National Network for Equitable Library Service

From the mid-1960s to the mid-80s, feminist activism in North America and Europe reached its peak, animated by a disparate array of issues and ideas. Frontiers of Feminism compares Québécois and Italian feminisms, revealing both the synergy between feminism and the left and the influence of American and French women's movements on those in Québec and Italy. This astute study combines feminist materialism and social movement theories to explore the principal ideological concerns of Québécois and Italian feminists, including Marxism, nationalism, Third World liberation discourse, and counter-cultural narratives. Identifying the convergences in and differences between these themes, Jacinthe Michaud shows how feminist responses to key topics of the time highlight the complexity of this multifaceted political movement. Her careful examination of the ways Italian and Québécois feminists perceived their respective societies as racially homogeneous - and how they represented whiteness - also elucidates the mechanisms by which their approaches to racialization created hierarchies among women. Revisiting struggles such as the right to abortion, health and sexuality, wages for housework, and the quest for complete autonomy from masculine thought, Frontiers of Feminismbrings new insight and depth to the recent history of feminist movements and an international perspective to major themes, modes of organizing, and strategies for action.