MOOC WHAW1.2x | 17.5.2 Origins of Second-Wave Feminism with Linda Gordon

Summary

Linda Gordon discusses the origins of the second-wave feminism in the '60s and '70s, highlighting its roots in the civil rights movement. The movement emerged from women participating in civil rights activities who noticed gender inequalities. This second wave branched into two streams: one focusing on labor rights led by older women, translating into the formation of NOW, and the other, driven by younger women emphasizing personal issues such as birth control and domestic violence. Tensions existed between the two, reflecting varied priorities and backgrounds of their supporters.

Highlights

• Linda Gordon attributes the origin of second-wave feminism to women involved in the civil rights movement noticing gender inequalities. 💪
• The movement grew into two streams, highlighting differences between older, labor-focused advocates and younger, more personal-issue-oriented groups. 🌐
• NOW, focusing on labor equity, was formed by older women who campaigned for women's labor rights and wages. 💼
• Young women were largely motivated by the success of the civil rights movement and pushed for personal and private sphere issues. 🚺
• There was significant tension between the two different feminist streams, showcasing diversity in priorities and focusses within the movement. 🔥

Key Takeaways

• The second-wave feminism emerged in the '60s, heavily influenced by the civil rights movement. ✊
• It branched into two streams: one focusing on public sphere issues like labor rights, and the other on private sphere issues like birth control. 🌊
• The National Organization for Women (NOW) was a significant result of the older stream advocating for labor rights. 🏢
• Young women were inspired by the civil rights movement's success, focusing on personal issues and liberal feminism. 👩‍🎓
• Tensions existed between the different streams as they had varied priorities, highlighting diversity in the feminist movement. ⚡

Overview

The second-wave feminism of the '60s and '70s marks a pivotal period in gender equality advocacy, spearheaded initially by women who played active roles in the civil rights movement. Experiencing firsthand the discrepancies in how gender equality was unwittingly sidestepped, these women initiated a wave of change. Two distinct streams began to form: one led by older generations focusing on labor rights and wage equality through formations like NOW, and another driven by youthful vigor tackling personal issues such as reproductive rights and domestic equality.

The older segments of the second-wave feminists primarily occupied themselves with public sphere concerns regarding labor laws and equality in the workplace. Organizations like NOW emerged from this stream, fighting tirelessly for legal modifications and better employment conditions for women nationwide. Meanwhile, the younger feminist cadre drew inspiration from the civil rights background, addressing private matters such as birth control, domestic violence, and gender roles within families. This divergence highlighted underlying societal inconsistencies related to women's roles both at work and at home.

Interestingly, despite the unified front in striving for gender equality, the varied streams often found themselves at odds with one another. The contrasting priorities, with older women focusing on wage and labor rights and younger activists championing personal freedoms and anti-violence campaigns, revealed deeper complexities within the movement. Each group's political agenda and critique of the others' methods reflected significant diversity and the challenges of unifying under the feminist umbrella during a transformative era.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 00:30: Introduction to Second-Wave Feminism In the introduction to second-wave feminism, the setting is the Herbert Lehman Center at Columbia University. The discussion features Linda Gordon, a Professor of History at New York University. The focus is on feminism with an emphasis on the second wave that emerged in the 1960s and 1970s.
• 00:30 - 01:30: Origins and Influences of the Second Wave The chapter titled 'Origins and Influences of the Second Wave' delves into the beginnings of the second wave of feminism. It draws a parallel between the first and second waves, noting that both were rooted in black rights movements. The first wave emerged from the abolitionist movement, while the second wave was influenced by the civil rights movement. It highlights the participation of both black and white women in the civil rights movement and the contradictions they observed, sparking a new wave focused on democracy and equality.
• 01:30 - 02:30: Development of Women's Movements The chapter on the 'Development of Women's Movements' discusses the evolving awareness and consciousness regarding gender equality. Initially, everyone was considered a citizen and an equal citizen; however, there became a heightened awareness of the disparities in women's equality, both in informal relationships and institutional treatment by the government. This awareness led to the emergence of two distinct streams within the women's movement.
• 02:30 - 04:00: Role of the National Organization for Women (NOW) The chapter discusses the development of the National Organization for Women (NOW), which originated from state committees on the status of women. Many of these committees were informally part of state governments, arising as women became more aware of inequalities. The early phase of NOW and these committees included a significant involvement of women in labor unions.
• 04:00 - 05:00: Emergence of Younger Feminist Stream The chapter discusses the emergence of a younger feminist stream, which was primarily composed of young, middle-class, white women, mainly college students or recent graduates. This group, while distinct from older feminists advocating for equal wages and seniority rights, was deeply influenced by the black civil rights movement.
• 05:00 - 06:30: Focus on Personal Sphere Issues The chapter discusses how the black movement deeply influenced individuals not just through its democratic rhetoric but also by instilling confidence and inspiration. Observing such a powerful social movement achieving real change gave people both aspirations and confidence.
• 06:30 - 07:00: Tensions and Diversity within the Movement The chapter titled 'Tensions and Diversity within the Movement' discusses the origins and development of a particular movement, emphasizing the early discontent among women regarding their roles in the labor force. It highlights the National Organization for Women (NOW) as a central entity grounded in addressing labor issues and women's rights.

