The Feminist Movment in Australia

Australian women had to face male dominance, discrimination and low wages, but little by little, women’s demands were conceded. The first women’s rights movement emerged in part from women’s sense of union with one another and their shared discontents. Women participated in numerous efforts to improve their status. It is said that books like The Subjection of Women written by John Stuart Mill in 1861 and The Feminine Mystique written by Betty Freidan in 1963 encouraged women of all races and classes to fight for what they wanted. These books discussed the role of women in societ

Unexpected factors also contributed to the re-emergence of feminism in the sixties. Extraordinary numbers of married women were being drawn into the job market – although on unequal terms – as the service sector of the economy expanded and consumerism fuelled the desire of many families for a second income. Both the growing numbers of women graduating from college and the availability of the birth-control pill further encouraged women’s entry into the work force. Equally important in sparking feminist consciousness were the oppositional movements of the sixties, particularly the black freedom movement, which was a source of inspiration and a model for social change for second-wave feminists. This new revival of feminism is also known as the second wave of Australian feminism.

Yet the 1950s saw some important developments that would contribute to the rebirth of feminism. One was the rapid expansion of higher education. Although the proportion of women among college students fell during the post war years, their numbers kept rising. This meant a far larger population of educated women, always the heart of feminist movements. Another major development was the steady increase of women, particularly married women, in the post war labour force. The rising numbe

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