Summary of "The Miss America Protest of 1968"
The Miss America Pageant and the 1968 Feminist Protest
The video explores the history and cultural impact of the Miss America beauty pageant, which began in 1921 as a tourist attraction. At its peak, the pageant attracted a global audience of 85 million viewers.
The 1968 Feminist Protest
On September 7, 1968, the Miss America pageant became the site of a landmark feminist protest:
- While contestants prepared inside the Atlantic City Convention Hall, hundreds of feminists from the New York Radical Women’s Group gathered outside.
- The protesters aimed to challenge the objectification and exploitation of women by corporate America.
- Symbolic acts included tossing items such as bras, false eyelashes, and other beauty products into a “freedom trash can.”
- A sheep was crowned as Miss America to symbolize how contestants were treated like livestock.
- Black feminist activist and lawyer Florence Kennedy participated by dressing as a puppet of Miss America, highlighting women’s enslavement to beauty standards.
Although no bras were actually burned, the media sensationalized the event as a “bra-burning” protest.
Impact and Legacy
- The protest did not immediately change the Miss America pageant.
- However, it significantly boosted the women’s liberation movement.
- It helped ignite the second wave of feminism, as women increasingly demanded equal rights.
- The video concludes by questioning whether Miss America has evolved enough over time or if it belongs in the “freedom trash can” of history.
Speakers
- Narrator (main voice throughout the video)
- Feminists from the New York Radical Women’s Group (referenced)
- Florence Kennedy (black feminist activist and lawyer)
