Museum of Sexist Objects (MoSO)

The women’s movement has strongly influenced ideas about leadership throughout its history. The women’s movement spans from approximately the early 1800s to the present time. The first wave of the women’s movement began in the 1800s and tapered off during the 1940s as industrialized countries granted women the vote, which was one of the early goals of the movement. A revival of the women’s movement termed the “second wave” began during the mid to late 1960s, focusing on the status of women in society. As this struggle continued and positive changes occurred, a younger generation of women emerged during the 1990s with a different perspective and their generation is considered the “third wave” of the women’s movement. This wave coexists with the organizations and goals of secondwave feminists. During the first wave, the fact that women took leadership roles to fight for women’s suffrage and other rights was significant, because it meant that women became leaders in the public sphere. While this continued to be true to some extent during the second wave, it is also true that during the second wave women challenged traditional notions of leadership. Currently, in the third wave, some organizations within the women’s movement are offering feminist leadership training.