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On this date in history…. Feminism and Women’s Rights. Women’s Suffrage. suf·frage noun The right to vote, especially in a political election. Respond to these questions: What is voting? Why would you want to vote? Was voting a right under the Constitution?
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Women’s Suffrage suf·fragenoun • The right to vote, especially in a political election. Respond to these questions: • What is voting? • Why would you want to vote? • Was voting a right under the Constitution? • Who was originally excluded from voting under the Constitution? • Why do you think this was the case?
The effect of women voters Posit Consequence Result Conclusion
Second-wave feminism • The result of women gaining more liberty is a push for gender equality • Second-wave feminism (1963 – 1982) takes root with the publishing of Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique in which she railed against the stereotypical view of a woman’s place is in the home because it limited her potential • President Kennedy’s Presidential Commission on the Status of Women releases a report indicating extensive discrimination against women throughout American life • These two events spur the growth of local, state and national women’s rights groups that demand equality with men in all aspects of life • Second-wave feminists viewed pop culture as inherently sexist and fought to create positive images of strong women
Major laws and social changes • 1967 Executive Order extends full Affirmative Action rights to women • 1968 EEOC decision ruling sex-segregated help wanted ads are illegal • Title IX and the Women's Educational Equity Act • Title X (health and family planning) • The Equal Credit Opportunity Act • The Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 • Marital rape is illegalized (not illegalized in all states until 1993) • The legalization of no-fault divorce • A 1975 law requiring the U.S. Military Academies to admit women • Roe v. Wade
Major laws and social changes • More than anything, second-wave feminism makes lasting changes to how society views the role of women • Changing gender roles, oppressive laws based on sex, integrating single-sex colleges and putting a woman on the Supreme Court are major victories for women in America • While pay increased drastically for women, as of 2008, they only make 77% of what a male does in the same job function • The Gender Pay Gap is a hotly contested issue but economists and sociologist have provided evidence that structural discrimination has played a large role in it
Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) • The only major legislative defeat for second-wave feminism was the failure to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) • The proposed amendment to the Constitution was composed as follows: • Section 1. Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States of by any State on account of sex. • Section 2. The Congress shall have the power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article. • Section 3. This amendment shall take effect two years after the date of ratification. • The amendment came 3 states short of ratification for the U.S. Constitution • 21 States DOhave ERA amendments in their State Constitutions
Women’s Rights Homework • This homework requires 3 steps: • REGARDLESS OF YOUR PERSONAL VIEWS ON THE SUBJECT, write a speech someone who opposes giving women the right to vote would give. Include arguments from at least these 3 standpoints: • Women were not given the right to vote when the Constitution was written, therefore the Founders clearly did not want them to have it • Women are unable to support the U.S. because they are inherently weaker, both physically and mentally, in the same manner that men are, and as such should not be given the same rights • Women are not capable of rational thought beyond household duties, and if given the right to vote would be easily swayed by unethical politicians • Take the opposing view of the person given the speech in Step 1, and write a letter in response to their (your) allegations from the speech. Remember that you can appeal to emotion, logic, reason, philosophical arguments, etc… • Explain why or why not the arguments for or against giving women the right to vote would be applicable to racial minorities (e.g. African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, Asians, etc…)
