Accidental Feminists

The history of major nationwide women's organizations in the postwar era provides important insight into American feminism. While they were challenged by a conservative political climate, these large groups remained vibrant and prepared the ground for liberal activism to flourish in the 1960s. With women as the vast majority of nurses, the American Nurses Association discovered that it could not promote better nursing and improved working conditions without elevating the status of women workers and without addressing the issue of racism within health care. The American Association of University Women aimed to provide a place for educated women in public life. It could not provide such a place while discriminating on the basis of race. The sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha aimed to elevate the black race and believed that women were the key to doing so. Church Women United fought against racial and gender discrimination within the churches and society at large because such behavior did not fit the ideals of Christian conduct.