In the 1960’s a movement called second-wave feminism began in America. Unlike the first-wave feminist movement, focused mainly on women’s right to vote, the second-wave feminism movement focused more on the way women were perceived in society and ending the oppression of women. This movement changed the way the world saw women and their roles in both the home and the work place. The second-wave feminists fought for many rights and reasons all of which today would be considered human rights by most. These included the changing the perceived jobs of women and their roles in the home, equal education, and abortion rights.
One reason for second wave feminism was to change the perception of women’s jobs and their roles in the home. the mid-twentieth century and far before, women were forced to work and were strictly bound to the household. Women on average performed 55 hours of house work a week. Women bore the full responsibility of the house and child care. They were legally the subject of their husband (Head and Master Laws) and had no legal right to the money their husband earned or their property. The men however had the right to their wife’s earnings. A lady of the time stated, “The female doesn’t really expect a lot from life. She’s here as someone’s keeper – her husband’s or her children’s.” Women of the second-wave feminism movement were the first of many to see the wrong in these laws. They realised that they were dissatisfied with their lives and the path they were forced to follow by the patriarchy of their society. They made their desires known, appearing on talk shows, protesting, holding conventions. Their numbers grew and they became the talk of the nation. The second-wave feminists’ hard work paid off. In 1963 on June 10th, President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act in the USA. This act aimed at abolishing the gender pay gap. U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, this included the Title VII prohibition of discrimination based on gender by private employers. These were huge achievements for women and society alike as it brought up opportunities for new talent to reach the workplace and gave women the opportunity to brake free from the home and establish themselves as more contributing members of society, giving them the freedom to carve their own paths.
Another key aspect of second-wave feminism was equal education. It was uncommon for a woman to go to university. In the 1960s one out of ten women went to university, the majority of whom studied the arts or humanities. Those who studied male dominated subjects such as science and philosophy often did very well but often they weren’t recognised for their achievements. As most can tell this was extremely sexist, with problems such as this still strongly in place today, we would be far from the advanced world we live in. Women’s studies was created by the second-wave feminists to generate new ideas about women, their place in the world and their relationships. These helped to change the academic disciplines. A woman’s contribution was limited due to outdated ideas of the woman’s role in society. Second-wave feminists fiercely opposed the idea that there were certain subjects women could and couldn’t do, following the (correct) belief that women were only limited by themselves, their own wills, and slightly by their physiology (like men). The only thing that limited women from going to college or university was the patriarchal structure of the education system and society. Second-wave feminism had an important role in breaking down these barriers. They followed their ambitions to become more important and contributing members of society. Women began to entered higher education at higher rates, their numbers growing with the introduction of women’s studies (this originally began being taught in workshops and study groups led by second-wave feminists) as postgraduate, later undergraduate, courses in the 1980s. This first, first at MA university of Kent in 1981.Of course this entire movement for equal education was met with much controversy as, once again, the issue of a woman’s role came up and whether a woman was neglecting her role as a mother and wife if she joined a university, but once again the second-wave feminists overcame it. Equal education is another thing the feminists of the 1960’s fought for.
One of the most eminent things second-wave feminists was abortion rights. In the 1950s and 1960s many women had abortions in backstreet ‘clinics’ as they were afraid to present their cases to men. Most of these abortions were highly unsafe and would often result in serious consequences including death. In the 1960s nearly 200-300 women were admitted to hospital each year, suffering from the consequences of their illegal abortions. Second-wave feminists wanted abortions ‘on-demand’. This meant that women of all ages should have access to a safe and legal abortion without; a waiting period, without having to travel to another country or state, without having to prove a special circumstance (eg. Rape), and without cost-prohibitive restrictions. Of course, like on all topics, there are two sides to this debate. Many believed that abortion was inhumane and a form of murder, and like all voices these deserve to be heard too. Really this debate comes down to a woman’s right to choose. Having children is a big step in a woman’s life and if unplanned can be a big problem. Say a fifteen year old girl gets pregnant, she is still in school. Having a baby can have a detrimental effect on her education and the rest of her life. Often girls like this will not have the father to support them as he is often not ready to take on the responsibilities that come with a child. The girl often doesn’t get the privilege of choosing if she wants to be a mother, so abortion is an option if she wishes to not deliver the baby, which can often have serious emotional, social, and physical consequences. It also comes down to whether the woman or the government should decide the fate of the child. Second-wave feminists believed that the choice should be in the woman’s hands as she would be the one experiencing the consequences and delivering the child. If she chose to have an abortion the second-wave feminists believed she should have access to a safe, non-expensive, and legal procedure. This shows how abortion was a large factor of second-wave feminism.
In today’s world women living in liberal democracies, such as Australia, are lucky to have many rights that only five decades ago were considered as ‘absurd’. These words would still be used to describe these rights today if it wasn’t for the second-wave feminists who spoke up for women’s rights. These included changing the way women were perceived and their roles in the home, equal education, and abortion rights. Though there is still much sexism in the world we have much to thank the second-wave feminists who fought soldier-like through onslaughts of hate. After not all important wars are fought by the army, but by the suppressed wishing to be free.