Feminism

Feminism's Place in Societal Advancement

Though the precise definition of feminism is still widely debated and has evolved through the years, the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as: the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes; organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests (Feminism, Merriam Webster). While some disagree with the name of the movement itself (claiming if it was truly about equality, the name would not only include women), many feminists defend their title as having an emphasis on women's rights in order to empower one oppressed group until opportunities are equal for all. In addition, many feel the opposition by anti-feminists in regards to the name not including men to be the perfect example of why the world needs it, as feminism should not have to benefit men for it to be valid. Feminism is necessary for society to progress forward to a place of equality in the social and political fields of not only this country, but also the world.

The United States is one of many countries where women have overcome the majority of de jure discrimination, but still face de facto discrimination in nearly every nation, some being worse than others. Only recently in the United States have women been granted the ability to have their voices heard in elections via the 19th amendment of 1920. Still, it was not until 43 years later that women legally made the same wages as men for doing the same work with the Equal Pay Act of 1963. To put this in perspective, women have only been making the same amount of money doing the same work as men for 55 years. In 1964, the following year, Congress passed Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which was added last minute by Southern conservative Howard W Smith. Many argued he did so in an effort to "radicalize" the amendment to kill the entire bill, which already proposed to grant equal protection to workers regardless of race, nationality, or place of origin. Smith, however, defended himself, saying he did so in order to retain the support of the National Women's Party, whom he had campaigned and worked with. The truth of this story, though still debated and uncertain, is women were added to the bill for Mr. Smith's benefit, whether to kill a bill he was in opposition of or to retain support. It is this manipulation that women were included in the act, and without it may not have been added for an additional several years. (Simmons).
Between the end of World War II and the publicizing of Betty Friedan's, The Feminine Mystique, American women had few other career choices than "housewife". Her book is credited as beginning the second wave of feminism, which revealed the unrest and dissatisfaction felt by women who seemed prohibited to have no other drive or passion in life besides being wives and mothers ("Feminism"). Friedan describes this frustration, saying, "The problem is always being the children's mommy, or the minister's wife, and never being myself" (28). The notion that women can do more than marry and bare children is a relatively new concept for this country. Women were not expected, and even discouraged, to know, relate, or be involved with matters outside the home. Magazines were written about clothes, children and other limited topics editors thought women would understand. Friedan recalls an issue of Redbook which attempted to describe the strength of the new atomic bombs to women with an article called "How to Have a Baby in an Atomic Bomb Shelter". This article hoped that "... they [women] might be interested in the concrete biological details of having a baby in a bomb shelter, but never in the abstract idea of the bomb's power to destroy the human race" (Friedan 51).

There is no debating the statistics that show men far outweigh women in political positions. Women are 51% of the population (including 20% of color), but only 25% are U.S. legislatures, including 5% women of color. It is easy to say men seek after political roles more than women, however, statistics show this is simply untrue. Except for professional degrees, women earn 50% or more of all university degrees, and this includes political science. There are more women in the workforce today than ever before in American history, so with both these odds in women's favor, there should not be such a suspiciously large gap between men and women political leaders (Hill). The fact is that the United States government is built on a system of representation, but with half the nation's population being represented by only 25%, it begs the question: are women truly represented in politics, and America, at all?