Women's Fight for Suffrage in America

America was supposed to treat everyone equally, although, when the country was founded, women were excluded from the right to vote. It was socially unacceptable. Women were continually taught, from a very young age, that they weren’t mature enough, or mentally capable of making decisions for themselves. This was an injustice to women, and, in order for them to gain justice, they had to fight for their right to vote, a right that should’ve been given to them from the beginning.
The U.S. Constitution was adopted and signed in September, 1787. It had 10 amendments originally, bur since 1787, 17 amendments have been added, making a grand total of 27 amendments. One of these amendments was the 14th Amendment, which was ratified in 1868. Section

2 of this new amendment stated “Representatives shall be apportioned among the several states according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each state, excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice President of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the executive and judicial officers of a state, or the members of the legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such state, being twenty-one years of age, and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such state.” To put it simply, this amendment is stating that men are citizens and are allowed to vote, while as women are not. Before this amendment was ratified, women could have voted, but it was still socially unacceptable. An article on www.tolerance.org titled “Why Women Couldn’t Vote” says “The framers of the Constitution—and many who followed them for more than the next 100 years—believed that women were childlike and incapable of independent thought.” Today we know and understand that women are just as capable of thinking as men, but, unfortunately, the framers of the Constitution didn’t think so. Therefore, women had to fight for decades to gain even the slightest bit of equality.
“19th Amendment to the U.S Constitution: Women’s Right to Vote (1920)”, an article on www.ourdocument.gov, states “Beginning in the 1800’s, women organized, petitioned, and picketed for the right to vote, but it took decades to accomplish their purpose.” Women’s suffrage began to gain strength in the 1840’s, even though women hadn’t been “banned” from voting, yet.

At this point, they were simply fighting for social acceptance. Brave women began to give public speeches about their opinions on slavery and women’s rights. These women included Ernestine Rose, Abby Kelley Foster, and Lucy Stone. Several women also attempted to vote, but were either turned down or arrested for violating the law. About a decade later, the first National Women’s Rights Convention took place, due the fact that women’s suffrage had begun to become a very well-known concept among America’s female population. As suffrage continued, several suffrage organizations were established, two of which were on the national level. Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton co-lead one, while Lucy Stone lead the other. Both groups were rivals for years, even though they both wanted primarily the same thing. Eventually, the two groups became allies and merged in the 1890, under the name National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) with Anthony as the leader. By 1916, a woman named Alice Paul formed the National Women’s Party (WWP). Unfortunately, over 200 of its supporters were arrested while picketing

the White House. Even though these courageous women continued to picket and protest, triumph wasn’t possible until President Woodrow Wilson was on board. In 1917, the state of New York adopted women’s suffrage, President Woodrow Wilson decided to change his position on the matter. This altered the political balance and the public favor shifted in favor of the vote for women. Finally, on August 26, 1920, the 19th Amendment was became a part of the U.S. Constitution. Section 1 states “The right of the citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” The fight for the right to vote was long and hard, but, finally, the war was won.
Unfortunately, due to the fact that it took many decades, many of the original suffragists were dead by the time 1920 came around.

An article called “The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Women’s Right To Vote” on www.archive.org says: “Few early supporters lived to see final victory in 1920.” But, if it weren’t for the first suffragists, we might not be where we are today. Because of them, women are treated more like human beings and less like livestock. Women can now vote freely, can play in female sports leagues, can work pretty much any job, or not work a job at all. America is now a far cry from where it was in the beginning. Life, for both the male and female populations, is equal and just.
Although America wasn’t created equal to women, it is now. Women can now vote freely and do all the things men can do. The prolonged war for justice for women’s right to vote is over, a right that should’ve been given to them in the very beginning, has been given to them now. America now really is the home of the free and the home of the

brave.