Oppression Of Women From 1848-1920's

Working Toward Change The 72-year-old fight made by women lasting from 1848-1920 would over time result in the establishment of the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution declaring women’s suffrage and subconsciously empowered women that additional doors of opportunity would then too be opened. However prior to reaching the “golden” destination, women had a grueling journey filled with bountiful obstacles (such as laws, expectations, and stereotypes) that had to be overcome to reach their ultimate destination. Peasants, women, and children (regardless of class) were not considered to be citizens, but rather placed into categories and referred to as property or subjects of men, husbands, and fathers. With a few exceptions, majority
of women adhered to the law and legally bound themselves to their husbands resulting in endorsement of their identity, property, and rights to men under the feme covert law.
Additionally, men were taught to aspire, be anything they could imagine while on the other hand, women were limited and restricted from the same exact things that men had the opportunity to grasp and utilize. Moreover, true womanhood has a certain stigma marked by definite characteristics that should be displayed by women as deemed appropriate by their sexuality. Domesticity, piety, purity, and submissiveness were amongst those requirements. Ladies were presumed to be domestic, work and clean around the house, and raise the children. Young girls would be raised to takeover the jobs of their mothers, while young boys should be taught to aspire and become actively involved with government and politics. Ladies were also deemed to have piety or religious and right characteristics. Purity was another stereotype of ladies; they were sexually pure, never thought nor cared about sex. Lastly, in order to be accepted into womanhood, one had to be submissive, ridding herself from citizenship and allowing herself to become a subject to
her husband or father. Women had finally realized they were not reaching their full potential, deserved to have more rights, and began their efforts to stand up for them in the 1850’s.
In the primary source document “Women’s Rights Movement” (91), the women at the Worcester convention identifies several important topics that women strive to obtain regarding their fight for women’s suffrage. Women rights advocates publicize their efforts to one another. First, women demand they should have the right to vote and become politically active despite gender, color, or race. By doing so, women insinuate none of the aforementioned were created less and implied the term “male” should be omitted from the current legal state document rather than being a requirement to be qualified to serve (91). The primary source explains women acknowledged they were more than housewives and capable of learning. Because education was vital to learning, the proposal of equal education for men and women to pursue any ambitions came to be. Also, women strongly protested against the feme covert law. Women desired to have their own property, protect her own children, and stand as her own self, an individual, a citizen who claims life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness (91). Moreover by allowing a woman to stand as a citizen, it would aide in the protection of women from their intoxicated husband who could drunkenly stumble home and beat his wife who is essentially deemed property under the feme covert
law. Next, historian Alison M. Parker supports the ideas of the Worcester convention in her secondary source. Parker argues without women’s suffrage, it would have been a challenge to conquer any future wants. It paved the way for women having a voice. This idea is supported in “The Case for Reform Antecedents” when Parker claims, “women suffrage came to be seen as the best way to solve a variety of perceived social ills, including martial inequity, unfair divorce laws, wage, inequality, and intemperance (23).” Both Parker and the women’s rights advocates are in unison, in that, they believe the previously mentioned are all issues that should be addressed. Parker supports the Worcester convention because the Worcester convention’s first argument addresses the importance of getting a vote, which subconsciously opens the door for more opportunity. Achieving women’s suffrage will serve as the gateway to push for more things that women desire such as equal education, property, and ending temperance. Parker continues by writing, “the vote also provided women with a common goal and agenda addressing equal rights and citizenship in the American republic (24).” Parker articulates staying strong and focused on one agenda will be more effective than dividing efforts into smaller, less effective attempts at making a change. Parker is supported by the Worcester convention through her writings and story of Susan B. Anthony who actively evangelized to others about “changing the world which was only made possible once women had just as much right to vote and rule as the men” (94). The women’s rights advocates and Parker both discuss women’s strong urge to gain citizenship, win their vote, and then stand, fight, and tackle additional needs of theirs, like education and property to name a few. In conclusion, the efforts made in the 1850’s to obtain women’s suffrage and eventually establish the Nineteenth Amendment is a time era that will forever be remembered. Because of the fight for women’s suffrage, I believe a domino effect occurred, resolving many issues, and thus changed life to as we would come to know it. Without the women’s suffrage fight from the 1850’s, it is possible I would not have lived the blessed life I have been given nor would I be attending Xavier University, seeing that only men were encouraged to be educated. My wishes and thoughts would be irrelevant, especially in politics. My life would be on parole to my house, consist of homestead duties, and I would be labeled as property of my father. Because of history, I am given the right to participate in politics and government by voting in the upcoming presidential election. The Worcester convention and Parker allow us to see the cascade of events that happened due to the hard fight for women’s right to vote. Although these documents answer many questions, there are several questions that deserve to be pondered. If our ancestors had not fought for women’s suffrage, how would life be different for all; would women’s rights evolve without any efforts or would men dictate life for everyone? Once the women advocates at the Worcester convention had proposed their ideas amongst one another and articulated them into a document, what would be included in the next steps of their plan and how would they proceed forward given any obstacles?