Women's Suffrage
The history of Women's suffrage in American can trace its roots back to the 1630's, and Anne Hutchinson who was convicted of sedition and expelled from the Massachusetts colony for her religious ideas. One of which was the idea that women should be involved in religious discussions and decision-making within the church. But it was the Quakers who really made a significant contribution to women's suffrage by preaching equality, not only among the sexes, but among all human beings. The subject lingered until the American colonies declared their independence from Britain. Then, during the Continental Congress, John Adams' wife, Abigail, wrote to her husband begging him to remember the ladies in the new laws he was instrumental in writing. Following this ideal, the state of New Jersey, in 1790, granted the vote to all free inhabitants, but rescinded that right to women when a politician was almost defeated by a group of female voters who opposed his candidacy. In retaliation, the state repealed their law allowing all free inhabitants to vote and restricted voting to free men.
The real impetus for the women's suffrage movement came in 1838 when Sarah Grimke published "Letters on the Equality of the Sexes and the Condition of Women." Along with her sister, Angelina, the Grimkes were instrumental in organizing the early women's rights groups. Two other women who were also instrumental were Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Lucretia Mott. These two organized the first ever convention to "discuss the social, civil, and religious rights of woman." (Keyssar, 2000, p. 173) The convention was held in Seneca Falls New York in 1848, with over 300 people in attendance including Amelia Bloomer, Charlotte Woodward, and even the abolitionist Frederick Douglas.
Why would the abolitionist Frederick Douglas attend a convention discussing the rights of women? Because the women's suffrage movement was an offshoot of the Abolitionist movement. Abolitionists were the very few people who allowed women to participate in public events, like political discussions about slavery. Some women became,...
The authors further point out that at the time, NWSA did not accept male membership as its focus was firmly trained on securing the voting rights of women nationwide. As their push for the enfranchisement of women at the federal level became more and more untenable, NWSA shifted its focus to individual states. In so doing, it planned to create a ripple effect that could ease the attainment of
Women's Isolation Despite representing half of the human population, until very recently women were not afforded the same rights and freedoms as men. Furthermore, in much of the world today women remain marginalized, disenfranchised, and disempowered, and even women in the United States continue to face undue discrimination, whether in the workplace, at home, or in popular culture. However, this should not be taken as a disregarding of the hard-fought accomplishments
Suffrage Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Amelia Bloomer were all instrumental in shifting the status of women in American society. Their writings reveal the personalities, assumptions, and values of the authors. Each of these women took incredible personal risks by challenging the underlying assumptions in the society that women were not valid, valuable members of society. The place of women in American society prior to suffrage was no better
Similar protests launched in the United Kingdom around the same time period. And the results were altogether similar as well. In 1918, the British Parliament passed the Eligibility of Women Act, which allowed women to be elected into the Parliament. In 1928, the Representation of the People Act granted women across the nation voting rights as equal to those as of the men. This was a major milestone achieved by
Woman's Suffrage Women in the United States made the fight for suffrage their most fundamental demand because they saw it as the defining feature of full citizenship. The philosophy underlying women's suffrage was the belief in "natural rights" to govern themselves and choose their own representatives. Woman's suffrage asserted that women should enjoy individual rights of self-government, rather than relying on indirect civic participation as the mothers, sisters, or daughters of
Women's Rights During the nineteenth century, many accomplishments in women's rights occurred. As a result of these early efforts, women today enjoy many privileges. They are able to vote and become candidates for political elections, as well as own property and enjoy leadership positions. During the early nineteenth century, the women's rights movement came into effect. Women like Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony created many organizations for equality and independence.
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