The Miss America Protest

Protestors discard bras and other items of oppression.
Alix Kates Shulman Papers/Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.

Members of New York Radical Women meeting in the
office of the Suthern Conference Educational Fund
to Discuss the Miss America Protest. Bev Grant.

Martin Luther King at Civil Rights March in Washington, D.C.
Rowland Scherman; restored by Adam Cuerden - U.S. National Archives and Records Administration

Why The Protest Occured?

Many women during this period were tired of the way they were being treated in the patriarchal and misogynistic society they lived in. Groups like the New York Radical Women wanted to use the same protest techniques as the civil rights movement. Carol Hanisch a member of the New York Radical Women got the idea to target the Miss America pageant. In a meeting they were discussing how beauty standards oppressed women and the topic of Miss America Pageants came up.

What Happened?

A group of feminists led by Alix Kate Shulman and Carol Hanisch protested the 1968 Miss America pageant in Atlantic City. Women came from around the country to protest. Women threw bras, makeup, heels, mops, pots, pans and Playboy magazines -which were considered items of oppression- into garbage cans that had the words Freedom Trash on them. The protesters marched with signs and passed out pamphlets. They crowned a sheep Miss America as a way of comparing beauty pageants to livestock competitions.

The Aftermath

After this protest the feminists of this era became known as bra burners. According to Carol Hanisch, “We had intended to burn it [bras], but the police department, since we were on the boardwalk, wouldn't let us do the burning.” This protests launched the women’s liberation Movement onto the worldwide stage and inspired women all over the world to protest as well.