Women Get the Vote

It was a summer day in 1848. A group of women had gathered for a meeting in the little town of Seneca Falls, New York. Women’s rights activist Elizabeth Cady Stanton stood to speak. No one could foresee that her words might help spark one of the great grassroots movements for social justice in American history. “We hold these truths to be self-evident,” Stanton read aloud, “that all men and women are created equal.” Her addition of “and women” to the most famous line of the Declaration of Independence kickstarted a revolution. It was the beginning of the struggle for women’s suffrage. That campaign would continue for more than seven decades. Ultimately, it forced a change to the U.S. Constitution—the 19th Amendment. That amendment granted women the right to vote. This August will mark the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment. Here are some lesser-known truths about the suffrage movement.

When the Framers of the Constitution wrote those memorable opening words in 1789, setting up our system of representative government, citizens’ right to vote was never guaranteed. The Constitution gave each state control over voter qualifications, and at first the states allowed only property-owning white men to vote in elections. A rare exception was New Jersey, which initially allowed women to vote but took the ballot away from them in 1807.

By the mid-19th century, states had dropped property requirements for white men. African American men were granted the vote by the 15th Amendment in 1870, though “Jim Crow” laws and other racist state policies prevented black men in the Southern states from exercising their right to vote for almost another century.

Women in a few states—mostly in the West—won the right to vote by campaigning for changes to state election laws. By 1918, women had gained full voting rights in 15 states, including California, Illinois, and New York. But campaigns to secure the vote for women in many other states failed. Most American women had to wait until 1920 for the 19th Amendment to the Constitution to grant them the right to vote.

The Framers of the Constitution wrote those memorable opening words in 1789. They were setting up our system of representative government. At the time, citizens’ right to vote was never guaranteed. The Constitution gave each state control over voter qualifications. At first, the states allowed only property-owning white men to vote in elections. A rare exception was New Jersey, which initially allowed women to vote but took the ballot away from them in 1807.

By the mid-19th century, states had dropped property requirements for white men. African American men were granted the vote by the 15th Amendment in 1870. But “Jim Crow” laws and other racist state policies prevented black men in the Southern states from exercising their right to vote for almost another century.

Women in a few states won the right to vote by campaigning for changes to state election laws. Most of those states were in the West. By 1918, women had gained full voting rights in 15 states, including California, Illinois, and New York. But campaigns to secure the vote for women in many other states failed. Most American women had to wait until 1920 for the 19th Amendment to the Constitution to grant them the right to vote.

Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Lucretia Mott are among the women we know as the founders of the suffrage movement. They began their political activism as abolitionists. They wrote and spoke publicly about the evils of slavery in the mid-19th century. They maintained that both enslaved people and women were oppressed under American law.

Women’s suffrage activists and abolitionists worked together through the Civil War (1861-65). Among the abolitionists supporting both movements was Frederick Douglass. He had escaped slavery and become a leading voice in the anti-slavery movement. The goal of both groups was universal suffrage. They were fighting to secure voting rights for enslaved black men and all women, black and white.

“All good causes are mutually helpful,” Douglass once said. “The benefits accruing from this movement for the equal rights of woman are not confined or limited to woman only.”

But after the war, women’s rights activists were told that the nation couldn’t handle two big reforms at once. Only black men would be given the vote by the 15th Amendment. That left both white and black women out of the expansion of voting rights. Some white suffrage leaders refused to support the 15th Amendment if it didn’t include women. They expressed their anger at being left behind with racist language.

Race remained a divisive issue in the women’s suffrage movement. Black women were very active advocates for the vote, but they were often not welcomed in white women’s suffrage clubs. So, they organized their own.

The suffragists faced many adversaries: politicians afraid of a new and unpredictable voting bloc; clergy, some of whom believed that demanding women’s equality went against biblical teaching; and corporations, which feared women holding the ballot might be bad for business. But the suffragists’ fiercest enemies were other women, nicknamed the “Antis” for anti-suffrage. The idea of women voting became more popular at the turn of the century. During that time, Antis pushed back. They organized local and national groups to fight against women obtaining the ballot.

