For hundreds of years men have had the luxury of dominating women with their voice. Women were looked at as “the weaker sex” in the 19th century, according to the article “The Campaign for women’s suffrage” and from my perspective, women still are not being treated as equals.
White adult men were given the right to vote back in 1840, and it was not until 1870 where the 15th Amendment was passed that voting could not be denied based on previous condition of servitude, color, or race. Men as a whole have had over 150 years of voting privilege, as opposed to women, now reaching 100 years of having the right to vote as of the 2020 presidential elections.
To this day, there are men who still think that men’s rights are more important than women’s rights. Many years have gone by that women have protested for equality and many more years will come into the future.
When the phrase “women’s rights” has been brought up, we generally think of movements and activists. One of the most famous female activists known is Susan B. Anthony, who was an extraordinary woman that made history for women during the 19th, 20th and 21st century. Ms. Anthony was recognized for her many titles, such as abolitionist, suffragist, teacher, author and speaker.
Alongside Anthony, a woman named Elizabeth Cady Stanton joined her in the fight to end women’s inequality. In 1869, together they founded the National Woman Suffrage Association that strived for allowing women having the right to vote and for women to be in control of their own lives.
Throughout her years, Anthony never got tired of giving speeches about the injustice of equality around the country. After getting tired of going unnoticed, Anthony did a very brave action where she illegally voted in the presidential election. She was arrested and fined $100, which turns out she never paid.
Anthony was determined even in her later years to make a difference. She talked to then President Theodore Roosevelt, proposing an amendment that allowed women the right to vote. In 1920, the 19th Amendment was passed 14 years after Ms. Anthony’s death.
It has been 100 years as of 2020 since the 19th Amendment was put into effect, and it is because of strong, courageous women such as Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton. As a remembrance of her accomplishments, there are people who stick their “I Voted” sticker onto Anthony’s tombstone to give her praise for contributing so much to women’s rights.
Many decades have gone by where women had to fight for the simple necessities, including the right to vote, and one woman named Susan B. Anthony made it accessible for us all. There will always be disputes about every topic. But when there is some form of injustice, such as not having the right to vote based on your sex, action needs to be taken.
Susan B. Anthony and many other determined and strong-headed women fought the earlier battles and made their future our lives that we live now. During these hard times that we live in now, whether that be COVID-19 related issues or our rights being taken away by the people in office, it is our turn to make our voices heard and to finish the puzzle with the pieces that were given by the strong women before us.