Emmeline Pankhurst: Women's Suffrage

Biographical Information Emmeline Pankhurst was born in Manchester England, July 15, 1858, Emmeline’s maiden name was Emmeline Goulden child of Robert Goulden and Sophia Crane. She was one of nine other siblings and her parents were politically active with women’s suffrage. Emmeline, after studying in Paris, met Dr. Richard Pankhurst who was a layer and supporter of many racial issues including women suffrage. They were married December 1879. Over ten years later she had five children, Christabel, Sylvia, Adela, Frank (who died in childhood) and Harry. Since the age of fourteen Emmeline has always been involved in politics and in 1889, she became a supporter of the Women’s Franchise League. After her husband died in 1898,
she form the WSPU, women’s social and political union. As an effect from the WSPU’s tactics Emmeline and other members were being arrested, because of the demonstrations that they were presenting. Emmeline was first put in jail in 1908. “We were called militant, and we were quite willing to accept the name. We were determined to press this question of the enfranchisement of women to the point where we were no longer to be ignored by politicians.” This is one of Emmeline’s famous quotes and it is stating that the members of the WSPU will not rest until they have been heard by the politicians who are holding strong the ignore them. That she will not rest until the oppression of women’s rights have been vanquished. When World War I came the WSPU stop their demonstrations, instructed by Emmeline, so that they can fill in jobs at factories so that men could go fight in the war and as an effect of this all members of the WSPU were released from prison and became workers. Due to their dedication to working in the factories they received the right to vote in the year that Emmeline Pankhurst died, 1928.