During class, we discussed the movements through the sixties and one of the movements that sparked my interest was the women's movement. It is incredible to think that back then women couldn't open a bank account, were not legally allowed to own businesses and other things that today we would think of as ridiculous.
Betty Friedan, often viewed as the leader and spark to the Women's Movement, attended Smith College. After graduation, she moved to New York to become a reporter but lost her job when she was pregnant with her second child. She had three children but felt bored working as a homemaker. She wondered if others felt the same way so she reached out to graduates from Smith. What they told her inspired her revolutionary book, The Feminine Mystique. She cofounded the National Organization for Women (NOW).
Gloria Steinem also attended Smith College. She had an unusual early life as she did not go to school until she was 11 because her family moved around often. After her parents divorce, she had to take care of her mother who had mental health issues. After taking care of her mother, she was tired of taking care of others, "I didn't want to end up taking care of someone else." She was a freelance journalist who became most famous for going under cover as a play boy bunny.
What interested you about the women's movement? Would you have joined or played a part? Why or why not?
I am also shocked that women still had very few rights, even in my parents' and grandparents' lifetime. I definitely would have joined in the marches of the women's movement, I think they were very powerful. There are still women's marches today, and I was really sad I couldn't go to the one that just happened because I had conflicts, but it looked really empowering and I want to go to the next one.
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