Topic 3: Social (1970-79) Flashcards
4
Describe the 1975 Sex Discrimination Act under Wilson
- Act made it unlawful to discriminate on the grounds of sex in employment, educational facilities, housing, goods and services
- Equal Opportunities Commission created with investigator powers
- Discrimination still hard to prove
- Between 1976-1983 only 10% of sex discrim cases in workplace successful
4
List the main developments in feminism in the 1970s
- Women Lib groups
- Demonstrations
- Factions
- Legislation
5
Describe political progress in the feminist movement in the 1970s
- legislation
- 1970s saw high point of second-wave feminism
- Epitomised through inauguration of UN International Women’s in 1977
- Women’s Liberation pressure group set up in 1970
- First female leader for major party - Thatcher 1975
4 - 3 groups
Describe the factions of feminism in the 1970s
-
radical feminists - demanded feminism based upon lesbian relationships
- first Gay Pride march held in London in 1971
- moderate feminism - combined equality with family life
- socialist feminism - identified class division in female equality and demanded greater economic independence of women
5
Describe social progress in the feminism movement in the 1970s
- Growth of literature
- Education furthered through opening of Department of women’s studies in universities
- Pill had become available on NHS
- First rape crisis centre opened in London in 1976
- Marriage
4
Describe protests of the feminist movement in the 1970s
- Women’s Lib groups disrupted the 1970 Miss World Contest and heckled host Bob Hope, protesting the objectification of women
- First Women’s Liberation March took place in 1971 - divisions over radical separatists
- Demonstrations in March 1971 in Liverpool/London demanding equal pay and free nurseries
- 1977, first ‘reclaim the night’ march held across Britain in response to Yorkshire Ripper murders
Unprecedented economic independence:
Women’s earnings as proportion of men’s grew from (…) in 1970 to (…) in 1980
63%
73%
3
Describe marriage/divorce in the 1970s
- N of first marriages declined - marriage rate sustained by rising second marriages
- New cohabitation partnerships emerged e.g. stable unmarried relationships
- Survey found 77% felt that marriage was not old fashioned
3
Describe feminist literature in the 1970s
- 1972, Cosmopolitan magazine arrived from US and dealt with issues such as abortion and contraception
- Appealed to mainstream with fashion - not popular with militant feminists for engendering stereotypes
- Publishers such as Virago furthered Women’s Liberation movement
5
List women’s rights legislation in the 1970s
- Sex Discrimination Act 1975
- Equal Pay Act 1970 (operative in 1975)
- Social Security Act 1975
- Employment Protection Act 1975
- Domestic Violence and Matrimonial Proceedings Act 1976
1
Describe limits to the Equal Pay Act 1970
- employers used loopholes to give women different, lower-paid tasks → pay therefore not comparable
2
Describe the Social Security Act 1975
- By Castle
- Consolidated state pension scheme
2
Describe the Employment Protection Act 1975
- introduced paid maternity leave
- outlawed dismissal on pregnancy grounds
1
Describe the Domestic Violence and Matrimonial Proceedings Act 1976
- made it easier to gain protection from violent husbands
2
List progress and limitations in race relations legislation in the 1970s
- Limitation - Immigration Act 1971
- Progress - Race Relations Act 1976
5
Describe the Immigration Act 1971
- passed in 1971, operative from 1973
- defined partial as born in UK or resident for 5 or more years (expanded upon 1968 act)
- Unrestricted entry for those with patrial status
- Entry for non-patrial citizens dependent on visa
- Thus all non-patrial Commonwealth citizens who sought UK employment reduced to status of contract labourer
patrial - British citizen (or substantial connection)
7
Describe the Race Relations Act 1976
- Aimed to tackle problems of second-class citizenship
- Replaced acts of 1965 and 1968
- Made discrim unlawful in employment, training, edu, provisions of goods and services
- Made it an offence to stir up racial hatred
- Extended law to cover discrim by private clubs
- A new body, the Race Relations Commission, replaced earlier bodies
- Bill passed with all-party support, though a few Cons voted against
6
Describe Heath’s policy towards Ugandan Asians
- Triggered when Uganda’s eccentric dictator Idi Amin in 1972 announced he had a dream which instructed him to give all Ugandan Asians 3 months to emigrate
- Under 1968 quota, 3k were allowed to enter Britain in any one year
- Government set up Ugandan resettlement board using military camps as holding centres
- Linked with volunteer groups which helped find immigrants homes
- 28.5k Ugandan Asians arrived
- 30k new jobs created in Leicester -> became model-city for multi-ethnic integration
4
Describe the rise of the National Front
- By 1977, described as Britain’s 4th largest party in terms of vote share
- Held marches in areas of concentrated immigration
- Trades Council of East London detailed over 100 violent incidents, inc 2 murders, between Jan 1976 and Aug 1978
- Assaults on Asians and Afro-Carribeans rose by 1/3