Today, for the first time in my life, I exercised my constitutional right to vote.
Last week, at this time, I was set on not voting. I was split straight down the middle between Governor Walker and Mary Burke… I even took a quiz to prove it. I thought, why would I vote when I don’t fully support one candidate or another? Furthermore, I didn’t want people to think of my voting strictly because the Republican family I grew up in, or the Democrat boyfriend I am dating. I was scared to make the wrong decision, I was scared to vote.
So, how in the world did I come to my voting consensus? I decided to vote because of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, Alice Paul and Lucretia Mott.
In 1848, women were all like, hey, over here! I exist! But men were like:
Cue “Cult of True Womanhood”. These women were homemakers, mothers, wives, the usual, but wanted to have and be something more.
Much like today, these women were mocked, threatened, and turned down by the hand of men, while fighting for their rights. But hold up, let’s make an acknowledgement— during this time, the US government finally give black males the right to vote. So then, after FORTY-FIVE YEARS of women marching around with pickets and speaking at conferences, Susan B. Anthony comes along and really rallies up the ladies and all men can think is…
Finally, after a ton of pissed off women and ignorant men have gone at it for half a century, Alice Paul formed the Congressional Union for Woman Suffrage, which later became the National Woman’s Party. Woodrow Wilson, the president at the time, realized that these are strong women… they can do whatever they like. He then gave women a stronger voice in regards to WWI, and proceeded to suggest an amendment to the constitution saying, “I regard the extension of suffrage to women as vitally essential to the successful prosecution of the great war of humanity in which we are engaged.”
The amendment was shot down by two idiots, and put on the backburner for another year before FINALLY someone was like, oh yeah! Women!
On May 21, 1919, U.S. Representative James R. Mann, a Republican from Illinois and chairman of the Suffrage Committee, proposed to approve the Susan Anthony Amendment granting women the right to vote. It passed the House with flying colors—a full 42 votes above the mandatory two-thirds majority.
Countless women fought for over seventy years to gain the right to vote. Today, we are still fighting to gain our rights and solidify our voices as strong women in the American society. We will continue to fight every day until the wall of inequality for all has been lowered.
Today, I didn’t vote on the bases of Republican or Democrat, today I voted for me. I voted proudly. I voted because I have the right and the ability to vote—unlike many of my fellow ladies out there. My hope is that this article will reach at least one more of you before the election comes to a close. With that being said, regardless your political standpoint, I hope you too will exercise your right to vote.