Women March Here to Protest Vietnam War
A group of 400 women, many accompanied by their young children, staged a march in protest against the war in Vietnam yesterday through throngs of startled midtown shoppers.
Chanting such slogans as: “End the war in Vietnam!” and “Bring the troops home- now!”, the demonstrators held a two hour rally at Park Avenue and 33rd Street and then paraded across town to the Port Authority Bus Terminal.
Link to full article:
This New York Times article from 1966 describes women fighting in their own way against the Vietnam War. These protests were used in order to try and stop the controversial war from continuing. During the Vietnam War the draft was used in order to build the number of soldiers that the US has to fight with, however many people did not want to fight in Vietnam thinking that it is not their problem. These protests were very common during this time in order to try and appeal to the government and get them to remove the troop. These protests coincide with the second wave of feminism movements, and many used these protests to fight for what they wanted, however sometimes what they want to be accomplished was not the same as the person standing next to them.
Nurse Is the First Woman Decorated in Vietnam War
This New York Times article from 1968 talks about First Lieut. Jane A. Lombardi being the first woman to be decorated in the Vietnam War. This shows how even though women were not in combat roles while overseas they were still putting themselves at risk and doing their part to protect and help save the lives of the men protecting the US. As the US’s history of sending nurses into the field has shown these women work to serve their country in whatever way that they can. The US’s involvement in Vietnam War was highly criticized by many within the states along with the use of the draft in order to gain soldiers. However these women were not drafted into becoming nurses, but they did it because it they wanted to. Their commitment shows how important women were during this time in order to save as many lives as possible.
Equal Rights Amendment
Equality of Rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.
link to full document: http://recordsofrights.org/records/380/equal-rights-resolution
The Equal Rights Amendment was a proposed document that was passed through the House and the Senate by 1972 and just needed to be ratified by 2/3 of the states in order to become an amendment to the Constitution, however it fell short of the votes it needed after fighting against the “Stop ERA” movement. The ERA’s message was clear, saying that women should be equal in all accounts to men and should not be discriminated on based upon gender. This movement was one of the most famous proposed laws that was never actually passed through. The ERA protests were happening on the backs of the anti war and anti draft movements that had taken place in the years before. As these women were trying to win a fight that was started in the 1800’s the minority who did not want the ERA passed feared that it would hurt women’s rights instead of helping them. The leader of Stop ERA was Phyllis Schlafly and she was adamant against the ERA saying that it would take away the privileges that come with being a woman in the US. Parts of this movement are still being debated and questions on some of women’s basic rights of choice are still in question.