Feminist Organizing and Women’s Rights

Feminist organizing refers to the efforts of women to explicitly challenge their seemingly inferior role to men. Whether that refers to gendered violence, inequality in the workplace, or sexual harassment, these groups aim to call attention to and fight against gender-based inequalities. The personal is political. Depending on when or where the organizing took place, many women took the initiative to join the movement to dismantle the patriarchy. A fundamental aspect of this work lies in these groups’ ability to be intersectional when recruiting members. You cannot be for women without being for women of color, queer women as well as poor and working-class women. It is important for women to fight for their liberation and to be heard because women make up half of the population and half of its potential.

The combination of topics within this chapter highlights the universality of women organized to be heard, as well as the diversity of the topics that women seek liberation from. In South Africa, while women were fighting for their rights as women, they were also fighting against racial oppression – they chose this female forum because they felt that their voices were better heard when not being drowned out by overpowering men. In Puerto Rico, women were calling for a state of emergency for the government to recognize the pandemic that was – and still is – gendered violence on the Island, so that some semblance of justice could be brought to its victims. The role of the United Nations in being a voice for Women’s rights further highlights how it is a global concern. Thus, it is evident how women play a large role in liberation movements throughout history, as well as throughout the world.

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Gender and Sexuality Throughout World History Copyright © 2020 by The Authors is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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