On May 15, 1869 Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony founded the National Woman Suffrage Association(NWSA). The NWSA set it's sights on gaining the right to vote for the women of America.These women strongly opposed the 15th amendment because it didn't include women, and their main focus was to stop the 15th amendment from passing. In the NWSA all members were women, and it was agreed that only a woman could hold office. Men could join the association, but could not be full members. Women and only women controlled the leadership of the group.
The Fifteenth Amendment
The Fifteenth Amendment
Many women opposed the proposal of the fifteenth amendment because it prevented race discrimination but not gender discrimination in voter laws.
They wanted the same rights as everyone else and voting was the first one they set out to achieve.
Key elements of the NWSA were :
They couldn't agree to pass the 15th Amendment unless it was changed to include women .
They fully supported a federal Constitutional Amendment for women's suffrage.
They involved themselves in other women's rights issues, including the rights of working women, reform of marriage and divorce laws.
They were open to working with anyone, as long as they wholeheartedly supported woman rights and suffrage.
The organization held a meeting at the Women's Bureau in New York City to appoint a leader. Susan B. Anthony and delegates appointed Elizabeth Cady Stanton as the NWSA President. "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal." - Stanton. These words a full of wisdom, and that may be why the women of the organization strongly believed she was the most fit for the position.
They wanted the same rights as everyone else and voting was the first one they set out to achieve.
Key elements of the NWSA were :
They couldn't agree to pass the 15th Amendment unless it was changed to include women .
They fully supported a federal Constitutional Amendment for women's suffrage.
They involved themselves in other women's rights issues, including the rights of working women, reform of marriage and divorce laws.
They were open to working with anyone, as long as they wholeheartedly supported woman rights and suffrage.
The organization held a meeting at the Women's Bureau in New York City to appoint a leader. Susan B. Anthony and delegates appointed Elizabeth Cady Stanton as the NWSA President. "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal." - Stanton. These words a full of wisdom, and that may be why the women of the organization strongly believed she was the most fit for the position.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Trials and Tribulations
During the years of 1871 and 1872 women attempted to vote in violation of the state laws. A few women were arrested including Susan B. Anthony. After her long trial the court and all male jury ruled Anthony guilty for committing the crime of attempting to vote. Anthony defended herself with her well known quote, "Is It a Crime for a U.S. Citizen to Vote?".
In 1874, a unanimous verdict by the court proclaimed that even though women were citizens, suffrage was not a "necessary privilege and immunity to which all citizens were entitled". The people's mind couldn't be changed at least not yet.
In the year 1876 Susan B. Anthony and a group of women presented to the United States Senate petitions signed by more than 10,000 people advocating women's suffrage, but it failed to change anything.
Constitution
In 1883 Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the officers of NWSA decided to adopt a new Constitution hoping for better results.
The NWSA initiated a federal Constitutional Amendment in 1877 which was shown to the Congress every year until it finally passed in 1919.
During the years of 1871 and 1872 women attempted to vote in violation of the state laws. A few women were arrested including Susan B. Anthony. After her long trial the court and all male jury ruled Anthony guilty for committing the crime of attempting to vote. Anthony defended herself with her well known quote, "Is It a Crime for a U.S. Citizen to Vote?".
In 1874, a unanimous verdict by the court proclaimed that even though women were citizens, suffrage was not a "necessary privilege and immunity to which all citizens were entitled". The people's mind couldn't be changed at least not yet.
In the year 1876 Susan B. Anthony and a group of women presented to the United States Senate petitions signed by more than 10,000 people advocating women's suffrage, but it failed to change anything.
Constitution
In 1883 Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the officers of NWSA decided to adopt a new Constitution hoping for better results.
- Article I: Stated the name of the organization of the National Woman Suffrage Association.
- Article II : Emphasized the object of the organization to secure the right to vote for women of the nation on equal terms with men.
- Article III: Issued a one dollar annual membership fee. It also stated that membership fees were mandatory if a person wanted to actively participate and vote within the National.
- Article IV: Named the officers of the National to consist of the President, a Vice-President from each of the states and territories, Corresponding and Recording Secretaries, Treasurer, an Executive Committee of five or more members located in New York City and an Advisory Counsel from each state and territory.
- Article V: Addressed that all other woman suffrage societies were welcomed as auxiliaries, and their officers would be recognized as members of the national association.
The NWSA initiated a federal Constitutional Amendment in 1877 which was shown to the Congress every year until it finally passed in 1919.
