The Rise And Fall Of Feminist Organizations In The 1970's

In “The rise and Fall of Feminist Organizations in the 1970s: Dayton as a Case Study” by Judith Sealander and Dorothy Smith, analyzes the growth and decline of feminist organizations in the 70s. A variety of organizations were born at the beginning of 1970 and others emerged after the establishment of Dayton Women’s Liberation. Centers were provided so that women could discuss issues in the workplace and provide advice for them. This was successful for the moment, but it took a downturn once members and leaders stopped taking an interest in their movement and the organizations developed financial issues. Although most of the organizations ended due to the lack of involvement and funds, some were still practiced in the following decades. Judith …show more content…
“The women’s movement arrived in Dayton in September 1969” and attracted Cheryl Radican, a writer “…for Dayton’s recently established ‘underground’ newspaper…” who soon “…formed Dayton’s first consciousness-raising (CR) group” to raise awareness of their program (Sealander & Smith, 1986, 323-324). The CR group made it possible for the emergence of “Dayton Women’s Liberation” that made it possible for the “Women’s Center and Dayton Women Working” to join them by 1975 (Sealander & Smith, 1986, 325). The decline came when “Dayton Women Working plunged enthusiastically,” the most successful organization to discuss the topic of the working conditions of women (Sealander & Smith, 1986, 327). The downfall began in 1980 when “Dayton Women’s Liberation, Dayton Women Working, and Dayton Women’s Center had died” because the organizations depended on funding and “ambitious programs” (Sealander & Smith, 1986, 335). The purpose of this article serves to depict the strengths and weaknesses feminist organizations faced as they gained recognition and support from programs. It follows the formation of organizations in chronological order from birth to death as they came across issues. The resources used include news articles, proposals, personal interviews, letters from the Women’s Center, and memos from the National Women’s Employment Project. The article serves to educate the reader on the impact of feminist organizations and their achievements during the 1970s. The authors’ methodology was made by providing three reasons for studying the rise and fall of feminist organizations in Dayton, Ohio and listing their findings in chronological order. The authors included personal views and commentary from women involved in the feminist movement. The article is a technical article because it follows the progress of feminist organizations through the 70s. ADDD MORE TO ME