New York Radical Women (NYRW) was a well-known American feminist group. It was active in the late 1960s. The main goal and mission of NYRW in New York were to oppose the patriarchal system. It was as if the world was made for men back then. They could do what they wanted, work where they wanted, hold high positions, etc. A man was considered the head of the family. Men also had authority over women. At the same time, women were constantly oppressed. That’s why this group was created, to change the old patriarchal system. Do New Yorkers know how women’s rights were fought for in the 1960s? Learn more at newyorka.
History of the Feminist Group
NYRW was founded in New York City in 1967. It included women from radical political groups. In the 1960s, the radical feminists fought for civil rights. They also constantly protested the Vietnam War. The leaders and founders of the feminist movement in New York were the following:
- Robin Morgan
- Carol Hanisch
- Shulamith Firestone
- Chude Pam Allen
They demonstrated what should not be in society, namely:
- Civil rights, where men predominate
- The idea that a woman belongs at home, not in the office
- Other things related to gender inequality
Feminists Against the Vietnam War
One of the largest protests organized by NYRW was over the Vietnam War. In 1969, many women (mothers, wives, daughters and friends of murdered soldiers) gathered in Colombia for an anti-war rally. They also opposed women who supported the war in Vietnam.
The Radical Feminists Confronting Beauty Pageants
One of the largest beauty contests, Miss America, is held every year in the USA. NYRW opposed the event. They called it a “cattle auction”. More than 400 feminists assembled to condemn the show.
NYRW criticized and stood against the beauty competition. In their opinion, women were judged by primitive beauty standards. The contest also supported the Vietnam War. The winner was to visit U.S. troops. Also, the beauty pageant was racist. For a long time, no black woman had ever been crowned Miss America.
There were other demonstrations as well. The women found a garbage can and symbolically threw “objects of female torture” into it. These included:
- High-heeled shoes
- False eyelashes
- Curlers
- Hairsprays
- Mops
- Pots
- Pans
- Corsets
- Bras
- Other things
Feminists wanted to burn all these objects oppressing women near the police station.
Also, during the 1968 live beauty pageant, NYRW displayed the Women’s Liberation banner. Many people watched the event. Thus, the radical feminists’ civil rights and anti-Vietnam War protests were widely publicized. The press began to write about them often.
The Group’s dissolution
In 1969, after a series of large-scale protests, the philosophical views of some of the group’s representatives were divided. So, NYRW was forced to dissolve. At the same time, they did not abandon their feminist activities. Each of the leaders organized her own group based on her ideology. For example, one of the group founders, Robin Morgan, gathered women interested in changing the political and social spheres of the country.