Feminism & Gender Equality

hen, in the course of events, it becomes necessary for one portion of the family of man to assume among the people of the earth a position different from that which they have hitherto occupied, but one to which the laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes that impel them to such a course.

We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men and women are created equal. ..."

So begins the Declaration of Sentiments, written and adopted at the first Women's Rights Convention in the U.S., in Seneca Falls, New York, in July 1848. The Declaration modeled after the Declaration of Independence, demanded "all the rights and privileges which belong to [women] as citizens of these United States." To those who read this remarkable document--and it would be widely published--it was clear what, above all, was being sought: the right to vote.

In the face of enormous resistance and ridicule, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, Lucy Stone and Sojourner Truth, among others, organized and energized the suffrage movement for the next forty years. Three generations of activists would labor before victory was won. The XIX Amendment, which prohibited any state or the federal government from denying any citizen the right to vote based on gender, would not become law until 1920.

The 72 years between the Seneca Falls convention and the ratification of the XIX Amendment testifies to the depth of commitment to the ideology of separate spheres in the U.S. (Remember, by comparison, the Abolitionists achieved their most immediate goal in about 30 years.) It is just the beginning of the story of feminism as a social movement in the U.S.

he "second wave" of feminism began with two important events in 1963. First, President Kennedy named Eleanor Roosevelt to chair the Commission on the Status of Women. The Commission issued a report concluding that women faced discrimination in all areas of American life. The second major event was the publication of Betty Friedan's book, The Feminine Mystique. Friedan's work documents the emotional and intellectual oppression experienced by middle class women. The book inspired millions of women to expand their expectations beyond the domestic sphere.

The 1964 Civil Rights Act, which did so much to end racial discrimination, also prohibited sexual discrimination. The Act established the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to investigate (but not enforce) complaints of unfair treatment. Within five years, the EEOC received more than 50,000 sex discrimination complaints.

It became clear to feminists that the EEOC was not inclined to vigorously pursue sex discrimination cases. As a result, Friedan and other activists decided a mass organization, like the NAACP, was needed to further women's rights. In 1966, they formed the National Organization for Women.

OW activists worked on a variety of issues, but three manifestations of patriarchy, in particular, became the focus of major organizing: financial liberation, reproductive rights and violence against women. The movement learned the lessons of the struggle for civil rights and employed a variety of tactics: consciousness-raising public actions, legal action, and lobbying.

In the 1970s, NOW mounted an important campaign for the Equal Rights Amendment. The proposal was first introduced in 1923 by Alice Paul, leader of the National Women's Party. Congress neglected to act on the idea, however, for nearly fifty years. Even sympathetic politicians felt the proposal was too controversial.

The ERA was a simple but profound demand: "Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States, or by any state, on account of sex." That such a straightforward idea should be seen as controversial suggests that the ideology of separate spheres was widespread. Legal equality was perceived as a threat because it challenged the very basis of patriarchy.

Opponents of the ERA argued that passage would destroy American society. The ERA was not about legal rights, opponents said, but an attack on heterosexuality, the family, and the sanctity of marriage. (It seems that the "family values" argument has been around American politics for a very long time.)

Because women were under-represented in state legislatures—then, as today—the fate of the amendment was in the hands of men. By 1982, the deadline for ratification, 35 states had approved it. Three more were needed to make the ERA into law. Although more than 75% of the female legislators in these three key states voted in favor, only 46% of the male legislators did so. The amendment failed to secure approval in three-quarters of the states, as required by the Constitution.

Public opinion remains in favor of an equal rights amendment. Yet, Congress has failed to take up the issue since. The political forces that defeated the ERA in the 70s remain mobilized. One can imagine a similar "family values" argument against equality being made by conservatives today.

Perhaps such an amendment will have to wait until women are equally represented in elected office at all levels. In our fourth investigation, we will examine the gender distribution of the House from the 20s to the present. With this data, we predict when the Congress might be gender balanced.

o investigate the progress of the critique of patriarchy, we are going to explore contemporary developments on five issues. In order to examine the contentious nature of feminism in contemporary society, groups will engage in a debate on the issues. Groups will be paired, with one gathering information in favor of the contribution of feminism, and one gathering information in opposition.

Directions
First, each group should develop a plan to address the following question: What has been the impact of the feminism with regard to this issue? Your group might argue that the impact has been mostly positive, mostly negative, or both. You should collect information from at least three sites to support your argument. Include citations for information taken from specific sites. You may use the online course materials as one source, but you should find at least additional two sources off-site.

Each group will respond to the essay of one other group. Again, the response essay should bring at least one additional empirical fact to bear on the argument of the original essay.

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