Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Melissa Nique
Michael Mayo
February 7, 2010
Evolution of Women’s Rights 2
Even though women’s rights have come a long way since the 1800’s, women still
suffer from oppression in this, the 21st century. After 150 years of fighting for equality
among the sexes, people today have no idea of the struggle that women went through and
are continuing to go through, so that women of future generations can have the same
privileges as men. Seven generations have come since the women’s rights movement
began and the women of today have different opportunities in family life, religion,
government, employment, and education that women of past generations have fought for.
The Women’s Rights Movement began with a small group of people that
questioned why human lives, especially those of women, were unfairly constricted. These
women also worked diligently to create a better world. The movement began as early as
1848, but with the 1869 passing of the Fifteenth Amendment (Davidson, 2008), the
women’s rights movement swung into action. This movement didn’t just happen because
someone thought that it was time for women to have the same rights as men, women of
all ages came together at the start of it in order to fight for their equality. Women have
affected changes in laws and human nature by holding meetings, petition drives,
the movement fought for freedom in family life, government, religion, employment, and
education.
In 1869, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony created the National
Movement, Elizabeth Cady Stanton drafted the “Declaration of Sentiments” which drew
its inspiration form the Declaration of Independence (Halsall, 1998). Through this
declaration, Stanton enumerated areas of life where women were treated unjustly
Evolution of Women’s Rights 3
compared to the treatment of men. By using this writing, Stanton campaigned for
portion of the family of man to assume among the people of the earth a position
different from that which they have hitherto occupied, but one to which the laws
of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of
mankind requires that they should declare the causes that impel them to such a
course.
We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are
created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable
rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to
secure these rights governments are instituted, deriving their just powers from the
of these ends, it is the right of those who suffer from it to refuse allegiance to it,
and to insist upon the institution of a new government, laying its foundation on
such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem
not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath
shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than
to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But
Evolution of Women’s Rights 4
when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object,
evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their duty to throw
off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security. Such
has been the patient sufferance of the women under this government, and such is
now the necessity which constrains them to demand the equal station to which
the part of man toward woman, having in direct object the establishment of an
absolute tyranny over her. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid
world”(Halsall, 1998).
After having said this, she went into the specific abuses. The offenses included:
married women were legally dead in the eyes of the law, women were not allowed to
vote, women had to submit to laws when they had no voice in the in their formation,
married women had no property rights, husbands had legal power over women and
responsibility for their wives to the extent that they could imprison or beat them with
impunity, divorces and child custody favored men and gave no rights to women, women
had to pay property taxes even though they could not have any access to property
ownership, most occupations were closed to women but the women who worked earned a
fraction of the salary of men, women were not allowed to enter professions, women had
no right to an education after high school, women could very rarely partake in any church
function, and finally, women were robbed of their self-confidence and self-respect,
Upon introducing those offenses to other women, Stanton and other leaders of the
movement began planning the first Women’s Rights International Convention that was to
be held in Seneca Falls, New York, July 19-20, 1848 (Lampman, 1998). During the two-
days of discussion at the convention, the Declaration of Sentiments and twelve other
resolutions received unanimous endorsement. The only resolution that did not pass was
the call for women’s enfranchisement. To most, the idea that women should have the
In 1890 the National Women’s Suffrage Association joined with the American
Association (Hallsal, 1998). The suffrage victory drew near in 1919. Around this time,
the National American Woman Suffrage Association was in the process of reconfiguring
itself into the League of Women Voters (Davidson, 2008). Through this league, members
would ensure that women would take their hard-won vote seriously. They would also
Shortly after the formation of the League of Women Voters, the Women’s Bureau
of the Department of Labor began in 1920 (Women’s Fight for Equal Rights”, 1946).
The purpose for establishing the Bureau was to gather information about the situation of
women at work. It also advocated for changes that it saw necessary to society. Many
women voters also became actively involved by lobbying for legislation to protect
The Women’s Bureau of the Department of Labor served as inspiration for Alice
Paul, a Women’s Rights Movement leader, to draft the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)
in 1923 (Women’s Fight for Equal Rights”, 1946). She thought that this would be the
Evolution of Women’s Rights 6
wisest step in the fight for equality among the sexes. This Amendment would guarantee
that women would be granted the same rights as men. Basically, women would be
regardless of their location. To this day, the ERA has failed to gain ratification and is
Many items that were in question on the ERA have been addressed through a
variety of other means. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 was passed which amended the Fair
Labor Standards Act to make it illegal to pay workers lower wages strictly on the basis on
their sex (Women Still Struggling for Equal Pay, 1999). It is often summed up with the
phrase “Equal pay for equal work”. This was a major step towards closing the wage gap
in women’s pay.
