The Third Wave Of Feminism And The Women's Movement

The personal is political is a phrase commonly associated with feminism and the women’s movement, in particular, a paper written by Carol Hanisch in 1969. The personal is political is a way of reminding women they are likely not alone in struggles they are facing, and the reason for these struggles can lie in the oppressiveness of society. Hanisch was just one of many activists who have fought for women’s rights and equality. In her paper, Hanisch (1969) states that information gathering sessions were sometimes referred to as ‘therapy’ or personal sessions, however, she saw these sessions as political and essential step for formulating political action. This notion is supported by Fitzgerald who states “in order to create change, we must start by reviewing and reframing where we are and where we have come from” (1998, p.3). The women’s movement took positive steps in aiming to …show more content…
The focus areas of the third wave are somewhat similar to those of the second, including “access to childcare, birth control and abortion, political parity, and increased attention to sexual crimes” (Hughes, 1997, p.24). In this wave women are encouraged to stop seeing themselves as victims and to embrace powers that are being offered to them (Hughes, 1997). Although women seemingly have more powers than they had during previous waves, Hughes (1997) suggests that inequalities are still real and that there is still much to be done to ensure women of all classes, races and sexual orientations are given equal privileges to men. Disparities can still be seen through the 17.3% pay gap between men and women (Workplace Gender Equality Agency, 2016); and the recognition of women in areas such as the sporting (Starkey, 2011); and entertainment (Hatton & Trautner, 2013) industries. The third wave was, and still is, met with much criticism, particularly for its apparent disregard for feminist history (Evans & Chamberlain,