The period just before and after the outbreak of World War II was one of the most radical as far as a woman's changing place in society. At the beginning of the war women could not vote in many European countries. By the end of this war, women could vote in all democratic European countries. Unfortunately actual equality is still a long way off. The Communist Ideal that men and women are equal allows women to serve in the Russian army.
Women serve in front line combat positions as snipers and bombers.
German soldiers lived in fear of these women soldiers they referred to as Nachthexen or night witches. With many working men off fighting the war, many women were called to work outside the home. There was a great demand for able-bodied workers, and women were the natural choice. In the aftermath of World War II the woman once again became director of the domestic sphere. With the social ferment of the sixties women started to become more radical in their positions and a feminist revival of the sixties and seventies followed.