Further, the lack of intersectionality in modern feminist movements is still as prevalent and damaging today as it was sixty years ago. Modern-day feminists continue to fail to advocate for the rights of non-white, non-wealthy women, just as countless others did during the Second-Wave movement.
White feminism continues to serve as the standard for feminist beliefs and agendas, even though women of color face disproportionately high rates of violence, discrimination and poverty. March on Broadway, New York, April 18, 1972, Bill Megalos. Student Activities and Student Life Photograph Collection, Barnard Digital Archives, New York, NY.
worn in the 1950s, and they certainly drew a large amount of criticism from both supporters and opponents of the Second-Wave. Many argued that promiscuous styles invited further objectification, which was considered detrimental to a movement that encouraged women to exist and grow outside of their identities as props for men. Women who felt empowered by wearing masculine styles, like jeans, believed that women who revealed their bodies by wearing miniskirts and bikinis were essentially prostituting themselves for the pleasure of men around them. These dual interpretations of feminism and fashion during the Second-Wave are still a relevant issue in modern-feminism. While many feminists agree that women should have autonomy over their bodies and the subsequent decisions they make, there is still a fervent debate over how this liberation should be represented. Many argue that by wearing revealing clothing, women are perpetuating the notion that they exist to satisfy the male gaze, thus harming the goals of feminism. Others find liberation by defining their sexuality without considering male influence, by owning their femininity through more revealing styles.
Today, jeans, miniskirts and bikinis are integrated so deeply into fashion culture that we often forget where they came from. While the modern presence of these clothing items and our nostalgia for the trends that emerged could indicate the success of the movement, the problematic nature of the Second-Wave feminist movement is still present in current-day feminism. The manifestations of the Second-Wave are present beyond the fashion staples it produced, as it solidified its legacy by permeating all aspects of culture. The debate on ownership versus objectification and a lack of intersectionality remain two incredibly large issues in modern feminism. If feminism is not intersectional, meaning advocacy for all those who identify as female, then it is not feminism at all.
Advocacy for all means all races, genders and sexual identities. Most essentially, it means advocacy for all women. This advocacy is not dependent on how revealing or modest women’s fashion choices are or what jobs they have. And if advocacy for intersectionality is not a permanent agenda of feminist movements, then we have not progressed beyond the flaws of the Second-Wave.