technology based on atoms was still progressing for one thing
Sure, I suppose today's particle accelerators count for nothing. But technological progress is a matter that may merit its own discussion in another thread. It's the situation of women we're discussing here.
And yes, the 1950s were terrible. A society before the pill meets every definition of "it sucks to be a woman." Moreover, a society before legal abortion, before the recognition of marital rape, before massive access of women to universities and positions of power, before equal pay, before no-fault divorce, before sexual harassment was identified as such, and before widespread coeducation, is a society that oppresses women. Heck, I'm a man, and I'd have hated to live under those conditions.
Speculation is important for forecasting; it's also fun. Speculation is usually conveyed in two forms: in the form of an argument, or encapsulated in fiction; each has their advantages, but both tend to be time-consuming. Presenting speculation in the form of an argument involves researching relevant background and formulating logical arguments. Presenting speculation in the form of fiction requires world-building and storytelling skills, but it can quickly give the reader an impression of the "big picture" implications of the speculation; this can be more effective at establishing the "emotional plausibility" of the speculation.
I suggest a storytelling medium which can combine attributes of both arguments and fiction, but requires less work than either. That is the "wikipedia article from the future." Fiction written by inexperienced sci-fi writers tends to generate into a speculative encyclopedia anyways--why not just admit that you want to write an encyclopedia in the first place? Post your "Wikipedia articles from the future" below.