The Women’s Movement HO4 (Pages 84-92)

Who was Eleanor Roosevelt and what impact did she have on the Women’s movement?

Influential campaigner for civil rights

First lady
She held woman only press conferences
Which made companies employ more woman journalists
Commission status for woman
Huge inequalities like 4% of lawyers are woman

Who was Betty Freidan and what impact did she have on the Women’s movement?

Eleanor Roosevelt influence

Historians credit her as starting womans movement
Feminine mystique
Interviewed college friends
bestseller

What was the impact of technological change in the home and the contraceptive pill?

It meant women were needed at home and to do less

Contraceptive pill gave women control over men

National Organisation for Women (NOW)

When was it set up? Pressure the government
Why was it set up? To pressure the government

What did it do?

Won 30 million for women

How effective was it?

Very however it was not as effective for lower class women

Women’s Liberation movement

NOW a moderate group

Huge changes
Feminists
Limitations of Patriarchal society
Lesbians only truly free woman
More radical
 Abortion

ROE versus WADE

Abortion began to become more popular such as in situations were the woman did not want to
have the baby in the first place. However in most states it remained illegal except in cases where
the mothers life was at stake
Jane roe went to court to claim for abortion and won and the case was used all over America until
it became legal to have an abortion

YEAR 1960 1962 1964 1966 1968 1970

No. of 292 292 823 1,028 6,211 193,491
reported
abortions
Opposition to the Women’s Movement
Who was opposed and why?

Reactions were varied

However some places reacted with severe criticism calling people who anted women’s rights as
women to ugly to attract men

The Equal Rights Amendment ERA

Woman were totally equal and identical to men passed in 1972 it was fiercely conflicted by the
stop ERA organisation founded by schafly who thought that this would weaken the position of
women in family

The impact of the women’s movement

Not everything was achieved
Took focus away from work and pay
Legalisation of abortion
ERA – education
Women did a wider variety of jobs than before
Women’s careers became acceptable
When did each of the following occur?
The contraceptive pill was legalised for married women? 1960
The contraceptive pill was legalised for all women? 1965
Margaret Chase Smith stood for President? 1964
President Johnson removed the limit on women in the military?
Courses on women’s history were introduced at some universities? 1972
New York banned ‘men only’ public facilities such as bars?
The Equal Pay Act? 1970
 1960 1970
% of female students at University 38% 41%
% of women who went out to work 38% 43%
Of those working in other people’s homes % of 98% 96%
women
Of those doing clerical work % of women 68% 69%
Women as a % managers 14% 14%