In the past it had been generally accepted that women did not deserve to earn as
much money as men because they were not heads of households. However, in many
homes they were in fact the sole breadwinner, for various reasons, ranging from death or
the Equal Pay Act established a single standard to apply to both sexes (Katz & Andronici,
2006). Equal Pay is still an ongoing issue amongst women’s rights activists today.
In 1972 Congress amended the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to include Title VII,
which bans sex discrimination by all institutions that receive federal funds, which equates
After women had won the fight for basic freedoms and privileges, a second-wave
of the Women’s Rights Movement began rapidly approaching in the sixties. This part of
the movement was called the “Birth Control Movement.” A public health nurse, Margaret
Evolution of Women’s Rights 7
Sanger, initiated this part of the Women’s Rights Movement (Echols, 1989). In her
opinion, if women had the right to vote and other privileges, then they should have the
right to control their own body, especially when it came to their own reproduction and
their own sexuality. The goal of this wave was to allow women the privilege of deciding
whether they would become mothers or not and if so, when that would happen.
Throughout this time, women began to advocate for women’s reproductive rights
and surrogate motherhood. They also began to fight for protection from pornography and
sexual harassment. In the fight for women’s reproductive rights, women fought for the
right to terminate pregnancy through abortion or prevent pregnancy through birth control
pills. For the surrogate motherhood issue, some women argued that it was the free right
of women to “rent” out their womb. In other words, they thought that it was their right to
In the struggle for protection from pornography, women argued that it could be
potentially dangerous for women and that it was degrading to them. Some women also
said that pornography was a free speech issue and that women could choose for
themselves what they wanted because of the First Amendment. In the debate over sexual
harassment, women wanted more protection and punishment from sex offenders because
of the trauma that rape puts women through. In their defense, it also causes oftentimes-
serious medical problems as well as emotional trauma. In the fight for reproductive
rights, sexual harassment also alluded towards abortion. One of the topics brought up was
that if a woman was raped and she got pregnant from the offender, she should have the
right to abort the pregnancy because it was unwanted. Thus, these topics brought about
the most serious and controversial issue that is still being debated over today: abortion.
Evolution of Women’s Rights 8
The issue of abortion was first brought up in front of the Supreme Court in 1973
when the Roe vs. Wade case was introduced (Garrow, 1994). This case legalized all
abortions up until the "point at which the fetus becomes 'viable'”. The courts decided that
it was the right of women to decide whether they wanted to have a child if they were to
get pregnant.
something that women have to decide for themselves. Many of the rights that women
have won because of the Women’s Rights Movement are based on opinions. Women can
either take advantage of their freedoms and privileges, or they can just not do anything
about it. For instance, it is basically up to a woman if she decides to vote or not.
So in conclusion equality among the sexes is an ongoing battle for women. They
fight for the basic rights of humans while fighting against traditions and social and
cultural norms. Women today are faced with so many more opportunities than women of
previous generations. However, many women are held back from these opportunities
because of the belief of men that they are superior to women. Basically, no matter what
women do, there will always be discrimination against women whether it is for
won many more privileges because of how much times have changed since the start of
the Women’s Rights Movement. This struggle is an ongoing battle that will most likely
never end.
Evolution of Women’s Rights 9
References
Davidson, D., Heyrman, L., & Stoff (2008). Nation of Nations: A Narrative History of
the American Republic, Vol.II: since 1865 6th ed. McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Garrow, D. (1994). Liberty and Sexuality: The Right to Privacy and the Making of Roe V.
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vid=ISBN0520213025&id=DImjEIIZTgsC&pg=RA1-PA556&lpg=RA1-
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%20douglas&f=false
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/senecafalls.html
Katz, D., & Andronici, J. (2006). No More Excuses!. Ms, 16(4), 63-64. Retrieved from
Lampman, J. (1998, July 20). Women set new agenda for the 21st century. Christian
(1980). US: What do women want?. National Review, 32(16), p. 943-945. Retrieved from
(1946). US: Women’s fight for equal rights. Congressional Digest, 25(12) p. 289-290.
(1999). US: Women Still Struggling for Equal Pay. Women's International Network