Reading and Writing Workshop

Second-Wave Feminism and Social Movements of the 1960s-1970s

Session 1 Key Figures and Movements – Gloria Steinem, NOW, and the Equal Rights Amendment
Reading

• Statement of Purpose – National Organization for Women 1966
  • URL https://www.now.org/history/purpos66.html
• The Equal Rights Amendment – Congressional Testimony 1970 by Gloria Steinem
  • URL https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GPO-CRECB-1970-pt7/pdf/GPO-CRECB-1970-pt7-1-2.pdf

Writing Prompt
Imagine you are attending a NOW rally in the 1970s Write a speech advocating for the Equal Rights Amendment addressing skeptics and supporters alike

Session 2 Reproductive Rights – The Fight for Birth Control and Abortion Roe v Wade
Reading

• Griswold v Connecticut 1965 – Supreme Court Decision which legalized birth control for married couples
  • URL https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/381/479
• Roe v Wade 1973 – Supreme Court Opinion
  • URL https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/410/113

Writing Prompt
Write a personal narrative or fictional account from the perspective of a woman in the early 1970s reflecting on what access or lack thereof to reproductive rights means for her life

Session 3 Women in the Civil Rights LGBTQ and Chicana Movements
Reading

• Fannie Lou Hamer – Testimony at the 1964 Democratic National Convention Civil Rights and Voting Rights
  • URL https://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/sayitplain/flhamer.html
• Lesbian Feminism – The Woman Identified Woman Radicalesbians 1970
  • URL https://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/wlmpc_wlmms01011
• Chicana Feminism – La Chicana by Elizabeth Martinez 1972
  • URL https://archive.org/details/voices-of-the-chicano-movement/page/n43/mode/2up

Writing Prompt
Write a monologue from the perspective of a woman involved in one of these movements Express her struggles hopes and contributions

Session 4 Intersectionality in the Second-Wave Feminist Movement
​Reading

• Aint I a Woman by Sojourner Truth 1851 frequently referenced in 1970s feminist discourse
  • URL https://www.nps.gov/articles/sojourner-truth.htm
• Combahee River Collective Statement 1977 Black Feminism and Intersectionality
  • URL https://combaheerivercollective.weebly.com/the-combahee-river-collective-statement.html

Writing Prompt
Create a poem or short essay exploring the complexities of intersectionality in feminism You may draw from personal experiences or historical perspectives

Conclusion Sharing and ReflectionAt the end of the workshop participants can read their favorite piece from the sessions and reflect on how these historical movements still impact todays fight for equality