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USA - A Divided Union 1941-80
Key Question: How did the Women's Movement develop in the 1960s?
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Quick Links - WWII - Women, Blacks, Economy; Women in 1950s, McCarthyism, Civil Rights Reasons, Montgomery, Little Rock, Tactics, Successes; Black Power, Youth and Students, Women's Movement, JFK's New Frontier, Johnson's Great Society, Watergate |
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The
Women’s Movement The 1960s saw the rise of the new women’s movement that took its inspiration from the Civil Rights Movement. Betty Friedan’s book the Feminine Mystique influenced a whole generation of women.
The
movement argued that women were not content with being tied to the home.
They wanted careers and campaigned against: 1.
Low women’s wages- discrimination against women in the
workplace 2.
Overt sexism in society e.g. Playboy, Miss America 3.
Demanded the right to control their own fertility (birth
control) Achievements Women became much more aware of their rights. Women’s pay gradually improved. Most people were aware of sexual discrimination and considered it wrong. The birth control pill was widely available after 1960. Employment discrimination in Government jobs was ended. By the 1990s far more women had careers and many more were entering the professions. The Civil Rights Movement grew to include the women's movement and achieved: 1963 - Equal Pay Act 1964 - Civil Rights Act on employment 1972
- Educational Amendment Act outlawing sexual stereotyping in school
textbooks. |
Web Links
Recommended Revision Guide £5.99
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