Structural Tensions In the Nineteenth Century Women's Movement
Authors: Naomi Rosenthal, David McDonald, Michele Ethier, Meryl Fingrutd and Roberta Karant
Abstract
The organizational affiliations of four groups of nineteenth century women in New York State provide the basis for an exploration of tensions between the local and national level organizations within a social movement. Information about overlapping membership among women's organizations over a period of almost seventy years is used to map the geography of connections between organizations affiliated with the early women's movement and other voluntary groups. In particular, we explore the connections of the movement's organization to non-insurgent voluntarism in each setting, describing the range and patterning of organizational ties, the factors that determined the movement's niche in each location, and the differential consequences for national and local organizations within the same movement. Based on this analysis, we propose an ecological model of movement heterogeneity, suggesting that organizational niche differences are a significant source of tension in successful social movements.
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