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Evolving Activisms and The Birth of Feminism - Coggle Diagram
Evolving Activisms and The Birth of Feminism
Following the end of World War Two, birth rates rose due to the general strength of the post-war economy, giving family units a sense of encouragement for their ability to raise a family
Rising birth rates of the 40s and 50s revitalized feminine ideals based in domesticity
the suburban housewife and role of the mother in the home was further perpetuated by politicians in attempts to contrast American way of life against lifestyles featured in communism
Black feminism was largely characterized by Black women's critiques of sexism in the Black Power movement
Chicana feminism was largely characterized by Chicana women opting in to working as a means to increase their visibility and organizing unions to protect themselves and their livelihood
Chicana women advocated as well for legal abortions, birth control, greater accessibility to health care, and ends to machismo culture and segregation in education
the illegality of abortions only forced women to seek out expensive, inconsistent, and unsafe forms of abortion
media and newspaper played significant roles in glorifying as well as subverting feminine ideals of domesticity
postwar discourse gave women opportunities to contrast their individual identities with perpetuated ideals of domesticity
the emergence of the feminine mystique as an established, recognizable phenomena became a repressive image of limiting women to the household
mass circulated magazines offered women opportunities to share their stories of achievement... typically included themes of success in public life
stories of success were contrast with rhetoric that suggested these stories were atypical instances of feminine achievement
many of women's stories included in media and magazines did not challenge traditional gender norms
gay women's literature provided a certain level of representation however, the execution of this representation exploited gay women's relationships as a means to target heterosexual audiences
continuing into the 60s it became well apparent that the lack of women's shelters, the illegality of abortions, gendered workplaces as well as unequal pay, a general prominent existence of sexism in the American climate, lack of women's studies courses, and lack of women's access to higher education prompted a significant surge of feminist activity
some historians have viewed feminism in waves as a means to understand feminism in the United States, however this lens of understanding feminism suggests that feminist activity halts in between waves, erasing/ignoring much of women's history
the term "first wave feminism" is commonly attributed with the suffrage movement, labor movement, and women's political and social activity in the early twentieth century
the term second wave feminism is commonly attributed with advocacy for Equal Rights Amendment, Shirley Chisholm's presidential campaign, the implementation of Title IX Education Amendment, and Roe v. Wade as a symbol for the fight for women's legal access to abortion
historians have referred to the birth of feminism as an official and known movement by the general American public starting in the 70s when women's rights activism groups and women's liberation groups started to collaborate together
before collaborating, women's rights activism groups were largely concerned with advocating for women in governmental offices
before collaborating, women's liberation groups were largely concerned with advocating for the anti Vietnam war movement and general civil rights for women... women's liberation groups were primarily younger women in educational spaces
the idea of feminisms suggests that there are a variety of approaches to advocating for women's well being... that there is not one way to advance women's status in the United States and that by being critical of past feminist movements it is possible to strengthen movements of the future
the idea of there being multiple approaches to advancing women's well being is best illuminated by the controversy of the Equal Rights Amendment... advocates for the Equal Rights Amendment suggested that by passing the ERA true equality of the sexes would be achieved, essentially destroying any way to legally differ women from men... however opponents of the ERA argued that the passing of the ERA would result in the destruction of the nuclear family and that inherent birth rates would be trades for privileges of autonomy and individuality
equal rights feminists and social justice feminists provided critical feedback for each other