Suffragettes

Suffragettes unite! The term has nothing to do with suffering but instead derives from the Latin word “suffragium,” meaning the right or privilege to vote.

”Universal suffrage” was a term generally used to support the right to vote for all adults, regardless of race or gender. After 1870, when African American men secured the Federal right to vote with the 15th Amendment, the term “suffrage” became more commonly associated with the woman suffrage movement….

The term “suffragettes” originated in Great Britain to mock women fighting for the right to vote. Women in Britain were struggling for the right to vote at the same time as those in the U.S.. Some women in Britain embraced the term as a way of appropriating it from its pejorative use….

There were also “anti-suffragists” — those who opposed extending voting rights to women. Anti-suffragists were both men and women who put forth arguments against woman suffrage, such as that most women did not want to vote, or women didn’t have the time or the mental capacity to form political opinions, or that women voting would threaten the family institution or womanhood itself….

Ultimately, the pro-woman suffrage forces were successful when Congress passed the woman suffrage amendment on June 4, 1919, extending the vote to women in the U.S. It was ratified on August 18, 1920, becoming the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

 

*******

 

 

It’s astounding to me that 50 years passed between the ratification of the 15th and 19th amendments to the U.S. Constitution. I wonder how many years will pass between the election of a black POTUS (2008) and a female one? I guess we’ll see, perhaps as early as November.

“The wheels of justice grind slow, but they grind exceedingly fine.” And you can say you heard it here first, folks.

 

********

 

Although the 19th amendment to the Constitution gave women the right to vote nationally, as early as 1890 certain states adopted statutes guaranteeing women’s suffrage. Bet you can’t guess which state did so first? Valuable prizes to the one who gets it first. Hint: It’s the most sparsely populated state in the Union other than Alaska. Answer in the comments section.