Building the National Organization for Women

Friedan joined other activists in founding NOW in 1966 to press institutions to enforce legal equality. As its first president, she helped move feminist demands into a national membership organization pursuing employment, education, reproductive freedom, and public accommodation.

NOW’s records show that this work depended on officers, chapters, correspondence, legal strategy, and sustained campaigns rather than a single famous author. Friedan was a catalytic leader within that broader organizational field.