CELEBRATING 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 19TH AMENDMENT – WOMEN’S RIGHT TO VOTE
Attorney General Clare E. Connors
U.S. History Class at St. Andrew’s Schools – The Priory
(Photo by St. Andrew’s Schools)
On November 18, 2019, Attorney General Clare E. Connors announced a campaign to teach children about the 19th Amendment (women’s right to vote) on the cusp of its 100th anniversary. The Department of the Attorney General is conducting this campaign in partnership with the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission (WSCC) www.WomensVote100.org, the federal commission created by Congress to ensure a proper commemoration of the one hundredth anniversary of the 19th Amendment, and in cooperation with the Original Flat Stanley Project.
“It is vitally important that we all commemorate this anniversary,” said Attorney General Connors. “Today is the day that Susan B. Anthony stood up for her right to vote” and “our office will be working with keiki to teach them how important this right is to all of us.”
Nationwide, attorneys general joined Attorney General Connors and the WSCC in highlighting the centennial of women’s right to vote and teaching kids about Susan B. Anthony with a paper cutout.
“Flat Susan B.” Cutouts Decorated by Department of the Attorney General’s Kids
Download and decorate your own “Flat Susan B” cutout! Available for download at https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5c8945509b7d15177a47de1c/t/5dcf2aaabc2b197b70ba9eff/1573857970731/Flat+Susan+B.pdf. Take photos with your decorated “Flat Susan B” and post the photos to social media using hashtags #WomensVote100 and #FlatSusanB
Women’s Suffrage Historical Facts
- Susan B. Anthony (1820 – 1906), a pioneer in the women’s suffrage (right to vote) movement in the United States, founded the National American Woman Suffrage Association with fellow activist, Elizabeth Cady Stanton. In addition to fighting for a woman’s right to vote, she worked to end slavery and participated in the abolitionist movement. https://www.susanbanthony.net/; https://www.nps.gov/people/susan-b-anthony.htm
- Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815 – 1902) was a fellow suffragist, abolitionist, and an early leader of the woman’s rights movement. She co-authored the “Declaration of Sentiments” which set forth the rights of American women and compared their struggles to those of the Founding Fathers fighting for colonial independence from Great Britain. https://www.history.com/topics/womens-history/elizabeth-cady-stanton; https://www.nps.gov/wori/learn/historyculture/declaration-of-sentiments.htm
- Prior to the 19th Amendment’s adoption, Virginia Minor (1824 – 1894), battled all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court for her right to vote and lost in 1874. https://www.nps.gov/jeff/learn/historyculture/the-virginia-minor-case.htm
- A mom convinced her son to let women vote! To amend the U.S. Constitution, three-fourths of the state legislatures must ratify the proposed amendment. In 1920, 36 states needed to sign on. On August 18, 1920, Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify the 19th amendment, thanks to Harry T. Burn, a 24-year-old legislator who followed his mother’s advice to “be a good boy” and cast the 50th vote out of a possible 99! https://www.history.com/news/the-mother-who-saved-suffrage-passing-the-19th-amendment; https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/did-you-know/20-things-you-had-no-idea-happened-in-1920/ss-BBXNFFE?ocid=ientp#image=3; https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/constitution
- On August 26, 1920, the 19th Amendment was added to the U.S. Constitution, finally guaranteeing women the right to vote.
- History of the Suffrage Movement https://www.crusadeforthevote.org/history
Past Presentations by the Department of Attorney General
- Attorney General Connors Inspires Future Women Leaders at St. Andrew’s Schools – the Priory https://www.standrewsschools.org/news-post/~post/the-attorney-general-inspires-the-priory-students-20191118
- Attorney General Connors Discusses Susan B. Anthony and the Women’s Right to Vote with the Keiki of the Department of Attorney General
Inspiring Women’s Suffragist Quotes
“There never will be complete equality until women themselves help to make laws and elect lawmakers.” – Susan B. Anthony
“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal.” – Elizabeth Cady Stanton
“If women want any rights more than they’s got, why don’t they just take them, and not be talking about it?” — Sojourner Truth
“Everybody counts in applying democracy. And there will never be a true democracy until every responsible and law-abiding adult in it, without regard to race, sex, color or creed has his or her own inalienable and unpurchasable voice in government.” – Carrie Chapman Catt
“No man is good enough to govern any woman without her consent.” – Susan B. Anthony