First-wave feminism

Quick Facts: Who was First-wave feminism?

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First-wave feminism

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A historical period (19th-early 20th century) focused on securing women's legal rights, especially suffrage.

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Origins & Early Life

First-wave feminism was a period of feminist activity and thought that occurred during the 19th and early 20th century throughout the Western world. It focused on legal issues, primarily on securing women's right to vote. The term is often used synonymously with the kind of feminism espoused by the liberal women's rights movement with roots in the first wave, with organizations such as the International Alliance of Women and its affiliates. This feminist movement still focuses on equality from a mainly legal perspective. The term first-wave feminism itself was coined by journalist Martha Lear in a New York Times Magazine article in March 1968, "The Second Feminist Wave: What do these women want?" First-wave feminism is characterized as focusing on the fight for women's political power, as opposed to de facto unofficial inequalities.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

The first wave of feminism generally advocated for formal equality, while later waves typically advocated for substantive equality. The wave metaphor is well established, including in academic literature, but has been criticized for creating a narrow view of women's liberation that erases the lineage of activism and focuses on specific visible actors. The term "first-wave" and, more broadly, the wave model have been questioned when referencing women's movements in non-Western contexts because the periodization and the development of the terminology were entirely based on the happenings of Western feminism and this cannot be applied to non-Western events in an exact manner. However, women participating in political activism for gender equity modeled their plans on western feminists demands for legal rights. This is connected to the Western first-wave and occurred in the late 19th century and continued into the 1930s in connection to the anti-colonial nationalist movement.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The issues of inclusion that began during the first-wave of the feminist movement in the United States and persisted throughout subsequent waves of feminism are the topic of much discussion on an academic level. Some scholars find the wave model of western feminism to be troubling because it condenses a long history of activism into distinct categories that characterize generations of activists instead of acknowledging a complex, interconnected, and intersectional history of women's rights. This is thought to diminish the struggles and achievements of many people as well as worsen separation and conflicts between different groups of marginalized feminists. The points of contention that persist in modern discussions of Western and global feminism began with the inequity that hallmarked first-wave feminism. The way in which the west has been oriented as an authority in global feminist discussions has been criticized by feminists in the United States such as bell hooks for replicating colonial hierarchies of discussion, possession of knowledge and centering gender as the foundation of equality.

Chronological Milestones & Life Events

1. 1968: 1968 Milestone — The term first-wave feminism itself was coined by journalist Martha Lear in a New York Times Magazine article in March 1968, "The Second Feminist Wave: What do these women want?

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: First-wave feminism

True or False: “The concept of 'first-wave feminism' was coined by Martha Lear in the early 20th century.”

Answer (FALSE ❌): Martha Lear coined the term in March 1968, which is associated with later feminist discussions, not the initial wave period.

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

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Frequently Asked Questions about First-wave feminism