a great change in the status of american women took place when
History of women in the United States Second-wave feminism was diverse in its causes and goals. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, parallel with the counterculture movements, women with more radical ideas about feminist goals began to organize. In her work, Daring to Be Bad: Radical Feminism in America, 1967-1975, historian Alice Echols gives a thorough description of the short-lived movement. The radical feminists were after not only the end of female oppression by men but, as Echols notes, “They also fought for safe, effective, accessible contraception; the repeal of all abortion laws; the creation of high-quality, community-controlled child-care centers; and an end to the media’s objectification of women.[301] ”
Feminism in Canada The first wave of feminism in Canada occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This early activism was focused on increasing women’s role in public life, with goals including women’s suffrage, increased property rights, increased access to education, and recognition as “persons” under the law.[1] This early iteration of Canadian feminism was largely based in maternal feminism; the idea that women are natural caregivers and “mothers of the nation” who should participate in public life because of their perceived propensity for decisions that will result in good care of society.[2] In this view, women were seen to be a civilizing force on society – which was a significant part of women’s engagement in missionary work and in the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU).[1]