Feminist Movement Timeline

(1848 - Present)

The Feminist Movement is a series of social and political campaigns advocating for women's rights, including voting rights, workplace equality, reproductive freedom, and protection from discrimination. Spanning multiple waves from the mid-19th century to the present day, it has transformed laws, culture, and society worldwide. More Less

Go to: Timeline | Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Early Feminist Thought

First scientific society for women founded in Middelburg

1785

The first scientific society for women was founded in Middelburg, a city in the south of the Dutch republic, in 1785, marking an early institutional space for women's intellectual participation.

Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen signed

Aug 1789

The French Revolution began with the inequality felt by French citizens and came as a reaction from the 'Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen,' which was signed in August 1789 and excluded women's rights.

Image source: Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen

Women's March on Versailles during the French Revolution

Oct 5, 1789

The first documented gathering of women to form a movement with a common goal occurred on 5 October 1789, during the French Revolution, when women marched in protest over inequality and hardship.

Image source: Women's March on Versailles

Olympe de Gouges writes the Declaration of the Rights of Woman

1791

French playwright Olympe de Gouges wrote the 'Declaration of the Rights of Woman' in contrast to the 'Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen,' famously stating, 'Women are born free and are man's equal in law.' The term 'feminism' was also first transmitted to China in 1791 through her promotion of 'women's liberation.'

Image source: Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Female Citizen

Olympe de Gouges writes the Declaration of the Rights of Woman

Mary Wollstonecraft publishes A Vindication of the Rights of Woman

1792

British philosopher Mary Wollstonecraft published what has been seen as the first feminist treatise on the human rights of women, pressing the issue of equality between men and women and stating that 'No society can be either virtuous or moral while half of the population are being subjugated by the other half.' Her early ideas are described as protofeminist.

Image source: A Vindication of the Rights of Woman

Mary Wollstonecraft publishes A Vindication of the Rights of Woman

Feminism in China

Taiping Heavenly Kingdom wave of women's strength

1851 - 1864

Before the westernization movement and the reform movement, women in China set off a wave of their own strength in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom (1851-1864), an early expression of female empowerment.

Image source: Taiping Rebellion

Liang Qichao proposes banning foot-binding

1897

In 1897, male feminist Liang Qichao proposed banning foot-binding and encouraged women to engage in the workforce, political environment and education, marking a key moment in Chinese feminism.

Image source: Liang Qichao

Feminism in China begins with the 1911 Revolution

1911

Feminism in China started in the 20th century with the 1911 Revolution, as prior to that time women in China were considered essentially different from men.

Image source: 1911 Revolution

PRC founding grants women equal legal rights

1949

After the PRC's founding in 1949, women were granted the same rights that men were entitled to by law, largely because women's liberation was presented as part of the Chinese nation's liberation.

Image source: China

Suffrage and First Wave

International Council of Women established

1888

The International Council of Women was established in 1888 in Washington, DC, US, becoming one of the earliest North American and European international women's organizations.

Image source: International Council of Women

Elizabeth Cady Stanton recalls the Seneca Falls Convention

Nov 15, 1895

On November 15, 1895, Elizabeth Cady Stanton wrote an address describing how at the Seneca Falls Convention 'a declaration was read and signed by most of those present, and a series of radical resolutions adopted.' Her recollection prompted historians since the 1950s to attribute the convention as the earliest North American Feminist Movement.

Image source: Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Term 'Feminist Movement' coined in the late nineteenth century

1899

The term Feminist Movement was coined in the late nineteenth century to distinguish the Feminist Movement from the Women's Movement, allowing for the inclusion of male feminists.

Image source: Feminist movement

All-Russian Union for Women's Equality founded

1905

Russian nationalist feminist activists founded the All-Russian Union for Women's Equality in 1905, advocating for women's suffrage and co-education.

George Lansbury runs for political candidacy on the feminist ticket

1906

The new movement prompted male feminists like George Lansbury of the British Labour Party to run for political candidacy on the feminist ticket in 1906.

Image source: George Lansbury

George Lansbury runs for political candidacy on the feminist ticket

Suffragette parade in Washington DC

Mar 3, 1913

For the Suffragette's first major display, they held a parade on 3 March 1913 in Washington DC, drawing national attention to the cause of women's suffrage.

