The Feminist Movement: From Past Struggles to Present Day Challenges

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THE FEMINIST MOVEMENT
ESSAY
STUDENT NAME:
11/30/2018

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INTRODUCTION:
This essay aims to describe about the feminist movement from its struggle in the past
centuries to till now. The meaning of feminism and stages of the movement and its
achievement in every era has been discussed in this essay. Feminism movement has four
different stages also termed as ‘wave’. Feminism simply means equality for men and women
in every field and hence no discrimination in between the genders. Post feminism movement
is discussed and it is compared with anti-feminism. This essay also focused on the present
day problems of women and why feminism is still important to accomplish.
MAIN BODY:
Centuries ago, women had specific roles, to be perfect and sit back home defining beauty and
always working inside the home. Women were always considered inferior to men and hence
were not allowed or had any rights in the 19th century (White). If we fast forward to the
present day, feminism is still a movement with no end. Many believe that women have
already attained the goals or rights but in few countries fight is still on for the female equality
in the nation and those people who believe in this they are still unaware of the fact what
feminism really mean and why it started in the first place.
The term feminism has described as political, cultural or economical movement that aimed
establishment of equal rights and legal protection for women. Feminism also involves
political, sociological and philosophical issues concerned with gender discrimination
(O'Neill). The history of feminism was a struggle in 1848 and it is continuing. This
movement is the longest movement considered according to the feminists. The feminist
movement in present day life is on the fourth wave.
The women’s movement was first held in Seneca Falls, America, in 1848. This phase of
movement was also termed as first wave feminism. This movement was started by Elizabeth
Cady Stanton with Lucretia Mott and they started with the aim of anti-slavery convention but
then they saw the difference between how a man and woman is treated and hence the feminist
movement took place (Wellman). This convention was attended by approximately around
three hundred people as it was not advertised at that time period and at that convention they
made people sign ‘declaration of sentiment’. This convention included basic control of lives,
abolishment of slavery and right to retain property for females. After the first convention

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later, another convention was organized in Rochester, New York which is also known as
Rochester Women’s Rights Convention and then further following all this convention one by
one other conventions were organized on regular basis from 1850 until the civil war started.
These conventions lead to declaration of right to vote for women. At the end of 19th century
the women won few rights such as share of the property or custody of the child and full
voting rights in few areas (Rosen).
The second wave feminism movement began in the early 1960s. This movement included the
rights of women in birth control, anti-sex discrimination laws and the Roe v. Wade act. In
this phase of feminist movement the equal pay right for women was amended and then the
civil rights which banned sex discrimination in employment. In 1965, birth control for
married couples was legalized and later in 1972, the Supreme Court stated the law that
unmarried people had the right of birth control as married couple have and the no-fault
divorce was legalized (Solinger). In 1971, the Reed v. Reed was applied for the first time, this
law stated the equal protection clause which stroke down a law which discriminated women.
Later 1973, the Roe v. Wade happened which legalized abortion. Also, many other laws were
enacted like in 1974, sex discrimination was legalized in house that is also known as Fair
Housing Act and in 1978, the prohibition of sex discrimination on the basis of pregnancy also
known as Pregnancy Discrimination Act. The major disappointment of this phase was the
Comprehensive Child Development Bill, 1972 was not amended and United State faced a
major loss due to this because this bill was a multibillion dollar national day care system
which focused on the middle class women and would give support as women to the economy.
Another disappointment of the second wave feminist movement was the failure of the Equal
Rights Amendment but some convention was a success in this era such as elimination of
every kind of discrimination against women (Gilmore).
Third wave feminism began in early 1990s. This phase of the feminism saw gender wage
gap, reproductive rights and sexual discrimination which continued with the second wave
feminism era, and the white patriarchy (Snyder). As feminism was started in the white
country and it was spreading fast enough worldwide, women got the knowledge of the white
patriarchy system continuing from a decade and no women ever raised voice against this
social system. Patriarchy is basically a system where males hold power and are dominating in
the roles of political leadership, social privileges, moral authority and control over the
inherited property (Hunnicutt). Hence, this era of feminism focused on the female supremacy
and to lose the power of patriarchy in the white countries especially. This era also focused on