Over the whole of the semester you will have noticed the diversity of women's experiences and perspectives through each historical era we have covered in the course. However, the modern period is often represented as offering the widest range of diversity within women's activists groups and what is referred to as the "feminist movement." For example, chapter 11 features sections on "liberal feminism," women in the Black Power movement, "Latina activism," women as leaders of the peace movement, and women as political pioneers. It is perhaps not surprising that when U. S. society reached the 1980s and 1990s there was a kind of backlash against women’s movements and the criticisms lumped all the diverse streams of feminism together without thoughtful attention to their many differences. To put this in contemporary context, public figures as diverse as Sarah Palin, Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama, Beyoncé, and Miley Cyrus (to name just a few - you can probably think of many others) could, believe it or not, all claim to be descended from the feminism of the 1960s and 1970s. How would you define or describe "feminism" today? Is it still a useful term? Is it necessary? Or does it blur or simplify some important differences that we might rather highlight? (Responses should be at least 250 words—although for this topic, you may feel like you need more! That's OK.) .

1. Over the whole of the semester you will have noticed the
diversity of women's experiences and perspectives through each
historical era we have covered in the course. However, the
modern period is often represented as offering the widest range
of diversity within women's activists groups and what is
referred to as the "feminist movement." For example, chapter 11
features sections on "liberal feminism," women in the Black
Power movement, "Latina activism," women as leaders of the
peace movement, and women as political pioneers. It is perhaps
not surprising that when U. S. society reached the 1980s and
1990s there was a kind of backlash against women’s movements
and the criticisms lumped all the diverse streams of feminism
together without thoughtful attention to their many differences.
To put this in contemporary context, public figures as diverse as
Sarah Palin, Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama, Beyoncé, and
Miley Cyrus (to name just a few - you can probably think
of many others) could, believe it or not, all claim to be
descended from the feminism of the 1960s and 1970s. How
would you define or describe "feminism" today? Is it still a
useful term? Is it necessary? Or does it blur or simplify some
important differences that we might rather highlight?
(Responses should be at least 250 words—although for this
topic, you may feel like you need more! That's OK.)