I have a very vivid memory of discussing my classes to my mother before this first semester began, and whenever I listed off my Women and Gender Studies class I remember my mother asking me, “What do you think you are going to learn about in there?” I recall opening my mouth to say something, but nothing came out. I stopped, and looked at her and said, “You know, I’m not really sure. I guess we will find out!” I knew going in to this class I was excited, but for what I had no clue. However, looking back on my experiences, discussions, and the knowledge I have gained from this course, I know exactly why I was excited. There is an entire world out there that the media and politics had hidden from me, but now my eyes are opened. I can see everything.
Feminism was a completely foreign concept to me. It’s not that I had the stereotypes beaten into my skull, it was simply that I had never been exposed – like many people on this planet – to the idea of feminism. However, I wanted to learn all about it! It sounded interesting, it sounded powerful. I am aware that seems odd, but feminism was just such an alien topic to me that I knew it must be important. When the class began I started to create an idea of what feminism really was. It was fighting for equality for women, right? I would later find out that this is an immature concept of feminism, it was not fully developed. Gender equality was a part of it, an important part, however it was so so much more than that. At the end of this course, if someone were to ask me what feminism is, I can – without hesitation – state that feminism is the belief that all people are entitled to freedom. That no person should ever be discriminated based on gender, sexual orientation, relig...
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...g way from women simply wanting the right to vote, it has blossomed. However, it is still growing and developing. We will always look back and remember Seneca Falls; the opening of the first birth control clinic in Brooklyn, New York; Roe v. Wade. As we continuously build on top of our accomplishments, we move forward in our journey. I know in my lifetime that true equality will not occur, however, I have faith that it will. When that day comes, equality will seem like the norm, and they will not appreciate where they are. They will appreciate where they have come from, the adversaries that their ancestors faced, and they will appreciate what their ancestors went through.
Overall, this course has provided me with one thing. . . hope. Hope that we will one day there will be unity among all of the human race; man, woman, child, black, white, gay, straight.
It amazes me how a few decades ago can seem like a whole different world. A course of time can impact our lives more than we know it. In the article, A Day Without Feminism by Jennifer Boumgoidnei and Amy Richntds, both of these authors created this piece to inform their audience that although women have gained more rights over time, there was still more progress to be made. These authors gave many examples of how life for women had been, the obstacles they had to overcome, and the laws women had to break for equality.
“I have no idea what a feminist is although I have heard the term before,” said Stewart. I told her not to feel bad because I did not know the meaning of the term until I took the class and gave her bell hooks’ definition. Feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression. Although they do not have to be an activist, they should be pro-choice. “With that being said I don’t consider myself a feminist but I am pro-choice. I give advice and let others learn from experience. A person is going to do what they want so I don’t push my opinion off on others.” While others have a clue to what a feminist is but do not fully understand their purpose. “I think a feminist is someone who wants more equal rights for women but take it to the extreme,” said Nia. I explained to her that a feminist does not have to be an extreme activist. Her response was “I still don’t consider myself a feminist because I don’t really care about trying to make a change for women’s rights. I think it’s as good as it is going to get,” said
Women faced multiple challenges to establish themselves as equals to men throughout history however, this would have never been possible if not for social progress movements to eliminate gender barriers. Consider the statements of “that is woman’s work” and “that is man’s work”. First, imagine the year is 1920; what vision instantly comes to your mind in what was woman’s work and what was man’s work? Now, fast forward to current day; what instantly comes to mind in consideration of what is woman’s and man’s work? The comparison of the differences of 1920 and 2014 is night and day. Crystal Eastman, a socialist feminist, observed that the 19th Amendment was an important first step but that what women really wanted was freedom and equality. She was campaigning for the equivalence of women in social, political, cultural, and economic status. In the essay titled "Now We Can Begin," she laid out a plan toward this goal that is still relevant today and shared her vision of life that she wanted for herself and women across the nation. (Eastman)
Through out history, Americans have fought for the rights of freedom in their country, freedoms that have been passed down through dozen’s of generations. Freedom’s such as religion, speech, press, slavery and the right to vote. Americans, though very aware of their freedoms, often take them for granted and forget the struggles that their ancestors went through to obtain them. One example of this struggle is a woman’s right to be treated and looked upon by the government as equals. This was not an easy battle to win, and it took a strong few to begin to bring the struggle that women had faced for centuries to an end.
Personally, I do not know how should I think about feminism appropriately or what is the ideal way to think about this word. Since there are no significant differences between male and female, except physical aspects, the inequality between females and male has remained for several thousand years. it is necessary for human beings in contemporary society to think about this issue seriously because females have to voice for themselves and discriminations have to be eliminated progressively.
