The Main Figures In Women’s Suffrage Movement
During the late 18th century, and the early 19th century, women weren’t granted many rights. White, male, landowners had all of the power during this time period. Women were not able to vote, hold office, or pursue higher education; they were excluded from professional occupations. During the beginning of this time period, the economy was based on the foundation of subsistence farming. The law clearly favored men, but the farms could not survive on the labor of men alone. The women’s work was crucial for survival. They hand made clothes, cooked the meals, and kept the house clean while the men of the house were out working. Ultimately though, women decided that they wanted a voice. They wanted equality. In the late 1700’s women had little to no rights at all. If a woman had something to say, she was to consult her husband first. However, as the years passed, women such as Susan B. Anthony, Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Lucy Stone began to question why they weren’t able to have jobs like the men.
During the time period between the years 1776 and 1876, the lives of Northern middle-class women changed forever. Women began to leave the house and go to work. Movements for Women’s Equality began. Large strides for equality were made and the women really came far from where they were in 1776; however, they still were not close to having equal rights of the men in 1876. Susan Brownell Anthony was an iconic leader in the Women’s Suffrage movement, and had a big part in the passing of the 19th amendment. Early in her life, Susan became a part of the temperance movement, this movement was based upon the limitations and cessation of alcohol production. Because Susan was a woman, she was denied the right to speak in the rallies, which was a very upsetting reality for her. As a result, she turned her attention to other injustices, and then went on to become and abolitionist activist. She also involved herself in the Anti-Slavery movements.
The fight for Women’s Suffrage was a long, monotonous, tedious fight, but nevertheless Susan, among other leaders, continued to fight it. “Anthony fought for equality of not only females, but for people of all races and economic stature. ” In 1872, she took matters into her own hands, and voted for the president illegally. She was then arrested and fined a $100 that she would never pay. Susan saw her actions as a right, not a crime. Unfortunately though, she would not live to see women able to vote, she died in 1906, fourteen years before the 19th amendment was passed. Women have seen a monumental change since the late 1800’s. Their persistences in pursuing the rights that they deserved had peaked for women’s rights as they knew it. On November 8, 2016, females were not only allowed to vote, but there was a female candidate in the running for president. Women from all around visited susans grave and left stickers reading “I voted, ” to celebrate Anthony’s accomplishment.
Lucretia Mott was a quaker, abolitionist, social reformer, and a Women’s Rights activist. She pursued the idea of reforming the view and role of women in society while among some of the women who were excluded from the Anti-Slavery convention in 1840. Mott was raised as a Quaker and attended a Quaker based boarding school. The quaker religion taught that all people were and are equal under God. In 1911, Mott married her father’s business partner, James Mott. Lucretia and her husband argued vehemently for the abolitionist movement as members of William Lloyd Garrison’s American Anti-Slavery Society in the 1830s. Mott’s impeded participation in the World Anti-Slavery Convention of 1840 caused her to cross paths with Elizabeth Cady Stanton whom she formed a long, copious alliance with. This alliance led Mott into the Women’s Rights Movement. “In her dedication to women’s issues, Mott advocated both short-term relief and long-term reform, including equal pay for equal work”.
Elizabeth Stanton was viewed in many different ways from the 1840’s until 1904 when she died. Some saw her as a catalyst, others saw her as a crusader; some even saw her as a privileged white lady. Nevertheless, she attracted people's’ attention and used it to her advantage. “Stanton got her start in Seneca Falls. . . She co-authored the Declaration of Sentiments issued by the convention that introduced the demand for votes for women into the debate. ” Stanton’s brain and wit opened doors that her father would rather remain shut. While in her twenties, Elizabeth was introduced to a man, Henry Stanton, who was a speaker for the instant abolition of slavery. They married, and consequently after marriage, they went the the World Anti-Slavery Convention in London. Elizabeth was denied the right to to be seated on the board and speak. This is where she would coincidentally meet Mott and be introduced to a new perspective. “They worked on conventions in Rochester, Westchester, PA, and Syracuse and organized, sent letters to, or attended national conventions between 1850 and 1862.
Stanton met Susan B. Anthony, wrote articles on divorce, property rights, and temperence and adopted the Bloomer costume. ” By 1860 there was talk of a war. Everyone’s attention was now tunneled around the Civil War; the men fought while women petitioned. Over 400 thousand signatures were gathered to instantly pass the 13th amendment and end slavery. The women pursued freedom in every aspect. After abolishing slavery, they worked towards their personal goals; women’s suffrage. They fought hard. In the years between 1894 and 1896, a new suffrage bill was brought forward each year. In 1890, Wyoming entered the U. S as a suffrage state.
Lucy Stone was an early expounder for anti-slavery and women’s suffrage. “She said in 1847, “I expect to plead not for the slave only, but for suffering humanity everywhere. Especially do I mean to labor for the elevation of my sex. ”She said in 1847, ‘I expect to plead not for the slave only, but for suffering humanity everywhere. Especially do I mean to labor for the elevation of my sex. ’” Unlike Stanton, Lucy did not participate in the first Women’s Rights Convention. She however, was one of the many organizers of the Worcester First National Women’s Rights Convention.
Lucy Stone gave a speech at a convention in Syracuse, New York which is credited for converting Susan Anthony to the Women’s rights cause. Stone was a part of the Women’s Rights conventions in 1852, 1853, and 1855, then held the position of president at the National Women’s Rights Convention in New York, New York in 1856. Even though women like Stanton, Stone, and Anthony all had the same perspective and goal, the passage o the fifteenth amendment infuriated some of the activists, and cause a debate. The movement was now split. “By 1869 Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony and others formed the National Woman Suffrage Association and focused their efforts on a federal woman’s suffrage amendment. Lucy Stone and Julia Ward Howe led others to form the American Woman Suffrage Association, which chose to focus on state suffrage amendments. ”
All of the women mentioned played a large role in the act of Women’s Suffrage. These women all came from different walks of life, but still came together for a common goal. From abolishing slavery to state and federal suffrage, these women wanted equality. They focused on something important; something they were all passionate about and fought the monotonous fight to get exactly what they wanted. Today, we take our rights for granted; we don’t realize what women like Stanton, Anthony, Stone, and Mott went through for us to have what we use lightly today – our rights.
