User:Gibarra6/sandbox

Desired Roles
While white women during this period of time were looking for more areas of work outside the home, black women often desired the opposite. African American women were from the beginning pushed into the workforce, working outside the home and away from their families. African American women often desired the opportunity to work more domestic jobs in both their homes and near them, because with both mother and father working hard in the workforce, it was difficult for families to interact or engage in activities much more than that outside of the typical day. Because Black women were given the opportunities w“the Black woman has not, in general, had the luxury of viewing herself as oppressed from the standpoint of being female.” (Duran, Jane. "Women of the Civil Rights Movement: Black Feminism and Social Progress.")

Actual & Unknown Roles
Black women in the 60’s not only organized and led protests for civil rights, but expanded their reach into issues such as poverty, feminism, and other social matters. While women are not typically recognized for their efforts during this time, they were primary characters in executing a powerful and successful movement. Though we may refer to Rosa Parks as an important part of Civil Rights history, she is one of the only Black women to be celebrated and given credit for her actions. There are many hidden women of the Civil Rights movement with roles which most curriculums and early education classes do not teach. Women like Corretta Scott King are often skipped over in lessons about the Civil Rights movement when they are in fact some of the most essential. If an elementary school child was asked to name a woman in the Civil Rights movement, their first and only response would most likely be Rosa Parks. This is detrimental to the overall education of children on the Civil Rights movement, as they are taught that one man made all the change. Womanism is the idea of supporting all women no matter their race or class, not simply focusing on females. As Black women have continually made sacrifices, “Womanism’s focus on the community has meant that, when challenged, Black women have historically put aside any differences that they have had for the greater good” (Duran, Jane. "Women of the Civil Rights Movement: Black Feminism and Social Progress.").