With International Women’s Day arriving on Saturday, March 8, let’s remind ourselves of how much women have accomplished throughout history. In a time when our rights to healthcare, freedom and education are jeopardized, we need a reminder of where we have been so that we keep progressing instead of regressing.
The word feminism was coined in 1837 by the Frenchman Charles Fourier to describe women fighting for legal, economic and social equality, in a time when women could not own land, open bank accounts, or even be seen as human beings.
This was the first wave of feminism, spanning from the 19th century up to the early 20th century. During this first wave, women argued men and women had equal intellectual capabilities and, therefore, women deserved an education, to be treated as equals, and for the law to not exclude them. In Nigeria, a group of educated women called the Jajis took it upon themselves to provide an education to other women. In Europe, we started to see the beginnings of intersectional feminism discussing the relationship between class and religion.
International Women’s Day was first observed in 1907 when 1500 textile workers in New York marched for better working conditions and the right to vote. In 1863 Susan. B Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton decided to go out and get signatures to petition for the abolition of slavery. In 1869 they created the National Woman’s Suffrage Association. Sojourner Truth was an escaped slave who after meeting Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison would give speeches on the evils of slavery and the necessity for women’s freedom. Marie Stopes advocated for birth control and the right for a woman to choose. In Egypt, activist Huda Sha’arawi would advocate for anti-colonialism and freedom. In 1923 she founded the Egyptian Feminist Union, and published a magazine called L’Egyptienne. In Japan, Fusae Ichijawa formed the Suffragette League for Women focusing on the improvement of women’s lives and the abolition of laws excluding women from politics.
The second wave started in the 1960s and lasted until the 1980s. During this time, the fight was still about equal rights, not only for white women but also for women of all races and nations. The idea of feminism also started spreading to Spain, Mexico, etc.
This time also saw the creation of Womanism, a movement that focused on the experiences of women of color. Womanist Alice Walker was a notable figure in the movement who spoke on how womanism is like a garden where all women of color get to flourish, despite class divisions, gender inequality, racism and sexual repression. She also wrote “The Color Purple” and “Everyday Use”.
Bell hooks was a writer who advocated for women of color, writing such books as “Ain’t I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism” and “Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center.” Anti-colonialism also gained traction, as figures like Gloria Anzaldúa proposed that sexism comes from colonialism, since there is a hierarchy of gender, race, class and health. She wrote “Borderlands” and “This Bridge Called My Back: Writing by Radical Women of Color”
The third wave of feminism started in the 1990s and continues to this day. Now the fight is about abortion, women in the workforce and domestic violence.
Femicide is a term coined in 1970 that means the murder of a woman just because she is a woman. A femicide happens when a man murders a woman because she rejected him. In the municipality of Ecatepec, Mexico, 600 women were murdered in the last four years. This sparked a protest where 600 pink crosses were put up alongside women’s shoes, to honor every single one of these women. Every year, on March 8, Mexican women from all the states, municipalities and villages, protest in the streets wearing purple or green to demand equal rights and justice for those who were taken. Family members bring pictures of their loved ones who went out one day and never returned, asking for answers, justice and their return. It is a heartbreaking thing to witness over and over and yet, there have been no answers for most of these families.
The fight is not over, and I hope that we don’t lose all the things we fought for. Build community and help each other out for the sake of all women.
College of DuPage has a feminist alliance that continues to work toward these goals. You can find more information through their Instagram @COD_feministalliance.
