LEQ: Women’s Rights Movements
Throughout America’s history women have struggled and fought for their rights. The idea first emerged in the 1840’s and continued to grow, and is still growing today. The Women’s Rights Movement in the 1840’s to 1860’s differs from that of the 1960’s to 1980’s in that women began fighting more and more for equality since they achieved receiving most basic human rights like voting. In the 1960’s women fought for issues like abortion, equal pay, and birth control issues. However, in the both time periods women sought to be given the rights they know they deserved.
One of the most significant events regarding women’s rights that occurred in the time period of 1840-1860 was the Seneca Falls Conference led by Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Women during this time couldn't vote, work, own land, or receive an education. When they got married all of their property and belongings went to her husband. These are the kind of issues women faced during this time. Women like Dorothea Dix and the Grimké sisters were abolitionists who later became significant leaders of the Women’s Rights Movement. On the other hand, during the 1960’s and 1980’s women had already taken these basic rights and were now fighting for new issues that had emerged. It was a time period where many Evangelical Conservatives opposed the idea of premarital sex and abortion and wanted to make abortion illegal. Women led protests and conferences to fight for this cause. In the court case Roe v. Wade the women were successful in making abortion legal. They also fought for the respect for their bodies and supported each other. Women who were physicians were especially supported.
During both time periods, the Women’s Rights Movement coincided with the Black’s Right Movements. In the 1840’s to 1860’s it was on the issue of slavery led by the Abolitionist. And in the 1960’s to 1980’s there were the Civil Right’s Activists fighting against discrimination and...