Women Flashcards
(16 cards)
Position of women by 1865, political
-active in church societies
-participated in the campaign against slavery, first female anti-slavery convention in 1837, Harriet tubman played a huge role in freeing slaves
-temperance movement
-beginnings of suffrage movement
-learning to organise themselves and make demands
Women’s economic and social developments prior to the civil war
-urbanisation brought better communication, literacy and education for women
-as the middle class emerged, middle class women didn’t need to work but looked after the home and had more time to get involved with causes, however these women were the minority
-majority of women were struggling with day-to-day survival and lacked free time
how did the civil war affect women
-many women wanted to vote in order to protest slavery, the men of the abolitionist movement weren’t happy with this
-400 documented instances of women disguising themselves as men to fight
-many welcomed the chance to be independent by running businesses or joining charities
-famous spies on both sides
-women had more control over their lives and finances
position of women at the end of the civil war
-opportunities for greater change seemed strong
–extensive inequality to overcome
-few men supported voting rights for women
-growth of prosperity- more people saw the women’s role being in the home
-most common female employment was domestic or low paid manufacturing
-limited birth control meant families remained large
the campaign for political rights- prohibition
-first introduction to participation in greater public life and main reason for the suffrage movement
-WCTU formed 1874, 800,000 by 1920
-led by Frances Willard
-achieved political aims by persuading legislators to ban alcohol
campaign for political rights, rural movement in the early period
-women were involved in rural protests ie Grange Movement and the Framer’s alliance, may were outspoken against the spreading of railways and for the need to protect farmer’s income
-Elizabeth Lease was a speaker for the populist party
-women led campaigns and protests despite hostility from business interests
-women’s national Indian association for native american rights
campaign for political rights, urban involvement in the early period
-centred around charities - Charity Organisation Society
-influencing local governments to pass legislation to provide support for vulnerable women
-settlement houses
campaign for political rights, break with the abolitionist movement
-initially the American Equal Rights Association campaigned for equal rights on grounds of race and gender
-14th and 15th amendments did not include women
-AERA eventually decided to distance itself from suffrage
Suffrage organisations
- Susan b. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton formed the NWSA in 1869
-rival organisation the AWSA maintained it’s link with abolitionism
-merged to form the NAWSA in 1890 however splits continued to weaken the cause
the voting issue
-wyoming and utah gave women the vote by 1870
-Anthony and 150 others tested the 14th/15th amendments in 1871/72 by attempting to vote. they were arrested and fined for electoral malpractice, they were unable to speak during their trials
-of 33 campaigns, only Colerado and Idaho voting in favour of women’s votes before 1912
-20 states permitted widows with underage children to vote, often recieved hostility at poling stations
Virginia Minor v. Missouri
1875, upheld women were not allowed national voting rights and it was to the states discretion
opposition to women’s political rights
-National Association Opposed to Women’s Suffrage, est 1911
-catholics
-southern democrats
political progress by 1900
-splits within the organisations were not healed
-southern organisations unwilling to include AA women
-not complete agreement about which types of women should be eligible to vote
-opposition was strong
-movement was distracted by other causes ie temperence which was seen as ‘too protestant’
impact of the first world war on political rights
-propaganda against germany shifted public opinion of women’s rights
-women’s peace party
-states were more willing to enfranchise women prior to 1920
-by 1919 congress was willing to pass the 19th amendment
impact of the 19th amendment
-seemed to be confirmation taht women were free and equal citizens however in practice many women faced discrimination in terms of wages, social attitudes, and the ability to exercise their rights ie voter intimidation
impact of the new deal on political rights
-by feb 1934, around 275,000 women were working in federal employment
-new deal work relief involved 743,000 women
-men continued to be paid more than women and the focus was on creating jobs for men
-women in positions of political power weren’t able to promote themselves and didn’t translate to social/economic equality either
-aa women were largely discriminated
-no attempt to secure equal wages
