A Brief History of Feminism. "There is nothing in this world equal to that of a woman determined to rise"

1. The F Word.

2. Feminism.

3. What is Feminism? “A belief in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes. The movement organized around this belief.”

4. Strong and powerful women can be identified back as early as Cleopatra (69 BCE) Famous as one of the greatest political and romantic heroines of all time.

5. Mary Magdalene One of the best known and loved figures of the Christian faith. Some believe her to have been a dark skinned Ethiopian Queen. Many believe her to have been a prostitute. In 1209 the entire town of Beziers in France went willingly to their deaths upholding their belief that Jesus and Mary were sacred lovers.

6. “Boudicca” Warrior Queen of The Celtic Empire Boudicca had the courage to take on the Roman Empire in the early first century

7. Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179 AD) A nun who was a kind of religious hermit or ascetic . She openly sought to address the importance of pleasure and orgasms for women. She was also a mystic, musician and composer . She was famous for her belief in natural medicines and their ability to treat disease such as cancer.

8. Joan of Arc (6thJan 1412 -30th May 1431) At the age of 13 Joan began to have visions that she was destined to liberate her country of France from the English. She was granted command of an army where she lead French troops to victory at the age of 17. She was later captured by the English and burnt at the stake for witch craft. This was witnessed by 10 000 people she was aged 19. She remains France’s best known and loved heroine.

9. Feminism as a movement has been divided into 3 waves over the past 200 years.

10. The first wave Began in the 19th and 20th Century and dealt with women: Opposing the idea that husbands owned their wives and children. Gaining political power. But mostly the first wave was about Suffrage, the right to vote.

11. Suffragettes fought very hard to obtain the right to vote for women which began in about 1860.

12. There were many scare campaigns to stop women from achieving this.

13. Suffragettes carried out direct action such as chaining themselves to railings, setting fire to mailbox contents, smashing windows and on occasions setting off bombs.

14. New Zealand women become the first in the world to gain the right to vote in 1893 . In 1894 South Australian Women were granted the right to vote followed by Western Australia in 1899. NSW in 1902 and finally Victoria in 1908. Australian Aboriginal women first voted in 1967.

16. The Second Wave 1960’s - 80s Was mostly interested in equality and ending discrimination

17. In the 60’s some women burnt their bras as a symbol of sexual freedom from a patriarchal world. Women had begun to question their status as sex objects and found ways to let the world know about it. Germain Greer a famous Australian feminist said at the time, “Bra’s are a ludicrous invention.”

18. More and more women began to fight for the right for equality.

19. Women began to create important & lasting change.

20. Feminist Achievements In Western Society The right to initiate divorce proceedings and "no fault" divorce. The right for women to make individual decisions regarding pregnancy. Access to contraceptives and abortion. The right to own property. More employment for women at more equitable wages. Access to university education.

21. Third wave feminism is Modern Feminism

22. Third Wave feminism celebrates diversity….

23. Personal Empowerment Dominates This Feminist Philosophy Women can wear makeup, shave their legs, be sexy, be feminine, have a job, be a soccer mum, heterosexual, lesbian, tomboy, princess, executive, wife or lover it doesn’t matter.

24. Women’s sexuality is celebrated…. this movement encourages women to explore sexual options and express themselves in whatever ways they feel comfortable.

25. Remember that the journey to get this far started a long time ago…

26. and…that we have a long way to go.

28. “In this world there is no force equal to the strength of a woman determined to rise” W.E.B. Dubois