Women's Movement

The women's movement refers to the social movement by women to achieve full economic and civil rights. The beginning of this struggle in the United States is generally traced to the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, organized by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott. An afternoon conversation between friends about women's place in society resulted in a resolution to work together for change. One week later, on July 19, 1848, these bold women launched a revolution that continues to this day, as women and men around the world strive to establish and protect equal economic, civil, legal, and social rights for all women.

In the United States and most Western nations, women have achieved the legal and economic rights defined as goals in the early stages of the movement. But these did not come without lengthy debates and challenges, and those at the forefront of the movement were often ridiculed and ostracized for advocating such things as women's right to vote, women's right to own property, women's right to child custody in a divorce, and women's right to obtain training to work in any profession. Although most of these now seem commonplace and normal, in the life of our nation and modern society, they are quite recent accomplishments.

Over seven generations, the women's movement mobilized citizens, largely women, to rally workers; to propose legislation; to picket in the streets; to write pamphlets, books, and letters; to engage in civil disobedience; and to run for office in order to persuade a majority of American voters to recognize women as full citizens, not dependent on men to formulate their opinions or exercise their rights. These activists were jailed, jeered, and booed, but they were rarely ignored. The women's movement aroused intense sentiments, both pro and con, from the outset. Stanton predicted that there would be misconception, misrepresentation, and ridicule, and she was proved right repeatedly. While media scoffing intimidated some women, a much larger number were enraged at the attempts to humiliate women and responded by further committing themselves to the cause of equal rights. The waves of support for women's rights continue through the present time and have extended to include a focus on women in developing countries and also to address issues beyond those envisioned by the early leaders, such as pornography and social security benefits allocations.