Three Waves Of Feminism

On a forum that I moderate and in which I have (proudly) become known as the resident radical feminist, another member asked me to elaborate upon the "waves" of feminism to which I frequently refer in my postings there. Since most people do not take courses in Women's Studies, Equity Studies or another social science and therefore may not have the background, here is a short and non-academic summary of the three distinct feminist movements of the 20th century.

The First Wave: This era of feminism lasted from about 1900-1920. It is characterized by the suffragette movement which was concerned primarily with women obtaining the right to vote, rather than having their political preferences represented by their husbands/fathers. Other aspects of this era of feminism include causes we would now consider "right-wing", that is, anti-abortion and for prohibition of alcohol. Don't let groups like this fool you; Susan B. Anthony and the others who were against abortion opposed it because it would allow men to have extramarital affairs and keep them secret (since in this pre reliable birth control era, babies were a frequent product of extramarital unions), rather than due to some perceived personhood bestowed upon the unborn fetus. These women opposed alcohol because their husbands often "drank away" their paycheques thus depriving the woman of income with which to care for (often numerous) children.

The Second Wave: This era began around the same time as the Civil Rights movement in the US, and occurred throughout the 1960s-1970s. This is the era of Gloria Steinem, Germaine Greer and Simone de Beauvoir - the one that my mother was raised on. Bra-burning has become a symbol of this supposedly "radical" brand of feminism - a feminism which asked for women's work both in and outside of the home to be recognized as equal to that of men, and asked for a woman's right to sovereignty over her own body. The pivotal 1973 case of Roe v. Wade in the US ushered in a new era of women's reproductive rights, while Our Bodies, Ourselves taught women what they didn't learn in Biology 101 about their genitals and how to enjoy them. This era of feminism has been critiqued for its privileging of white middle class womens' needs over those of others, which is what led to...

The Third Wave: This era began during the 1980s and is arguably the one in which we currently live. In response to concerns raised by groups like the Combahee River Collective (their statement can be found here) that the movement was not meeting the needs of women of colour, lesbian women, transgendered women, disabled women, and working class women among others, the feminist movement as it had been known until this point began to splinter and separate into several smaller groups, many of which formed and pursued its own specific mandate and cause. The idea of the "universal sisterhood", of all women sharing a bond and common interest inherent to their gender was seriously questioned since the most visible movers and shakers of the feminist movement up until this point had been white middle class women. Oppression between groups of women was explored, and the idea of "equality" was complicated so that it was no longer between "women" and "men", existing in a dichotomy of "good" and "bad". This era has been marked with major theoretical breakthroughs and the adoption of ideas like postructuralist theory in discussing and writing about feminism.

There, in a nutshell, is the nature and achievements of the three main "waves" of feminism during the past 100 years. Have something to add? Please expand upon my thoughts in the comments.