A new beginning for the NWSA
In October of 1887, Lucy Stone, one of the founders of the American Women Suffrage Association, proposed a meeting to discuss a merger with the NWSA. Lucy Stone, Alice Stone Blackwell, Susan B. Anthony and Rachel Foster met in December of that year and agreed to go through with the merger, This started the beginning of the National American Woman Suffrage Association(NAWSA). Elizabeth Cady Stanton was elected as president once again, Susan B. Anthony as vice president and acting president in Stanton's place if she were ever absent, and Lucy Stone as head of the Executive Committee. It took three years for the strategies of the NWSA and AWSA to finally converge. At this time Stanton traveled to Europe for two years to visit two of her children and find out if there was international suffrage occurring. Anthony as acting president had to fill in her place.
The NAWSA
The new NAWSA used both state-by-state organizing and push for a federal constitutional amendment
Organized large suffrage parades
Published many brochures, pamphlets and books, and news articles(The Women's Journal)
Met every year at conventions
The Woman's Bible
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Matilda Gage, Olympia Brown all felt out of place by the merger because their interests were far too different for the new NAWSA. They wanted to broaden the perspective and work on things other than gaining the right to vote. Stanton then had an idea and started to work on publishing The Women's Bible with the other two women and a Revising Committee of two dozen others . The committee wished to fix the historical bias that men had introduced into the Bible. Because of this, conflict began with the NAWSA. In 1896, Rachel Foster Avery and a slim majority of younger NAWSA members voted to put a gap between the organization and The Woman's Bible/Stanton. After this occurrence Stanton was never invited to the stage at another NAWSA convention. The NAWSA membership solely wished to focus on one single issue and so the fight for women's right to vote began once again.
Deaths and Successions
In 1892 Susan B. Anthony had succeeded Elizabeth Cady Stanton because she was getting too old and was too obese to work. That same year Lucy Stone, once from AWSA, died from advanced stomach cancer. From 1893 to 1896, women's suffrage became law in the new state of Wyoming, and Colorado, Utah and Idaho amended their state constitutions to include women's suffrage.
In 1900, Carrie Chapman Catt succeeded Anthony as president of the NAWSA by a close vote. In just two years after that Elizabeth Cady Stanton died, and in 1904, Catt was succeeded as president by Anna Howard Shaw. In 1906 it was finally Susan B. Anthony's time to leave the earth and the whole first generation of leaders were now gone.
Reconstruction
NAWSA at this time decided to reconstruct itself and became a major pressure group. It recruited celebrities, both men and women, who could draw attention to the cause. It raised money from members and wealthy donors, and they started parades and street rallies, wearing white uniforms and banners to draw attention from people as well as newspaper reporters. During parades they rode horses, passed out pamphlets and help up signs regarding women suffrage. The NAWSA built alliances with local women's clubs, as well as state and national groups, and even some labor unions. Because of Carrie Chapman Catt strong leadership and her allies, NAWSA had now had enough strength in the states to fight toward a constitutional amendment.
Congressional Union
In 1913, Lucy Burns and Alice Paul organized a new committee named the Congressional Committee as an additional committee within the NAWSA.
The Congressional Committee within NAWSA organized a parade in Washington, DC. Thousands of people marched in the parade, which included onlookers and many opponents who insulted, spit on and even attacked the marchers. Many of the marches were injured, and it got so bad that even Army troops were called in when police couldn't stop the violence. Around this time the Congressional Committee promoted the Anthony Amendment.
In December of 1913, some of the leaders of the NAWSA decided that the Congressional Committee's actions weren't acceptable. In December that year the NAWSA convention expelled the Congressional Committee..
In 1915 Carrie Chapman Catt was elected president of the NAWSA again after leading the move to expel the Congressional Committee and its members.
The NAWSA in 1915 adopted the "Winning Plan." Catt proposed that they should use the states that had already given women the vote to push for a federal amendment. Thirty state legislatures petitioned Congress for women's suffrage.
We gain our right/Votes for Women
In 1916 at the NAWSA annual convention, Carrie Chapman Catt presented her plan to gain suffrage. In 1917 the Tammany Hall Democratic machine in New York decided not to oppose the plan and the women of New York gained the right to vote though it passed by a very slim majority.
In 1918, the US House of Representatives passed the Anthony Amendment, but the Senate turned it down. After a long period of struggle and pressure President Woodrow Wilson was finally persuaded to support suffrage. The Nineteenth Amendment passed in both the House in May and the Senate in June. The proposed amendment was sent to the states for ratification. They needed the approval of 36 states in order for the constitution to actually be changed. Because Tennessee became the 36th to do so on August 18 the amendment was certified for adoption by the United States Secretary of State..
On August 26, 1920, after the ratification by the Tennessee legislature, the Anthony Amendment became the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution, and that marked one of the greatest turning points in America. The mission was finally a success and the women of America could now vote!
