The women's liberation movement (WLM) seemed to leap into the world for those of us who were engaged in making it. One minute we were not part of it. And then we were. It was indeed the ‘great mobilisation of women’. For many of us, our lives changed forever.

These next two chapters provide a brief overview of the history of this unprecedented mobilisation, including memoir and memories. They cannot claim to be comprehensive. Instead, they provide a short ‘précis’ about the hugely complicated social movements of women that encompassed women's liberation, with a focus mainly, but not solely, on the UK.

For more detail

For readers who would like more detail, fearless writings by dedicated feminists were produced as the women's movements in different countries were actually unfolding. There are very many fine books and archives on the subject, referenced throughout these chapters. The detailed section on sources about women's liberation at the end of Chapter 3 expands this list with a wide range of important works, including the historical work, for example, of Sisterhood and after and HOWL. Between them all, they provide precious memories and a record of the astounding contributions made by feminist writers and activists from the late 1960s on.

As a starter, they include Sisterhood is powerful: An anthology of writing from the Women's Liberation Movement (1970) edited by Robin Morgan, The body politic: Writings from the Women's Liberation Movement in Britain 1969– 1972 (1972) edited by Michelene Wandor, Sweet freedom: Struggle for Women's Liberation (1982) by Anna Coote and Beatrix Campbell, and No turning back: Writings from the Women's Liberation Movement (1981) by the Feminist Anthology Collective.

And so it started

At the end of the 1960s, as noted in the last chapter, the anti-Vietnam War movement, and the civil rights, peace, New Left, student and Black movements were all flourishing. The national liberation movements in colonised countries had burst onto the scene, transforming world history.