Event Description
The activism supporting American women’s right to vote spanned many decades having occurred before the Civil War along with the anti-slavery movement. The convention in Seneca Falls in 1848 led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton marked the crucial moment in the initiation of the movement for women’s rights. After the war, the women’s suffrage movement developed with increased strength as the reaction on the 14th and 15th amendments. Since that moment, women gained their right to vote in some states, but it was not regularly. The crucial winning campaign took place several years before 1920. The political activism of Carrie Chapman Catt and the protests led by Alice Paul helped to secure the victory of women’s suffrage. Finally, the 19th Amendment, granting the right to vote for women, was ratified in 1920. Although many years were needed to transform the way gender is seen in the U.S., the Nineteenth Amendment served as the first step to equal rights activism.
Source Analysis
Secondary Sources
The chosen scholarly articles aim at interpreting the events of the suffrage movement and their impact on American society. Neuman (2017) explores the contribution of two contrasting approaches to suffrage activism, that of Alice Paul and Carrie Chapman Catt. The historian argues that their ways were codependent rather than opposing (Neuman, 2017). Watkins (2019) explores the issue of race in the women’s suffrage campaign. The scholar claims that major African American activists supported women’s suffrage, while the attitudes of suffragists towards racial issues were far from homogeneous (Watkins, 2019). The article by Ritter (2000) explores “how women’s citizenship was reconceived after the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment” (p. 345). The author puts forward an argument that the Nineteenth Amendment granted only limited rights to American women (Ritter, 2000). This study is essential for understanding the role of women’s suffrage in the overall equal rights movement.
Primary Sources
Nelson (1917) describes the vision of the change in the right to vote and how the suffragists wanted to implement it. Nelson (1917) argues in favor of the national way instead of the state way as a quicker and easier way of implementation of the changes which he sees as inevitable. The Joint Resolution of the House of Representatives and the Senate demonstrates the willingness of politicians to accept the changes under the pressure of political activism (House Joint Resolution №1, (1919, May 19). Osborne (1919) provides remarks on the resolution responding to the main contra-arguments. This source is essential for the understanding of the political situation of the period and what questions the Amendment raised.
Research Question
The analyzed sources demonstrate that the Nineteenth Amendment was a significant step for the U.S. It recognized women as meaningful members of society and gave them the power to influence political decisions. Nevertheless, it failed to address the rights of black women and freedom for married women. The achievements of women’s suffrage did not grant gender equality, and years of activism were needed to promote women’s rights. Thus, the research question is the following: How did the suffrage movement and the 19th Amendment influence the way gender is perceived in the U.S. today?
Audience and Message
This project is aimed to address the academic audience, as it provides an insightful analysis of the event and is based on rigorous research. Apart from the academics and students interested in history, the topic would be interesting for the sociologists, as it reveals how the social gender paradigm developed before and after the 19th Amendment. The purpose of this writing is to deliver the message on the impact that the women’s suffrage movement and its victory had on U.S. society and how it shaped the role of gender. Although the Amendment was a definite step forward in the equal rights movement, it is necessary to evaluate its failures as well as achievements.
References
House Joint Resolution 1 Regarding the 19th Amendment. (1919). Bills and Resolutions Originating in the House, 1789 – 1974; Records of the U.S. House of Representatives, Record Group 233; National Archives Building, Washington, DC.
Nelson, J. M. (1917). Woman suffrage: The view of the minority. Library of Congress and Sewall-Belmont House and Museum, Washington, D.C. Web.
Neuman, J. (2017). The faux debate in North American suffrage history. Women’s History Review, 26(6), 1013-1020.
Osborne, H. Z. (1919). The woman suffrage constitutional amendment: Remarks. Government Printing Office. Web.
Ritter, G. (2000). Gender and citizenship after the Nineteenth Amendment. Polity, 32(3), 345-375.
Watkins, V. (2019). Votes for women: Race, gender, and W.E.B. Du Bois’s advocacy of woman suffrage. Journal of American History, 106(3), 3-19.