Image source: Woman Suffrage Procession

Crystal Eastman writes on birth control as a fundamental right

1918

In 1918 Crystal Eastman wrote an article published in the Birth Control Review contending that birth control is a fundamental right for women and must be available if they are to participate fully in the modern world.

Image source: Crystal Eastman

All-Asian Women's Conference held in Lahore

1931

In 1931, the All-Asian Women's Conference was held in Lahore in what was then British India, bringing together women from across Asia to discuss shared concerns.

Image source: All-Asian Women's Conference

Legal and Social Advances

Prohibition begins in the United States

1920

Women in the movement had called for moral reform by limiting or prohibiting the sale and consumption of alcohol, beginning the fight toward Prohibition which did not begin until 1920.

Image source: Prohibition in the United States

Manifesto of the 343 published in French newspapers

Apr 5, 1971

A declaration in which women publicly acknowledged having had abortions was published in two French newspapers, Le Nouvel observateur and Le Monde, on 5 April 1971, challenging France's abortion laws.

Veil Law grants women the right to abort in France

1975

Women in France received the right to abort with the passing of the Veil Law in 1975, a landmark legal victory for reproductive rights.

Image source: Veil Act

Congress passes the Civil Rights Act of 1991

1991

Following the televised sexual harassment case, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which gave legal action against workplace sexual harassment.

Image source: Civil Rights Act of 1991

First televised workplace sexual harassment case airs

Oct 11, 1991

On 11 October 1991, the first televised workplace sexual harassment case was aired. Though the case was dismissed, it encouraged other women to speak out on their own experiences.

Image source: Anita Hill

UN Human Development Report on women's work

2004

The United Nations Human Development Report 2004 estimated that when both paid employment and unpaid household tasks are accounted for, on average women work more than men, highlighting ongoing gender inequality.

Image source: Human Development Report

Movement's priorities expand across nations and communities

2026

The movement's priorities have expanded since its beginning in the 19th century and vary among nations and communities, with feminism remaining an ongoing movement in parts of the Western world since the turn of the century and women's increased entry into the workplace continuing to affect gender roles and the division of labor within households.

Second Wave

Simone de Beauvoir writes The Second Sex

1949

Simone de Beauvoir, a defender of women's rights, wrote The Second Sex in 1949, a foundational text that would be read more widely again during the resurgence of the women's movement in 1968.

Image source: The Second Sex

Simone de Beauvoir writes The Second Sex

Betty Friedan publishes The Feminine Mystique

1963

It is believed the feminist movement gained attention in 1963 when Betty Friedan published her book The Feminine Mystique, writing of 'the problem that has no name' to describe the depression women felt about their limited choices in life.

Image source: The Feminine Mystique

Second wave feminists found feminist and lesbian periodicals

1968

In 1968, second wave feminists began founding feminist and lesbian periodicals so they could publish their writings without censorship or denigration from the male press.

Image source: Women in print movement

Women's movement grows with renewed reading of The Second Sex

May 1968

The women's movement became more popular in May 1968 when women began to read again, more widely, Simone de Beauvoir's The Second Sex, fueling second wave activism.

Protest against the Miss America pageant, the 'cattle parade'

Sep 7, 1968

The defining moment in the 1960s was a demonstration held to protest against the Miss America pageant in Atlantic City on 7 September 1968, termed the 'cattle parade,' which drew national media attention.

Image source: Miss America protest

Fifth Street Women's Building Takeover

Jan 1971

In January 1971, over a hundred women illegally occupied an abandoned New York City building, establishing a food co-operative, day care, and lesbian center before being forcibly removed and arrested by police.

Key Facts

The movement is commonly divided into 'waves': the first wave focused on legal rights like suffrage, the second on workplace and reproductive equality, the third on diversity and intersectionality, and the fourth on digital activism.
The Seneca Falls Convention of 1848 in New York is widely considered the birthplace of the American feminist movement, producing the Declaration of Sentiments.
The 19th Amendment, ratified in 1920, granted American women the right to vote after decades of suffrage activism led by figures like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.
Betty Friedan's 1963 book 'The Feminine Mystique' helped launch second-wave feminism by challenging the idea that women's fulfillment came only through domestic life.
Modern fourth-wave feminism emphasizes intersectionality, recognizing how race, class, sexuality, and gender identity intersect, and uses social media movements like #MeToo to drive change.

Source

This Feminist Movement timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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