Betty Friedan

Betty Friedan, aside from being known most for her book, The Feminine Mystique, Friedan was a feminist, writer, and co-founder of National Organization for Women. Born on February 4th 1921, Friedan was born to Russian Jewish immigrants. She graduated in 1942 from Smith College with a bachelor's degree in psychology and left to pursue further studies at UC Berkeley. Shortly afterwards, she moved to New York and met her husband, Carl Friedan and had 2 kids. Friedan returned to her job after having her first kid, Daniel, but lost her job after her second pregnancy. Forced to become a stay-at-home mother of two, Friedan questioned whether or not other women felt equally as confined in their gender roles as she did. In her 15 year reunion with her classmates from Smith, she surveyed them and found out that most of them were dissatisfied suburban housewives just as she was. In the 1920s and 1930s, women were expected to return from the workforce back into their homes to fulfill their responsibilities as mothers and wives. However, Friedan's dissatisfaction led her to write the book, The Feminine Mystique, in 1963. Along with her supporters and readers who felt her message equally resonate with them, came together and formed the National Organization for Women. Friedan also helped found the Women's Political Caucus. In these organizations, Friedan aimed to reform laws that placed women at a disadvantage in the workforce, such as unequal pay, the practice of firing pregnant women, and sex-segregated hiring ads. Friedan also fought for abortion rights and established the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws in 1969. Friedan was open to working with men although radical feminists often criticized her for doing so. She later went on to publish other works such as The Second Stage where she takes a more moderate feminist standpoint and The Fountain of Age where she discusses the later stages of life as a woman.

Today, Friedan's work still has a lasting impact on the modern feminist movement. She acts as an icon for feminists today to look up to and her works are often cited in modern feminist works. She marked the beginning of change for women's gender roles.

Sources:
https://www.nwhm.org/education-resources/biography/biographies/betty-friedan/
http://www.biography.com/people/betty-friedan-9302633#co-founding-now-naral-and-the-national-womens-political-caucus
http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/14514-betty-friedans-the-feminine-mystique-50-years-later