They can be housewives provided they find a partner that can afford it. Interestingly enough, even before feminism, not all partners could afford a wive that didn't work. Even in the middle ages women worked the fields. In the insdustrial revolution, women worked at factories.

Poor women have always worked. The only difference with feminism is that now women whose husbands can afford a stay at home wove, can still choose to work in order to be independent. It is a choice, not an obligation.