The Antis argued that if women could vote, they would abandon their home life for politics. They believed that would destroy the American family. They also warned that women would be damaged by participating in the dirty world of politics—even if just to vote. And they feared women’s equality would upset established gender roles. They saw it as a threat to the masculinity of American men and the femininity of women. “What will men wear when women wear the pants?” the Antis warned.

In the South, Antis also attacked the 19th Amendment because they didn’t want black women to vote.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony drafted the Federal Suffrage Amendment and introduced it into Congress in 1878. It was stalled for 40 years. The House and Senate finally passed the amendment in June 1919 by a narrow margin. It then needed to be approved, or ratified, by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states in the union (36 of the 48 states at the time) to be added to the Constitution.

By summer 1920, 35 states had ratified. One last state was needed. That 36th state could be Tennessee. The battle over Tennessee’s ratification was called the “War of the Roses.” Both “Suffs” (suffrage supporters) and “Antis” descended on Nashville to try to persuade the Tennessee legislature. Suffs wore yellow roses; Antis wore red roses. It was an intense and bitter fight, and the outcome remained in doubt until the very last moment.

On the morning of the final vote, freshman delegate Harry Thomas Burn was troubled. He was just 24 years old, the youngest member of the legislature and up for re-election. He personally believed that women deserved to vote, but his district was mostly opposed to the amendment. That’s why he’d been wearing a red rose in his lapel and voting with the Antis. It was the safest thing for his career. But that morning he’d received a letter from his mother, urging him to support the amendment. “Dear Son,” the letter read, “Hurrah and vote for suffrage, and don’t keep them in doubt. . . . Don’t forget to be a good boy and help.”

On the final roll call, Harry Burn had his mother’s letter in his pocket when his name was called. “Aye,” he answered, changing his position and casting the deciding, tie-breaking vote to ratify the amendment. His one vote of conscience made history.

The 19th Amendment became part of the U.S. Constitution on August 26, 1920. However, in the Southern states, black women, like black men, would not be able to fully exercise their right to vote until the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibited racial discrimination at the polls. Most Native Americans weren’t granted citizenship until 1924—and even after that, some states prevented them from voting for many more years. Immigrants from Asia were denied citizenship until the mid-20th century, and thus had to wait for their voting rights as well.

Still, the 19th Amendment was a huge victory in the larger struggle for women’s equality. Today, women have many more opportunities in careers, such as law, medicine, the military, academics, business, and the ministry. And during the 2018 midterm elections, voters elected more women to Congress than ever before.

However, women still hold only about 25 percent of congressional seats. And they face unequal pay scales—earning about 80 cents for every $1 a man earns. These statistics reflect the unfortunate reality that more than 170 years after Elizabeth Cady Stanton stood up at Seneca Falls and announced that “all men and women are created equal,” her declaration has yet to be fully realized.

The 19th Amendment became part of the U.S. Constitution on August 26, 1920. But black women in the Southern states, like black men, would not be able to fully exercise their right to vote until the Voting Rights Act of 1965. That landmark federal legislation banned racial discrimination at the polls. Most Native Americans weren’t granted citizenship until 1924. Even after that, some states prevented them from voting for many more years. Immigrants from Asia were denied citizenship until the mid-20th century. That meant they had to wait for their voting rights as well.

Still, the 19th Amendment was a huge victory in the larger struggle for women’s equality. Today, women have many more opportunities in careers, such as law, medicine, the military, academics, business, and the ministry. And during the 2018 midterm elections, voters elected more women to Congress than ever before.

But women still hold only about 25 percent of congressional seats. And they face unequal pay scales. In fact, women earn about 80 cents for every $1 a man earns. It’s been more than 170 years since Elizabeth Cady Stanton stood up at Seneca Falls and announced that “all men and women are created equal.” But these statistics reflect the unfortunate reality that her declaration has yet to be fully realized.

Elaine Weiss is the author of “The Woman’s Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote.”

Elaine Weiss is the author of “The Woman’s Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote.”