MOOC WHAW1.2x | 17.5.2 Origins of Second-Wave Feminism with Linda Gordon Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 - We're in the Herbert Lehman Center at Columbia University talking with Linda Gordon, Professor of History, at New York University and today we're talking to her about feminism and especially about the second wave of feminism that emerged in the '60s and '70s.
• 00:30 - 01:00 Tell us, first, how did this second wave happen? - The second wave actually began in a parallel way to the first wave. Both of them grew out of black rights movements. The first wave grew out of the movement to abolish slavery. The second wave grew out of the civil rights movement. Many young women, black and white, who participated in the civil rights movement, began to see a contradiction. The civil rights movement was all about democracy
• 01:00 - 01:30 and everyone was a citizen and should be an equal citizen, but, in fact, they became more observant about some of the ways in which women were not equal citizens, both the informal ways in their relationships with people, but the large institutional ways in the way the government treated them. And so, out of that, came really two streams of a woman's movement. One of them, which eventually
• 01:30 - 02:00 developed into the organization NOW, the National Organization for Women, developed out of a set of state committees on the status of women and many of those state committees were actually informally part of state government, as women were just becoming more aware of these inequalities. The early period of those committees and of NOW included a lot of women in labor unions
• 02:00 - 02:30 who had been, really over time, continuing to agitate for equal wages, equal seniority rights, et cetera. Then there was another stream which was much younger. It consisted at first mainly of college women or recent college graduates. It was dominantly middle class. It was dominantly white, but it was deeply influenced by the black movement.
• 02:30 - 03:00 And I think for all of those people, the influence of the black movement was not only about the rhetoric of democracy but was also a matter of confidence because they had seen how a powerful social movement could really make change and it was kind of inspirational and people, I think, gained aspirations as well as confidence from that movement. - So, if I were going to elaborate
• 03:00 - 03:30 on that statement a little bit, I'd want to say that the first part of the movement actually grew perhaps out of the discontent of women in general with their position in the labor force. That is, that the National Organization for Women, which we usually call NOW, that that organization really was focused on questions of
• 03:30 - 04:00 how to create equity if not yet equality in the labor force by modifying the conditions under which women worked, by getting rid of protective labor legislation and so on. And one might want to think about that as a really important entryway into what we sometimes call liberal feminism? - Yes, although I'm not sure that liberal
• 04:00 - 04:30 is quite the right term. It's a very complicated term but they were very much focused on what you might call public sphere, women outside their homes, women at work and what could be done both through negotiations with employers, but also through legislation to guarantee a kind of equity for women. And they were generally speaking a little bit older, sometimes a generation older, sometimes just a little older.
• 04:30 - 05:00 The younger stream consisted of women, many of whom had really never been in the labor force, had not really encountered yet that kind of discrimination and they were taking up, really for the first time in a very long time, what we might call private sphere issues. Issues that had to do with birth control, abortion, equality within marriage, sharing in childcare, as well as the very touchy then issue,
• 05:00 - 05:30 of violence against women, both sexual and what we call domestic violence. - I find this fascinating because it seems as though in the 1960's both streams were developing in some ways separately from each other so we understand the personal as political in some ways, as coming out of that first stream or the stream of women, the younger women, who come out of the civil rights movement
• 05:30 - 06:00 and begin to ask the question of what does equality mean for them? - And to some extent in those early years there was some tension between those two streams. Each side would be quite critical of the others. The younger people were critical of NOW for not taking up these personal issues. NOW was critical of the young people for focusing on them so exclusively and focusing
• 06:00 - 06:30 perhaps very exclusively at first on middle class women. The women's movement had so many different streams in so many parts of the country. I think, in many cases, like a lot of social movements, people responded very much to their very local, personal situation so it looked very different in Nebraska from California from New York.