Women's issues suddenly became so prominent in American culture because things were changing. People were forming new opinions and women saw an opportunity. In the 1800's transcendentalism came into the picture. Transcendentalism was an intellectual movement led by Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau (Henretta, G-13). They believed that they needed to examine individuality and self reliance closely. Transcendentalism became a huge deal and soon led to Margret Fuller in 1810 (Henretta, 324). Margret Fuller was a very intelligent woman and she later began a transcendental group discussion in 1839 to educate women (Henretta, 324).
The Shakers also had an impact on women's issues. This is because they believed that men and women were equal in their community and that each person had to do their part for the community. Although equality wasn't the case everywhere else. In New York women were being exploited for sex because it was the new thing there Men were the ones in charge and women barely had rights. Different communities began to show major differences between how the women were being treated.
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Not many people realized but when the fight for freeing slaves began it didn't just help the slaves but it also helped the women. Women were granted more rights from it as well. Internally, the Abolitionists were working to gain women's rights. According to Henretta, page 341, "Abby Kelley, Lucretia Mott, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, among others, remained with Garrison in the American Anti-Slavery Society and assailed both the institutions that bound blacks and the customs that constrained free women". The Abolitionists had split up into two separate groups. One working to free women, and one working to free