Repeatedly declared dead by the media, the women's movement has never been as vibrant as it is now. Freedman examines the historical forces that have fuelled the movement and explores how women today are looking to feminism for new approaches to work, family, sexuality and creativity.
Feminism has reached a critical momentum from which there is no turning back. A truly global movement as dynamic in the developing world as it is in the West, feminism has helped women achieve authority in politics, sport and business, and has mobilised public concern for once-taboo issues like rape, domestic violence and breast cancer.
Freedman begins this compelling new history with an analysis of what feminism means and why it took root in western Europe and the US at the end of the 18th century. The rationalist, humanistic philosophy of the Enlightenment, which ignited the American Revolution, also sparked feminist politics, inspiring pioneers like Mary Wollstonecraft and Susan B Anthony.
Freedman also traces the intricate ties between women's rights and abolitionism in the US, and the long tradition of radical women of colour. As feminism became more widespread and sophisticated after WW2, its impact began to be felt in every aspect of society. The line between the political and the personal became blurred, and issues once considered "merely" private - abortion, sexual violence, homosexuality, reproductive health, beauty and body image entered the public arena as topics of fierce debate.
Freedman combines a scholar's meticulous research with a critic's keen eye. 'No Turning Back' will stand as a defining text of the most important social movement of our time.
