism (Second-Wave)." Encyclopedia of U.S. Political History. Ed. Thomas S. Langston. Vol. 6: Postwar Consensus to Social Unrest, 1946 to 1975. Washington, DC: CQ Press, 2010. 170-174. Gale Virtual Library
In the 1960’s women were still seen as trophies and were beginning to be accepted into the work industry. They were still homemakers, raised the family, and made sure their husbands were happy. That was the social norms for women during that time period. They were not held to high work expectations like men were. But something amazing happened that would change women 's lives for centuries; it was the 1970’s. The 60’s put the equality movement in motion but 70’s was a time of reform where women were finally able to control their own paths. Not only was the 70’s a historical marker for the fiftieth anniversary for women suffrage, it was also a marker for the drastic change of different social norms, the changes of the American Dream, and the