Feminism is a social movement that demands equal rights for women compared to men. The word comes from Latin femalewhich means ‘woman’, and is composed with the suffix –ismwhich denotes ‘doctrine’ or ‘movement’.
Feminism, currently, is constituted as a current of thought which brings together a set of movements and ideologies, both political, cultural and economic, with the fundamental objective of achieving gender equality and the transformation of power relations between men and women.
In this sense, some achievements of feminist movements have been access to education, the right to vote, the protection of sexual and reproductive rights, among many others related to citizen and democratic values.
As such, feminism tends to be viewed, from a chronological perspective, as a sequence of historical waves. However, these stages were preceded by various works with a feminist tendency, even before this social movement was determined as feminism.
The first wave It emerged in various countries throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, both in Europe, mainly England, and in the United States and other Latin American countries. At that time, women fought, in principle, to obtain equal rights in marriage and later, for the right to vote.
The second wave It was determined to demand family, sexual, labor and reproduction rights.
For its part, the third wave, spans from the 1990s to the present day, and seeks to right the wrongs of the second wave. Consequently, it seeks to demonstrate that women can assume various risks and obligations, develop in multiple spaces and be highly competitive and independent, therefore, it is related to the liberation of women.
In this sense, this third wave is sometimes called “the fight for women’s empowerment” through solidarity and support among women, expressed in sisterhood.
See also: types of feminism.
radical feminism
As radical feminism it is called current of thought that proposes ending patriarchal dominationthat is, male supremacy, through the opposition of gender roles and a complete social restructuring.
This movement had its origin in the United States during the seventies of the 20th century, after various political, social and intellectual movements, when women proposed to fight for themselves against the social inequality produced by the domination of men over women.
Some criticisms made of the so-called radical feminism are that it ends up incurring attitudes typical of hembrism, that is, contempt and discrimination towards men and what they represent.
Feminism and machismo
Feminism is a current of thought that arises with critical and vindicative purposes of the role of women in traditionally sexist or patriarchal societies and, its main objective is equal rights between men and women.
He sexismfor its part, includes a set of attitudes, behaviors, practices and beliefs that deny the equal rights of women in society and establish social structures of male supremacy.
As such, it manifests itself regardless of culture, tradition or religion. It is precisely this type of behavior that has led to female emancipation through the feminist movement.
See also Machismo and feminism.