Feminism: The Women's Suffrage Movement

The term feminism originated in the late 19th century as the French word “feminisme,” invented by Charles Fourier, and was first used in English in the 1890s, in association with the movement for equal political and legal rights for women. So far Feminism has come in three waves, the first was the Women’s Suffrage Movement of 1910 in Washington State. This was the first movement of its kind and it caused a lot controversy. The fight for Women’s right to Vote was hard fought, but Washington State became the first state to allow women to vote, leading the way for others to follow. Then on June 4, 1919 Congress passed the 19th Amendment guaranteeing that all women had the right to vote. The second wave of feminism was the Women’s Liberation Movement …show more content…
Feminism should encourage women to chose traditional roles held by men as well as wife and mothering roles; all women should be feminists. Feminism is the belief in the equality of the sexes. This should not be accomplished by bringing down men or declaring women are better. Encouragement among women shouldn 't be the encouragement of selfishness and entitlement. Both genders have a mutual obligation to help resolve these issues. “All recent studies of successful marriages show that gender equity creates a context where each member of the couple is likely to be affirmed. This affirmation creates greater happiness, and, even if the marriage does not last forever, the peer friendship that has been the foundation of the bond continues. Significantly, in future feminist movement we will spend less time critiquing patriarchal marriage bonds and expend more effort showing alternatives, showing the value of peer relationships which are founded on principles of equality, respect, and the belief that mutual satisfaction and growth are needed for partnerships to be fulfilling and lasting.” (Feminism is for Everyone, Bell Hook) There needs to be a partnership between the sexes; interdependence is the key. Feminists need to be willing to address men’s issues as well because working towards gender equity mean equity for all genders. Society as a whole needs to generate social norms that are realistic, fair, and appropriately flexible. This is another reason why the purpose of of this third wave of feminism is hard for most people to grasp. Its about changing the conventional expectations for each gender. Expectations like women should stay at home, have kids, and look pretty while men should be strong, stoic, and the providers. In our society a girl who is a virgin is called prude and girl who has had sex is called a slut, while a man who constantly has sex is called lucky. These