In conclusion, women throughout the decades have strived, from protesting to going on trials, to point out their rights. “Will women soon be treated equally as men?” A day when women and men having the same rights is still under way and has a far way to go as from the antebellum period. However, what makes women so unique, especially during this era is the numerous of contributions these respectful woman played a part of in order to see dramatic changes in America’s society. Some of the extraordinary ideas developed by them explains the success leading into what we call America today. Therefore, it is proven that women are certainly not helpless species, but are useful citizens who aroused much commitment for their “race” and nation.
All of the concepts discussed in Chapter 1 provide an important foundation for the goals and purposes of a Women’s and Gender’s Studies course. Each section of Chapter 1 provided me with some new information I was not aware of before beginning to read this section of the book. Although the entirety of Chapter 1 provided interesting information, I found myself thinking most about the section discussing myths about feminism. This is one subject that I was able to personally relate to and that I was able to make a connection with when it came to my personal experiences with feminism. The myths covered in the book were of an interesting subject because it provided a different outlook to people’s perspective on feminists in our society. Many of
Although America wasn’t created equal to women, it is now. Women can now vote freely and do all the things men can do. The prolonged war for justice for women’s right to vote is over, a right that should’ve been given to them in the very beginning, has been given to them now. America now really is the home of the free and the home of the
There is a continuing debate worldwide regarding the topic of women’s rights and equality. Some have stronger opinions than others but in the long run it is shown that women have come a long way since the Seneca Falls convention in 1848 as well as the Civil Rights Movement in the 1920’s. Since the civil rights movement, women have struggled with religious freedom, equality, schooling, voting, stating their voice in government, and family life. Over the past generations dramatic social and legal changes have been pursued to pave the way for women’s acceptance today; changes such as affirmative action, reproductive rights, abortion, and the pursuit of higher education. Generations of women have come together to help build stronger ground to address women’s rights by participating in civil rights meetings, petition drives, lobbying, public speaking and non-violent resistance acts. Women have also overcome hardships such as rejection, isolation, discrimination, and unfair treatment in the workforce. In today’s society women now have more opportunities then ever before such as invol...
Woman have been the basis of the earth from the beginning. We have given birth to children, broke our bones for one life form. We have argued for out woman rights and survived discrimination. Patiently, we have waited for this amendment: "Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any other State on account of sex."(Social Reform in the Progressive Era, 2015) Woman have sought long and hard to finally be given the right that the seventeenth amendment has given them. The right to equality should be upheld, even in the role of combat. Woman have fought and have been waiting for chance to show what they can to in this modern society, thought their dedication and strength,
Feminism is the result of the woman’s liberation movement, which began in the 18th century and gained momentum in the late 19th century after it was found that males were completely dominating every area of life. The word feminism at any point in time, has had many negative connotations to it as well as a good majority of the
The word feminism is sometimes misinterpreted and associated with female superiority and hatred of men, although most people probably agree that feminism can mean the desire for social and economic parity. There is so much baggage surrounding this term that clarification of what feminism is and is not, is essential. Indeed, the way feminism has developed has not been pretty. “Feminism over the years have [sic] evolved away from its noble purpose of creating awareness and defending women rights to creating new ridiculous ‘belief systems.’...feminism has become more like a medium for angry women to vent their hatred and frustration towards man”(“Feminism is Chauvinism”). This definition goes completely against the true meaning of what feminism entails. Feminism can be defined as a fundamental respect for others and the desire for equality between men and women.
From the beginning of time, females have played a powerful role in the shaping of this world. They have stood by idly and watched as this country moved on without them, and yet they have demanded equal rights as the nation rolls along. Through the years the common belief has been that women could not perform as well as men in anything, but over the years that belief has been proven wrong time and time again. So as time marches on, women have clawed and fought their way up the ladder to gain much needed equal respect from the opposite sex. However, after many years of pain and suffering, the battle for equal rights has not yet been won. Since women have fought for a long time and proven their importance in society, they deserve the same rights as men.
Feminism is defined as the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. It began as an organized activity on behalf of women?s rights and interests. This concept was developed to help women earn a place in a predominantly male society. Unfortunately over the years, the intentions of feminism have become distorted, not only by anti-feminists, but also by the feminists themselves. The principle of equality for women and men has turned into a fight in which feminists wish to be better than men. Feminism has been twisted and misunderstood so much that it has become a harmful idea.
The term feminism has a lot of misunderstanding and confusion many people think that the term Feminism or being Feminist is only for women . what they don't know is that Feminism is the belief in the social, political and economic equality of the sexes. So many people don't understand what feminism is and where the word originated form so they think of it as a stereotypes. As to where they believe that women want to take control of everything and push mens way. Which it not truth for any means and the word for Feminism is for everyone. Setting in my history class i remember my teacher going over feminism and tell us the people that called them self feminist. I remember that we didn't really get in depth about what being feminism is and what