Documentary Review: Makers: Women Who Make America, Part One: Awakening

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      This post is part two of a documentary review of Makers: Women Who Make America, Part One: Awakening. As mentioned in the last post, Part One: Awakening focuses on an introduction to the feminist movement, detailing the status of women in the first wave and then the beginning of the second wave. In my opinion, it makes sense that the documentary would start out with women in the first wave of feminism to provide background information and a visual of the opportunities and lives faced during the nineteenth century. The status of women is described through the eyes of society, and how it began to be questioned by women and politics. The second wave is introduced by the event that is noted to be the transition into the second wave of feminism although the first did not end until the early twentieth century. The film provides information and interviews of very motivational and historical figures in the movement and what they faced during the time period, as well as different and contradicting views and disagreements that swirled through society at the time. The value of the information provided in the documentary is very important as it combines information about organizations, events, laws, societal beliefs, and individuals who made a difference in the movement. It serves as sort of a historical timeline of the women's movement which then leads into part two and three. 

National Organization of Women
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      There are two main pieces of information discusses during the beginning that provides understanding of the first wave of feminism. One of which is a personal memoir from Kathrine Switzer who was a long distance runner most of her life. In 1967, she was the first woman to run the Boston Marathon. She was a junior as Syracuse University. She made the statement, "I started as a girl and finished as a grown woman," because of the details of the event. During the race, the coordinator ran after her while grabbing her and demanding her to give him her number because women should not be in the race. The idea that women were not to compete with men and exercise was created in the physical view of women. They were not to have strong legs and a firm body, and also not be fit to endure physical activity. The other detail that was attacked during the first wave of feminism was the status of women. The film described the ideal woman to be married before she graduated college, a house wife or maid, to never have a job, and to never have any wants and needs out of her house wife and motherhood. Propaganda flooded society with women being viewed as weak, but happy housewives, under control of their husbands. 

      The second wave of feminism was much more highlighted in the documentary compared to the first. The second wave moved into more radical views, a collective fight from all ethnicity of women, and also a more personal view as well as the continued political fight. The Feminine Mystique by author Betty Friedan is a piece of literature that seemed to almost lead the second wave of feminism. It brought women together into a collective voice because most had the same struggle of the "problem that has no name." This struggle was the want for something more than just the role of a housewife and motherhood. Women wanted to have the same opportunities as men did, but they were taught to feel guilty if they had that want and to hide it from others. Betty Friedan and others formed the National Organization for Women which is still a large organization that fights for women's rights today. This organization was a strong voice in the women's movement. The Miss American Pageant was an event that also had a strong impact in the beginning of the second wave of feminism. Women gathered and decided that the "perfect image" of women portrayed in the pageant was very oppressing and decided to make a statement about it. A sheep was crowned "Miss America" because women felt that they were being herded by men. There was a "freedom trash can" where participants disposed of items that were worked into the feminine image such as high heels, curlers, bras, and playboy magazines. Finally in the pageant, a large sign was held that read: "Women's Liberation" which furthered the spreading of the movement throughout the world. Women's liberation was a term coined during the second wave that was used as a title to the movement. The liberating factors that women fought for included the workplace and opportunities. Although there were more jobs available in the second wave compared to the first, salaries compared to men were only fractions, many had limits, and most were only factory jobs. One of the examples given was the flight attendant position that was given to women for the first time. Women were very optimistic about their careers, but at the age of 32, they were all fired because the companies only wanted young, attractive women and believed that women at the age of 32 should be at home raising children. Another aspect that was explained in the documentary that proved that it was mainly referring to the second wave was activists that were involved in the civil rights movement. Since the Civil Rights Movement was still a popular topic, the feminist movement adopted many ideas from the Civil Rights Movement. However, black women still struggled to fit in the movement in the early days. They were also less privileged in the workplace and many other areas. Finally, the second wave of feminism was also characterized by radical views that some main feminists such as Betty Friedan did not agree with. Some of the radical groups projected their voice through humorous actions, mass strikes, and were made up of lesbian couples. Although some of their ideas were in argument with other feminists, their voice was very fierce and in the movement. All of these details in the documentary proved that the time period being discussed was the second wave of feminism.