Omar Bennett
The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, passed in 1920, was a pivotal moment in the history of women's rights, guaranteeing their right to vote. The road to achieving this milestone was long and arduous, with women employing various strategies such as lecturing, writing, marching, lobbying, and even civil disobedience to challenge male-only voting laws. The fight for women's suffrage began in the mid-19th century, with the Seneca Falls convention adopting the Declaration of Sentiments, calling for equality between the sexes. Despite setbacks and resistance, women persevered, and by 1912, nine western states had granted women suffrage. The momentum continued with women's contributions during World War I, and in 1919, the House of Representatives and the Senate passed the amendment. The ratification of the 19th Amendment marked a significant step towards equality, but the battle for women's rights did not end there. Activists like Alice Paul advocated for the Equal Rights Amendment to enshrine protections against sex-based discrimination in the Constitution. The ongoing struggle for equality demonstrates the resilience and determination of women in shaping the U.S. Constitution and their unwavering pursuit of equal rights under the law.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Women's Right to Vote | The 19th Amendment, passed in 1920, granted women the right to vote. |
| Suffrage Activism | Women lectured, wrote, marched, lobbied, and practiced civil disobedience to achieve the right to vote. |
| State-Level Progress | By 1914, women in eight states had won the right to vote, and 23 states granted women full or partial voting rights before the 19th Amendment. |
| Racial Dynamics | The women's suffrage movement was influenced by racial dynamics, with some white suffragists appealing to southern states by arguing that women's votes could counter the Black vote. |
| Equality Between Sexes | The Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 adopted the Declaration of Sentiments, calling for equality between the sexes and urging women to secure the vote. |
| Legal and Political Strategies | Suffrage organizations used legal arguments and lobbied for political changes, such as passing suffrage acts in individual states. |
| Equal Rights Amendment | After securing the right to vote, activists like Alice Paul pushed for the Equal Rights Amendment to protect against sex-based discrimination in the Constitution. |
| Incremental Progress | Advocates pursued incremental changes, such as specific laws to protect and expand women's rights in areas like education, equal pay, housing, and financial independence. |
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What You'll Learn
Women's right to vote
The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which came into effect on August 18, 1920, granted women the right to vote. The amendment was the culmination of a long and difficult campaign by women's suffrage supporters that spanned several generations and began in the mid-19th century.
Before 1776, women had the vote in several colonies that would later become the United States. However, by 1807, every state constitution had denied women even limited suffrage. In the mid-19th century, organizations supporting women's rights became more active. The Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, for example, adopted the Declaration of Sentiments, which called for equality between the sexes and included a resolution urging women to secure the vote.
In 1869, the National Woman Suffrage Association (NWSA) and the American Woman Suffrage Association (AWSA) were formed. The NWSA, led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, argued for universal suffrage and opposed the 15th Amendment, which granted Black men the right to vote before white women. The AWSA, on the other hand, supported the 15th Amendment and focused exclusively on achieving women's suffrage. In 1872, Susan B. Anthony successfully voted but was later arrested and found guilty in a highly publicized trial, which helped fuel the movement.
The first women's suffrage amendment was introduced in Congress in 1878, but it did not pass the House of Representatives until May 21, 1919, and was quickly followed by the Senate on June 4, 1919. During this period, women's suffrage supporters lectured, wrote, marched, lobbied, and practiced civil disobedience to achieve what many Americans considered a radical change to the Constitution. Some pursued a strategy of passing suffrage acts in each state, while others challenged male-only voting laws in the courts. Some suffragists also used more confrontational tactics such as picketing, silent vigils, and hunger strikes.
By 1916, almost all of the major suffrage organizations were united behind the goal of a constitutional amendment. When New York adopted woman suffrage in 1917 and President Wilson changed his position to support an amendment in 1918, the political balance began to shift. On May 21, 1919, the House of Representatives passed the amendment, and two weeks later, the Senate followed. When Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify the amendment on August 18, 1920, the amendment officially passed, changing the face of the American electorate forever.
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Women's property rights
In 1771, New York passed groundbreaking legislation known as the "Act to Confirm Certain Conveyances and Directing the Manner of Proving Deeds to Be Recorded." This law mandated that a married man obtain his wife's signature on any deed related to her property before executing a sale or transfer. Additionally, a judge was required to meet privately with the wife to confirm her consent. Maryland followed suit with similar legislation in 1774.
In 1787, Massachusetts took a significant step forward by passing a law that, under specific circumstances, allowed married women to act as femme sole traders. This term refers to women who were empowered to engage in business independently, particularly when their husbands were absent or away from home.
The Married Women's Property Acts, beginning in 1839, played a pivotal role in expanding the property rights of married women across the United States. These laws, enacted by individual states, aimed to grant married women new economic rights and challenge the constraints of coverture, an English common law system that subordinated married women's rights to their husbands' authority. New York's Married Women's Property Law, passed in 1848, served as a model for other states, including Pennsylvania in 1845.
By 1900, all states recognised married women's substantial property control rights, marking a significant shift in women's legal status and their ability to own and manage property in the United States.
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Women's political influence
Women's suffrage in the United States was a long and difficult campaign that lasted for decades. Beginning in the mid-19th century, women and their supporters lectured, wrote, marched, lobbied, and practiced civil disobedience to achieve what many Americans considered a radical change to the Constitution. The 19th Amendment, passed in 1920, was the culmination of this struggle, guaranteeing women the right to vote.
