Respond to one of the following questions based on today's readings.

“Hidden Injuries of Sex”:
1. Why were some young women ambivalent about the sexual revolution? What questions did it raise about the importance of biological differences between men and women? In your own life, how important do you think biological differences are? To what extent do you think gender roles are socially constructed?
“The Male Sexual Revolution”:
1. How did the sexual revolution change SDS and women’s relationship to it? How did the problems in the world of the “establishment” creep into the student movement?
2. How did the sexual revolution affect African American women differently from white women? How did some of these women respond?
3. How have attitudes today been shaped by the sexual revolution? Do you think men and women are more equal today in terms of sexual relationships? Has society become more accepting of people’s choices about sexuality, whatever they may be?

In answering one of the following questions, make sure to use specific examples from course materials.

1. "A Year of Living Dangerously:"
Discuss the undercurrent of violence women faced when pushing for change that the author mentions. What might be some reasons for this? Compare and contrast this threatened violence with that another social movement faced.
2. Discuss "The Small Group Process" and "About my Concsiousness Raising." In what ways do these pieces differ, and in what ways do they overlap? How does consciousness raising compare to other tactics in social movements?
3. Discuss the differences in tactics that the author of "A Year of Living Dangerously" mentions. What were some of these differences, and what do you think about them? How does this controversy over persuasive tactics compare to those in other social movements?

1. Compare and contrast the tensions in the women’s movement between groups to those between groups in other social movements we've looked at. What is similar and what is different between them?
2. What do you think were the most important issues facing women in the 1960s and why? Compare the importance of these issues to those facing other groups, making sure to give reasons and examples to support your claims.
3. Compare the NOW “Bill of Rights” or “To the Women of the New Left” to the Black Panthers’ “Ten Point Platform.” How are they similar and dissimilar? What are their most and least radical demands? To what extent have each of their goals been realized?
4. What problems arose for women involved with SDS and civil rights when they began talking about the oppression of women? To what extent can these problems be explained by misunderstanding? How does the idea of women’s only groups compare to the move toward separation from whites in the civil rights movement?

Post response paper here by May 3rd.

Post response paper 2 here.

Write a brief (one or two paragraph) response to one of the prompts below for class on Wednesday.

"Leftward Kicking and Screaming:"

1. How and why did the sit-in movement propel protest in California? How did _Operation Abolition_ help galvanize students? What other factors contributed to student protest? Why was action so important?

"It Wasn't Hard To Be a Communist in Texas:"

1. How does the definition of communism change throughout this piece? What are Pardun's attitudes toward this term, and how do they change? How did the writer's past experiences contribute to these attitudes?
2. What reasons does Pardun give for young people's embrace of change in the 60s? What experiences caused these changes? What student groups today have concerns similar to SDS? What issues do they emphasize?

Post a response to one of the following questions by Monday's class.

“Selma Freedom Day”:
1. This first selection, from James Forman’s autobiography, gives some background on the ongoing voter registration work in Selma, AL. Why does Forman see the advertisement he begins the chapter with as evidence that the White Citizens’ Council was on the defensive? What analysis does he offer of the power structure of the South, and how, if at all, does it differ from common assumptions? From your own?
2. What were some of the effects of Freedom Day? Which seem most significant to you? What was the significance of shifting efforts from ending segregation to registering voters? Which goal do you see as more important, and why?

“Power for Black People”:
1. This brief excerpt describes events that took place in Selma two years after Freedom Day. What are the criticisms Forman makes of Martin Luther King and SCLC? How do these compare to criticisms that John Lewis reports in earlier readings? Do you think Forman’s criticisms are justified? Why or why not?

This is the place to post your first response paper. Remember, it is due by the end of unit one.

Write a brief (one to two paragraph) response to one of these questions for Monday's class. You could also use these questions to help form a response paper; (it's never too early to start.) I have also provided you with a key to the acronyms of some of the civil rights organizations you will be reading about. You will find this useful to refer to throughout this unit.

COFO – The Congress of Federated Organizations. This organization was formed in 1962 as a coalition between existing civil rights organizations.
CORE – The Congress of Racial Equality.
NAACP – The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. This organization was formed much earlier in the century and focused on using legal means to combat discrimination. Like the Urban Leagues, it was deemed too conservative and slow-moving by many young people.