Women's Rights, Disability Rights, and LGBTQ+ Rights Movements

Women's Rights Movement

  • 1963 - The Feminist Mystique by Betty Friedan
    • Described political, social, and economic equality of men and women.
    • Outlined patterns preventing women from achieving their full potential.
    • Showed frustration of women trying to be the perfect wife and mother.
  • NOW (National Organization for Women)
    • Founded in 1966 by 28 women, including Betty Friedan.
    • Sought equal rights for women, such as pay and job opportunities.
    • Addressed false images of women in the media.
  • Social Conditions
    • Prevailing expectation for women to stay home and care for children.
  • Gloria Steinem
    • Led the Women’s Liberation Movement to include women in the Equal Rights Amendment.
    • Currently, there is no Equal Rights Amendment for women in the Constitution.
  • Title IX
    • US Code Section 20
    • Prohibits sex-based exclusion from participation, denial of benefits, or discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.
    • Applies to an entire school or institution if any part receives federal funds.
    • Requires equal funding for men's and women’s sports and equal opportunities to play.
    • Includes no discrimination in class enrollment and college admissions based on sex.
  • Effects Today
    • WNBA and WPS would not exist without Title IX, as they are an extension of women's collegiate sports.
    • Some argue that equal benefits for men's and women's sports are unfair due to higher revenue generation by men's sports.
  • Birth Control
    • The Pill was the first contraceptive pill for long-term use by healthy women for a social purpose, sparking controversy.
    • Some felt it allowed people to play “god”.
    • FDA approved the contraceptive pill on May 11, 1960.
  • Roe v Wade 1973
    • Many states outlawed abortions (e.g., Texas allowed it only to save the mother's life).
    • The case had a significant impact on abortion laws.
  • Overturned
    • Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court in June 2022.
    • Abortion is no longer federally protected but is controlled by individual states.
    • This decision was made despite public opinion.
    • States can now control marriage.
  • Obama’s Supreme Court Justice nominations
    • The sitting president can choose justices if they die.
    • Trump was able to select three of the justices.
  • Salary Disparities
    • Men dominate higher-paying jobs.
    • Equal pay for males and females doing the same job.
    • The need for more women in STEM fields, rather than requiring women and men to be paid equally.
    • Women are often offered fewer jobs because they typically take care of newborns.
    • Assertive females are viewed by businesses different.

Americans with Disabilities / Disability Rights Movement

  • 2002 Court Decision
    • The court ruled that it is illegal to kill the mentally retarded.
  • History of Disability
    • People with disabilities have always existed.
    • Before disability rights legislation, people with disabilities were often institutionalized.
    • Institutions for the Feeble-Minded opened across the country between 1860 and 1940.
  • Feeble Minded
    • Lacking in general intelligence or displaying a lack of productivity or ‘backwards’ behavior.
    • Belief that “feeble-minded create more feeble-minded” (genetics).
  • Sterilization
    • People considered ‘unfit’ were sterilized to prevent them from having children, often without consent.
    • Reasons for sterilization:
      • Feeble-Mindedness
      • Sexual Promiscuity
      • Mental illness
      • Physical Disability
      • ‘Pauperism’
    • Aimed to make sure everyone is ‘perfect’
  • Legal Issue
    • Can someone committed to a mental institution be sterilized?
    • Decision: Yes, a feeble-minded person can be sterilized against their will after a hearing.
    • Still legal today, particularly in detention centers and prisons.
  • Capitol Crawl
    • 1990
    • People in wheelchairs crawled up the steps of the Capitol Building.
    • Designed to highlight the inaccessibility of the Capitol Building.
    • Focused on access to public places.
  • A.D.A (Americans With Disability Act)
    • Signed by President George H.W. Bush after the Capitol Crawl of 1990.
    • Goals:
      • Prevent discrimination based on disability.
      • Ensure accommodations and accessibility in public spaces/workplaces.
  • I.D.E.A (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act)
    • 1975: Education for All Handicapped Children Act.
    • 1990: Renamed to Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
    • Focused on free public education for all students, including accommodations for students with disabilities.
    • Introduced the concept of the Individualized Education Plan (IEP).
    • Before I.D.E.A., students with disabilities were often sent to underfunded ‘specialized’ schools.
  • Current Problems (30 years later)
    • Accessibility remains the #1 problem.
    • Other problems:
      • Lack of representation in the media.
      • Inaccessibility of media for the blind and/or the deaf.
      • Discrimination against ‘invisible’ disabilities.
  • Groups that help
    • Autism Speaks: Largest organization for research and support for people with autism.
    • The Arc: Largest community-based organization helping people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families.

LGBTQ+ Rights Movement

  • The Genderbread Person
    • Identity, attraction, expression, and sex.
  • Stonewall Riots
    • June 29, 1969.
    • Spontaneous, violent demonstrations against a police raid at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village.
  • Impact
    • First instance in American history of the homosexual community fighting back against a government-sponsored system.
    • Sparked the Gay Rights Movement.
    • Gay Pride parade is held annually on the anniversary (June 29) in NYC and other cities.
  • AIDS
    • First known case in the US in 1980.
    • Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome.
    • Initially thought to ONLY affect gay people.
  • Impact
    • AIDS was a death sentence at first; now, with treatments, people live long lives.
    • Created fear and stigma of the gay community.
    • HIV originated from monkeys in Zaire and spread to flight attendants.
  • Ryan White
    • Teenager from Indiana who became a national poster child for HIV/AIDS.
    • Hemophiliac infected with HIV from a contaminated blood transfusion.
    • Diagnosed in December 1984 with 6 months to live.
    • Expelled from middle school because of his infection.
  • Impact
    • Before White, AIDS was widely associated with the male gay community.
    • Perception shifted as White and other HIV-infected people advocated for research and public education.
    • Led to Ryan White Programs, the largest provider of services for people living with HIV/AIDS in the US.
  • Magic Johnson
    • Retired from NBA due to AIDS in 1990.
    • Showed that anyone, regardless of sexual orientation, could contract AIDS.
  • Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT)
    • Enabled by President Clinton in 1993.
    • Openly gay individuals could not serve in the military.
    • The rationale was that openly gay service members “would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability.”
  • Impact
    • Persecution of lesbian and gay military personnel soared instead of declining.
    • Repealed by Obama in 2011.
    • Trump's attempts to ban transgender individuals from the military were blocked by the courts.
  • Defense Of Marriage Act (DOMA)
    • Signed by Clinton in 1996.
    • Defined marriage as between a man and a woman.
    • The Full Faith and Credit Clause was not recognized for same-sex couples.
  • Impact
    • Restricted federal marriage benefits to same-sex couples.
    • Inter-state marriage recognition only for opposite-sex couples.
    • 2011: Obama declared DOMA unconstitutional and directed the Department of Justice to stop defending it; the House directed their state lawyers to defend it instead.
  • Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)
    • Groups of same-sex couples sued their states (Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, and Tennessee).
    • Challenged the constitutionality of state bans on same-sex marriage.
  • Employment
    • Are gay men and women protected from workplace discrimination?
    • Bostock vs. Clayton County - June 15, 2020.
    • The Supreme Court ruled that under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, it is illegal for businesses to fire employees based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.
  • Groups fighting for LGBTQ+ Rights
    • Human Rights Campaign (HRC): Largest civil rights group fights for equality for the LGBTQ+ community.
    • GLAAD: LGBT media advocacy organization, is changing the culture and acceptance within the community.
  • Issues Today
    • Discrimination
    • Adoption Rights
    • Education in schools (discussion in health regarding the LGBTQ+ community)
    • Trending Laws (bathroom bills, etc.)