Feminist Lessons

Feminist Lessons—part 2 of Ms. magazine’s three-part FEMINIST 250 project—explores what each decade of modern feminist history can teach us about power, democracy, backlash and social change. Drawing on more than 50 years of reporting, organizing and activism, the series examines how feminists transformed American life, and what those victories and setbacks can teach us today.

Feminist 250

FEMINIST 250 is an online initiative from Ms. reflecting on the semiquincentennial of U.S. democracy from a feminist perspective, launched during Women’s History Month, with a commemorative section in the Summer 2026 print issue. The series explores how feminist histories laid the foundations that shaped 250 years of ideas about equality; unpacks Ms. magazine’s own reporting over the decades; and puts forth the next generation of policy proposals to help ensure equality and justice for all.

The FEMINIST 250 Project is made possible by generous support from Susan Byrd and the Women Moving Millions Art Catalyst Matching Fund.

Support feminist journalism—the heart of democracy, now and for the next 250 years. Donate to Ms. magazine today.

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Herstory, National

Feminist Lessons from the 1970s: How Feminists Transformed American Life

Carmen Rios, consulting editor and the former managing digital editor at Ms. and the host of Looking Back, Moving Forward, a five-part series from Ms. Studios

1970s

Bettman Archives / Getty Images

Herstory, National

Feminist Lessons From the 1980s: Why Every Movement Faces Backlash

Carmen Rios, consulting editor and the former managing digital editor at Ms. and the host of Looking Back, Moving Forward, a five-part series from Ms. Studios

1980s

Jeffrey Sylvester / FPG / Archive Photos / Getty Images

Herstory, National

Feminist Lessons From the 1990s: How Women Became a Political Force

Carmen Rios, consulting editor and the former managing digital editor at Ms. and the host of Looking Back, Moving Forward, a five-part series from Ms. Studios

1990s

Phil Cavali / Consolidated News Pictures / Archive Photos/ Hulton Archive / Getty Images

Herstory, National

Feminist Lessons from the 2000s: The Power of a Feminist Majority

Carmen Rios, consulting editor and the former managing digital editor at Ms. and the host of Looking Back, Moving Forward, a five-part series from Ms. Studios

2000s

Jennifer Jackman

Health, Justice & Law, National

Feminist Lessons from the 2010s: When Millions Refused to Go Back, Feminists Turned Backlash Into Power

Carmen Rios, consulting editor and the former managing digital editor at Ms. and the host of Looking Back, Moving Forward, a five-part series from Ms. Studios

2010s

Brendan Smialowski / AFP via Getty Images

Health, Justice & Law, National

Feminist Lessons from 2020 to Present: The Fight for Democracy Is Far From Over

Carmen Rios, consulting editor and the former managing digital editor at Ms. and the host of Looking Back, Moving Forward, a five-part series from Ms. Studios

2020s

Alex Wong / Getty Images

    Looking Back, Moving Forward

    Feminists Have the Power to Redefine Democracy — as Voters and Candidates (with Celinda Lake, Aimee Allison, Angel Charley, Julie C. Suk, Cynthia Richie Terrell, and Jennifer M. Piscopo)

    In this episode:

    What would a truly representative democracy look like — and why don’t we have one? Looking Back, Moving Forward launches with a focus on women’s growing political power, and how feminists can and… Read more

    Looking Back, Moving Forward

    Inside the Feminist Fight to Reclaim Our Reproductive Freedom (with Renee Bracey Sherman, Michele Goodwin, Angie Jean-Marie and Amy Merrill, Susan Frietsche, and Gov. Maura Healey)

    In this episode:

    Ms. launched with a bold declaration: Women were having abortions, and the law should allow for it. In the more than 50 years since, abortion access, abortion laws, anti-abortion violence, and abortion’s connection… Read more

    Looking Back, Moving Forward

    Women Can’t Afford to Wait for a Feminist Economic Future (with Premilla Nadasen, Rakeen Mabud and Lenore Palladino, Aisha Nyandoro, Gaylynn Burroughs, and Dolores Huerta)

    In this episode:

    Women have experienced multiple economic upheavals since the founding of Ms., but one thing remains true: economic inequity is still shaping women’s lives — especially for women of color, LGBTQ women, women with… Read more

    Looking Back, Moving Forward

    How Feminists are Breaking the Cycle of Gender-Based Violence and Harassment (with Ellen Sweet, Jane Caputi, Vanessa Tyson, Victoria Nourse, and Debra Katz)

    In this episode:

    Ms. made history when it put domestic violence and sexual harassment on the cover, commissioned the first national survey on campus sexual violence, and instigated a successful campaign to change the FBI’s definition… Read more

    Looking Back, Moving Forward

    The Feminist Fight For The Equal Rights Amendment Is Far From Over—and More Urgent Than Ever (with Pat Spearman, Ellie Smeal, Carol Moseley Braun, Kathy Spillar, and Ting Ting Cheng)

    In this episode:

    The Equal Rights Amendment was sent to the states for ratification the same year Ms. made its newsstand debut. It took nearly 50 years to bring the ERA to a successful vote in the Senate… Read more

    Looking Back, Moving Forward

    Free Joan Little: Inside the New Documentary Exploring a Historic Self-Defense Case—and the Intersectional Activist Movement it Inspired (with Yoruba Richen)

    In this episode:

    This bonus episode of Looking Back, Moving Forward features Ms. consulting editor Carmen Rios in conversation with Peabody award-winning documentary filmmaker Yoruba Richen, whose latest short, FREE JOAN LITTLE, tells the incredible story… Read more

    Looking Back, Moving Forward

    Lessons from Ms. for the Feminist Future (with Kathy Spillar, Loretta Ross, and Janell Hobson)

    In this episode:

    This bonus episode of Looking Back, Moving Forward features a conversation between Ms. consulting editor Carmen Rios; professor, author, and activist Loretta Ross; and professor and Ms. contributor Janell Hobson, moderated by Ms.… Read more