Feminism
During the effort to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s, women faced many hardships. They were underappreciated and many Americans didn’t know why they were fighting for equal rights; it was believed they were already equal. The amendment intended to place women in the Constitution for the first time. Here, the cartoon critiques men for their nonchalance and ignorance during the women’s liberation movement. It uses irony to get Engelhardt’s point across because it’s obviously not a privilege for the wife to do everything in the house like cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the kids. All the while, the husband relaxes on the couch watching TV. Not only is he not doing anything to help his wife, but he also doesn’t realize that he should be doing something in the first place. He isn’t taking note of his children, who are obviously searching for solace in their mother. The humor and simplicity make the cartoon an effective form of satire.
~ Daniella Jarrell
Phyllis Schlafly was one of the biggest voices against the Equal Rights Amendment during the 1970s. She is characterized, in this cartoon, as the female gender symbol that is harming the gender symbol labeled “ERA”. The middle gender symbol appears helpless and bruised, depicting the struggle to ratify the ERA in 1977. At this time the bill only had two more years to be ratified, and Phyllis Schlafly was making great efforts to make sure that wouldn’t happen. Here, the cartoon critiques the STOP ERA movement for bullying and beating the women’s liberation movement. The symbolism of the male gender symbol shows the ignorance of men hurting the rights of women. Its nonchalance can represent male privilege. Schlafly’s symbol has a menacing look to represent that she was intentionally for the STOP ERA movement. The clarity of this message creates a successful cartoon. Today, women are attempting to revitalize the fight for the ERA due to continued gender discrimination such as the wage gap.
~ Daniella Jarrell
On January 22, 1973, abortion became legal in the United States due to the Roe v. Wade decision of the Supreme Court. Prior to the legalization of abortion women would get them illegally in dangerous circumstances. Some women would even perform self-abortions which would often lead to death. Pat Oliphant captures the view of women grateful for the abortion decision by depicting the women who died from illegal and self-abortions before it was made legal. Oliphant shows that he believes that this is progress toward women’s rights because of the bespectacled judge making a commentary in the right corner: “It does feel good to do something right now and then.”
~ Angel Clary
Paul Conrad responded in opposition to the January 1973 Roe v. Wade decision with his cartoon showing his belief that a fetus always should be seen as a child. Despite the Supreme Court ruling, the fight on the legalization of abortion continued. In particular, the Pro-Life Movement rejected the argument about viability. Rather, they focused on the individual rights of the fetus and minimized the reproductive rights of a woman. In his cartoon, Conrad removes the woman by only drawing the fetus as a recognizable baby at all stages of pregnancy. In 2022 the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade with the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization arguing that the U.S. Constitution does not protect a woman’s right to access abortion—thus enabling states to outlaw it.
~ Angel Clary