Third Wave Feminism

Third Wave Feminism

When ERA died, feminism continued to evolve. The third wave of feminism began in 1980s and still continues today. The third wave feminists may be viewed differently than the founders were, but they approach their activism with similar principles. Since their founders did all the hard work, the third wave feminists are not fighting for political equality, but they are fighting for social changes. The main social change that they are fighting for is to stop the current war that we are in now.
There were so many accomplishments, and because of these accomplishments, the third wave feminists are fortunate to not have to deal with the oppression of women. Third wavers of the women’s movement have taken more of a social perspective than the previous wavers. Feminists would like to put an end to what bell hooks calls a feminist struggle. She proposes that this “struggle be viewed as a component of an overall movement to end violence” (hooks 63). She says that men and women should work together to “eliminate” violence. However, many other people, such as Barbara Epstein argue that the women’s movement no longer continues. Epstein states “the wind has gone out of the sails, not only of the women’s movement but also of the progressive movement as a whole in the United States generally” (Epstein 2). She suggests that the movement no longer subsists.
I believe that the women’s movement will never die, until we have solved all the problems in the world. As hooks states, “Feminist politics aims to end domination to free us to be who we are-to live lives where we love justice, where we can live in peace”. If the women’s movement did not exist, women would not have come as far as they have and we would be living in a male centralized country.
Understanding its origins and the reasons feminists created women’s movements gives us a better understanding of the movements. We should understand the origins of feminism and actively get involved in such things. As a woman, I am fortunate to live in a time where women are allowed to vote, get higher pays, work next to men, and even become their bosses and many more. We should respect and appreciate all the work that the women did from the beginning of time. It is hard to what to state something without any acknowledgment. They made it easy for us to adopt to our privileges.

Sources

Epstein, Barbara. “The Successes and Failures of Feminism.” Journal of Women’s
History Bloomington: Summer 2002. Vol. 14, Iss.2, p.118-125.

Hooks, Bell. Feminism is for Everybody. Cambridge, MA: South End Press, 2000.