Women's Rights Movement In The 1960s

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In the 1960s, the movements to defend the civil rights of women and African Americans were starting to rise in the nation. In 1974, the Women’s Rights movement came to a climax with the campaign to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, which stated: “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” By 1974, thirty-one states adopted the amendment, including Mississippi. African Americans were making great progress in their movement as well; resulting in integrated public spaces and a step up in social class. With many progressive movements happening right in their front yard, the sisters in Crimes of the Heart: Babe, Lenny, and Meg remained stuck in a patriarchy environment that lead to their individual downfall. After reuniting for the first time in years, Meg, Babe, and Lenny were forced to deal with their family issues …show more content…

Babe committed an act of adultery against Zachary with a black boy, Willie Jay. Although African Americans made a lot of progress by 1974, they were nowhere near where they wanted to be. When Zachary found Willie Jay in his back yard with Babe, he used his superiority to intimidate Willie Jay into leaving the house. Thankfully, Henley did not incorporate racial violence in the play and still presented the power struggle. When Babe told Meg what she did, Meg was not surprised that Babe cheated on Zachary, she was more surprised that Babe slept with a “black boy” and even said “I didn’t even know you were a liberal” (page 48). Babe replied by saying “I was just lonely” (page 48). Not realizing what she’d done, Babe ruined both she and Willie Jay’s reputations by confessing. Once Zachary found out about Babe and Willie Jay’s affair, he threatened to tell the entire town about their affair. Zachary’s intimidation left Babe with no choice but to try and commit