Betty Friedan’s first book, The Feminine Mystique (1963), spurred the development of the Second Wave of Feminism in the U.S. She became a leader in the women’s rights movement, co-founding the National Organization for Women in 1966, and serving as its first president through 1970; establishing the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws (now known as NARAL Pro-Choice America) in 1969; and co-founding the National Women’s Political Caucus in 1971.
Friedan attended Smith College, where she wrote poems and published them in campus journals, and became editor-in-chief for the college newspaper. After graduation, she became a journalist for labor union newspapers. She left this work to become a stay-at-home mother, raising three children. In the 1970s, she returned to reporting. She also taught at New York University and the New School for Social Research, and as a visiting professor at Temple University, Yale University, Queens College CUNY, and the University of Southern California, and did research at Cornell University.
Friedan published six books. Her titles include: It Changed My Life: Writings on the Women’s Movement (1976), The Second Stage (1981), The Fountain of Age (1993), Beyond Gender (1997), and her memoir, Life So Far (2000). She lived at this address from 1994 until her death.
The Homes
2022 Columbia Rd. NW, Washington, DC (Wyoming Apartments)
This Beaux Arts luxury apartment was also the residence of George Stephanopoulos and Dwight D. Eisenhower. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
Also home to: Christopher Hitchens
Betty Friedan
2022 Columbia Rd. NW
Located in Sheridan/Kalorama neighborhood, Northwest - East of Rock Creek