In the 1960's women felt trapped. More women were going to college than ever but they were still stuck in the happy housewife routine. They were getting jobs in the work force but usually as clerics and other service jobs. This did not provide women with very much money, their pay was actually cut from 1955 to 1960. Some universities at the time were opening higher education to older women who wanted to get their degrees and help get into more meaningful jobs.
"Experts" were beginning to do studies on the women of their time. They found that previous expectations for their women were becoming unrealistic. It's surprising that it took this long to figure that out. It had taken radical changes in society (and a cold war) for them to come to terms with the fact that not all women wanted to be that happy house wife. The studies showed that women who worked needed more support with their children and that even women with an education didn't find themselves in jobs.
Women were taking on more volunteer roles; assisting each other in the community. Girl scouts and fund-raisers spread though neighborhoods and communities. These communal activities helped pave the way for more activist movements; forming organizations to help bring forth the "mother's issues."
( Evans, Sara M. "Decade of Discovery"." Born for Liberty: A History of Women in America. New York: Free, 1989. 263 - 285. Print.)
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