The Feminine Mystique, By Betty Friedan

In the 20th and 21st century, there have been many human rights violations that have occurred. These human rights violations have resulted in many people suffering. One human rights violation that occurred during the 1960’s in the United States was the Feminist Movement.

All throughout history, women have been limited in every aspect of their daily lives. This was either due to culture or simply tradition. It was normal for a women to play the traditional housewife role. This “housewife role” included marrying at a young age, starting a family immediately and devoting their lives to their family. Women had no legal rights and were subjected to their husbands. They were subjected to the point where their husband was in control of their …show more content…
This happened after Betty Friedan’s book, The Feminine Mystique, was published. According to Dictionary.com, feminism is “the doctrine advocating social, political, and all other rights of women equal to those of men” and “an organized movement for the attainment of such rights for women.” Many voices of women were captured in this book. Her book caused women to question if their traditional lifestyle as a housewife was for them. Women felt that they had been unfulfilled in their lives and as though they were only “...somebody who can be called on when you want something (Tavaana.org).” In 1966, an activist group called the National Organization for Women (NOW) was formed. This group of women, including Betty Friedan, worked together to demand equal pay for equal work and asked legislation to put an end to gender discrimination. They also wanted to end the sexualization of women’s bodies, so in 1968, they set up “Freedom Trash Cans” outside of the Miss America Pageant near Atlantic City. These were built so that “women could throw out all symbols of female oppression including false eyelashes, hair curlers, bras, girdles, and high-heeled shoes