Some states yielded. First came Wyoming, then Colorado, Utah and Idaho before the turn of the century, followed by Washington, California and others in the early 20th century. (It is noteworthy that all these states were west of the Mississippi, where women were pioneering alongside their husbands.) But state-by-state victories were not enough. So Alice Paul began organizing, modeling her work on the suffragists of Great Britain. She and her followers managed to embarrass President Woodrow Wilson, which is partly why they were subjected to torture in filthy jails run by sadists.
Just for the right to vote.
When the country went to war in 1917 women participated actively in America's war effort. It was impossible to continue denying them the vote. But it took another fifty years or more for women to begin to make inroads toward becoming legislators themselves. Today that struggle continues as we strive for parity in our parliament.
On the occasion of this 70th anniversary, I honor Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Matilda Joslyn Gage, the Grimke sisters, Carrie Chapman Catt, Alice Paul, and all the lesser known women who made women's enfranchisement a reality.
And I shudder to know that still, some women don't vote.
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