The road to the 19th Amendment was winding and complex. In the early 19th century, women in several U.S. colonies had a limited right to vote, and in New Jersey, unmarried women who owned property could vote between 1776 and 1807. However, by 1807, every state constitution had denied women even limited suffrage. The Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 marked a turning point, as it adopted the Declaration of Sentiments, calling for equality between the sexes and urging women to secure the vote.
In the mid-19th century, women's rights organizations became more active, with activists like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton leading the charge. They called for a constitutional amendment guaranteeing women the right to vote, equal to that of men. The movement faced divisions, with some suffragists supporting the enfranchisement of Black men first, while others rejected the idea of stepping aside and demanded voting rights for women as well. As the movement progressed, strategies varied. Some pursued state-by-state suffrage acts, while others challenged male-only voting laws in court. More confrontational tactics, such as picketing, silent vigils, and hunger strikes, were also employed.
World War I brought new urgency to the fight for women's suffrage. As women joined the workforce and took on visible roles supporting the war effort, activists argued that their sacrifices deserved recognition in the form of voting rights. The entry of the U.S. into the war, despite widespread pacifist sentiment, further highlighted the contradictions of fighting for democracy abroad while restricting it for women at home. By 1916, most major suffrage organizations united behind the goal of a constitutional amendment, and with New York's adoption of women's suffrage in 1917, the political balance began to shift. The House of Representatives and the Senate passed the amendment in 1919, and with Tennessee's ratification in 1920, the 19th Amendment became law, forever changing the face of the American electorate.
The achievement of suffrage, however, did not ensure full enfranchisement. The struggle to include African American and other minority women in the promise of voting rights continued for decades. Activists like Alice Paul pushed for the Equal Rights Amendment to enshrine broad protections against sex-based discrimination in the Constitution, while others lobbied for specific laws to expand women's rights in areas like education, equal pay, housing, and financial independence, ushering in a more egalitarian age.
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Women's rights activism
One notable example of early women's rights activism is the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, which adopted the Declaration of Sentiments calling for equality between the sexes and urging women to secure the vote. Activists like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton played a crucial role in the movement, advocating for a constitutional amendment guaranteeing women's suffrage. By the late 19th century, several western states and territories began granting women the right to vote, and by 1912, nine western states had adopted woman suffrage legislation.
During World War I, women's contributions to the war effort, including joining the labour force and taking on roles in nursing, relief work, and ambulance driving, further bolstered the argument for their right to vote. The National Woman's Party (NWP) used the war context to highlight the contradictions of fighting for democracy abroad while denying it at home. In 1917, the NWP began picketing the White House to bring attention to the cause of women's suffrage.
The path to securing women's suffrage was not without challenges and divisions within the movement. The question of women's suffrage was closely tied to issues of race, and some white suffragists tried to appeal to southern states by arguing that women's votes could counter the Black vote, strengthening white supremacy. Additionally, there were debates within the movement about the strategy for achieving suffrage, with some pursuing state-by-state legislation while others focused on legal challenges to male-only voting laws.
The ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920 was a landmark moment for women's rights, but the struggle for full enfranchisement continued, particularly for African American and minority women. Women's rights activists continued their advocacy, shifting their focus to broader protections against sex-based discrimination, such as the Equal Rights Amendment, and pursuing specific laws to expand women's rights in areas like education, equal pay, housing, and financial independence.
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Women's legal protections
One of the most significant proposed amendments to protect women's rights is the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). The ERA aims to guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of sex. It seeks to end legal distinctions between men and women in matters such as divorce, property, and employment. The ERA has gained significant support, particularly during the rise of the women's movement in the 1960s, and was approved by the US House of Representatives in 1971 and the US Senate in 1972. Despite this, it has not yet been ratified, falling short of the necessary number of states for ratification.
The ERA is important because it would provide federal protection for women's equal civil rights and bodily autonomy. It would eliminate the legal tradition of "gendered citizenship," where rights differ based on assumptions about the roles of men and women. The ERA would also improve the United States' credibility globally regarding sex discrimination, as most countries affirm legal equality of the sexes in their governing documents.
In the absence of a federal ERA, 24 states have enacted their own state-level ERAs, providing varying levels of protection for women's rights. However, these state-level victories are not a substitute for the permanence of federal constitutional protections. Without a national guarantee of equality, rights such as abortion, access to contraception, and LGBTQI+ rights remain vulnerable to political changes and state-level restrictions.
The issue of abortion rights has been a significant focus of women's legal protections in recent years. While some states have passed constitutional amendments to protect abortion rights, others have implemented restrictive abortion bans. The Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization in 2022 further complicated the matter, ruling that the 14th Amendment does not confer a right to abortion, creating legal uncertainty around a myriad of rights.
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Frequently asked questions
The 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution granted women the right to vote. It was passed by Congress on June 4, 1919, and ratified on August 18, 1920.
Women and their supporters lectured, wrote, marched, lobbied, and practiced civil disobedience to achieve what many Americans considered a radical change to the Constitution. Some pursued a strategy of passing suffrage acts in each state, while others challenged male-only voting laws in court. More confrontational tactics included picketing, silent vigils, and hunger strikes.
Women's rights activists shifted their focus to other battles, such as pushing for the Equal Rights Amendment, which would enshrine broad protections against sex-based discrimination in the Constitution. Others pursued a more incremental approach, lobbying for specific laws to protect and expand women's rights in areas like access to education, equal pay, housing, and financial independence.
