Feminism in Francoist Spain and the democratic transition period took place in a specific socio-historical context. Spanish feminism went through several waves in the Francoist period. Broadly speaking, they are first-wave feminism taking place from the mid-nineteenth century to 1965, second-wave feminism taking place from 1965 to 1975, and third-wave feminism taking place from 1975 to 2012. First wave Spanish feminism involved feminists trying to improve the lives of women at a time when patriarchy continued to be entrenched in Spanish society, this despite the revolutionary nature of the Second Spanish Republic when it came to the rights of women. Most first wave feminists had gone into exile or disappeared, or were imprisoned or condemned to death following the end of the Civil War. The feminists who remained tended to be guerrilla fighters. They coordinated their feminist activities with political parties and unions. Other feminists in this wave tended to use riots over economic conditions instead of industrial action to try effect change. The regime tried to repressive these riots as they felt they were incredibly subversive, challenging their definition of Spanish womanhood that confined women to the home. At the same time, the regime also created their own brand of state sanction anti-feminism. This was largely supported through the works of Sección Feminina. Second-wave feminism emerged in the mid-1960s in response to other changes going on in Spanish society. Women began to create open women's groups and clandestine feminist organizations. They were influenced by feminists texts like Simone de Beauvoir's Le Deuxième Sexe and Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique, which had begun to be circulated more underground. 1975 UN International Women's Year would be a pivotal year for Spanish feminists, both inside and outside the regime's structure as it finally allowed the movement to emerge from the darkness and gain international connections. This would be followed up by the work of Movimiento Democrático de Mujeres who, along with Asociación Española de Mujeres Universitarias (AEMU), Asociación Española de Mujeres Separadas (AEMS), and housewife and Catholic women's associations (HOAC, JOC, MAS) would start Primeras Jornadas. This movement would develop a unified and democratic feminist definition and list of goals during the last days of Francoism and the first of the democratic transition. Third-wave feminism emerged in Spain during the democratic transition period. It took on several broad forms including "feminismo reformista", which advocated for legal and social changes for women without challenging Spain's traditional gender roles. Another form was "feminismo socialista", also known as "feminismo ácrata", "radical" or "sexista". This form of feminism was tied around the specific class struggle of women, and believed that women must be involved in the political process in order to affect change. An example of this was the . A third form of feminism was "feminismo de la igualdad" or "feminismo de la diferencia". Feminists attempted to be engaged in the democratic transition process, including the Spanish constitution of 1978, and the 1977, 1979 and 1982 general elections. They advocated for a number of causes including making contraception and abortion legal, ending adultery as a criminal offense, and legalizing divorce. (en)