Women's Rights Movement Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Women's Rights Movement - Research Paper Example The call for feminist rights movement for inclusion into more legal and social rights was largely as a result of the abolitionist movement that occurred prior to the Civil War. This was in itself due to the women’s realization that their slave rescue efforts were being hindered by lack of their own freedom. Several literatures have suggested that there existed a close relationship between these two occurrences. Within these developments, two organizations were subsequently initiated so that they look into issues of expanded women’s rights. Of historical significance was the â€Å"National Organization for Women† which was formed around1966 with statement of purpose to â€Å"Fight for equal rights with men† (National Organization for Women) In effect many women found solace in joining feminist organizations. There were widespread public lecture, newspaper articles, billboards, women parades and other variety of tactic that were used by these organizations i n attempt to communicate the message of equality. Other authors suggest that during this 70year struggle individual campaigns and petitions were carried out in attempts to elucidate the women’s state of affairs at every level. The feminist movement draws from a series of historical, political and public campaigns and advocacy undertaken by many women suffragists to deliver the modern day American woman. The background and the Beginning: Around 1800s women’s life was characteristically quite hard. Earlier works by Lucy Stone, the founder of â€Å"American Woman Suffrage Association† asserting that most of the women during this period worked in unbearable cotton mills and associated poor living conditions with peanut pay. Women oppression was so widespread that women were never allowed opportunities to testify in court cases nor speak before a gathering. (Friedan)Within these developments, Lucy goes ahead to say that marital rights of women were limited with women being regarded as property that were owned by their husbands, and therefore, â€Å"Out of indignation at the condition of women, the suffrage movement was born. For 70years it played a leading role in great struggle to raise womankind to equality with men† with suffrage becoming the main focus of these movements. (National Organization for Women) With the first Women Convention Conference held in 1848 in New York, several declarations by the participant at the Convention called for women to be given equal opportunities and rights in issues that included education, property and right to vote. While drawing from the United States’ independence declaration, this Convention thus declared that, â€Å"We hold these truths to be self evident: that all men and women are created equal†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (National Organization for Women) though it did not escape without saying that these movements faced strong opposition from their male counterparts who still believed that women we re better if they were represented by men. The Opposition Within this paradigm of increased interest to deliberate the womankind, several other opposing forces opposed the women’s quest for equality. In this situation were a mixture of complexities and personalities drawn from various societal spheres. Religion for instance was opposed to this movement arguing that the Bible recognized women’s position under a man. Strong family moralists also expressed fears that equality cause