9781422281321

were still working mainly in low-status, poorly paid jobs. People with disabilities and those over 50 found it hard to get work at all. Campaigners came to realize that civil rights would never be achieved by merely hoping that systems of employment and education would correct themselves. Discrimination was not a private moral issue for individuals alone. It was a political problem that affected everyone. Equality at work could only be achieved by changing the balance of power within society— and that would require new laws. The Equal Opportunity Movement During the 1950s and 1960s, several factors combined to make governments in the United States and Europe think more care- fully about how different groups in society should be protected by law. By the 1960s, Western industrial economies were growing quickly. Companies needed good employees and were prepared to treat them well. There was also a new generation of well- educated young people who wanted rewarding careers. Young men were not prepared to settle for low-paying, menial jobs, and young women did not all want to be mothers and home- makers. The terrible experiences of World War II had led to support for peaceful international organizations, such as the United Nations (UN), and an interest in human rights of all kinds— including equal opportunities. In some European countries, such as Sweden and Denmark, progressive political attitudes and the development of the welfare state enabled women to

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Equal Opportunities

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