Feminism
Feminism is a philosophy which argues for equal treatment and responsibilities for men and women, and boys and girls.
History
Feminism is originally an acknowledged medical condition where men take on female physical characteristics. The expression was taken up by the campaigners - originally known as suffragettes - for the vote for landed, middle-class women in Britain during the early part of the 20th century. This was at a time when neither men nor women could vote unless they owned property.
Roots of the movement in the United States and the United Kingdom include the Women's Suffrage movement of the early 1900's and the Women's Liberation (or "Second Wave Feminist") movement of the 1960's and 1970's.
The Equal Rights Amendment, which proponents claimed would address the inadequacies of the Fourteenth Amendment concerning women and citizenship, was proposed in the US in 1923. The amendment passed Congress in 1972 but was ultimately defeated, falling just three states short of the required two-thirds majority on June 30, 1982. The majority of Americans felt that its passage would entail several consequences, including making girls subject to the military draft, the integration of single-sex schools, the possible recognition of homosexual marriage, and the revocation of laws that protect women in dangerous jobs, such as factory or mining work.
The feminist movement in the West evolved in the 1980s with the rise of so-called Post-Feminism (also called "Third-Wave" feminism), which stresses that women have many rights that go unrecognized, often by women themselves, in everyday life, and in the American legal structure. Most members of the feminist movement support reproductive rights currently guaranteed by American law, including the legal right to abortion. This stance is opposed by many conservatives, leading political commentator Rush Limbaugh to coin the term "Femi-nazis" to refer to extreme feminist activists.
During the administration of Bill Clinton, feminism made a partial resurgence, but feminist leadership largely failed to criticize[Citation Needed] President Clinton's sexist behavior toward female employees as both Arkansas Governor[Citation Needed] and U.S. President[Citation Needed].
Quotations
The English novelist and critic Rebecca West said [1] :
"I myself have never been able to find out what feminism is; I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a doormat or a prostitute."
The televangelist Pat Robertson said [2]:
"The feminist agenda is not about equal rights for women. It is about a socialist, anti-family political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism, and become lesbians." [3]
See also
References
- ↑ http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/r/rebecca_west.html
- ↑ Fundraising letter, 1992 quoted on http://www.gainesvillehumanists.org/patr.htm
- ↑ Pat Robertson, fund-raising letter, 1992
External Links
- The Feminist eZine Archive of articles about Feminist History.
- Gloria Steinem and the CIA, The New York Times, February 21, 1967.
- Inside the CIA with Gloria Steinem, Nancy Borman, The Village Voice.
