BELLWORK1. How did conflicts, like the Civil War & WWI, create an

increased desire for voting rights?2. Describe the role of Susan B. Anthony in the suffrage

movement.3. Explain the role of NAWSA & WCTU in the suffrage

movement.4. Describe the “new woman” that emerged in the 1920’s. 5. How did Carrie Chapman Catt and Alice Paul differ in their

approach to women’s suffrage?6. What was the 19th Amendment? What finally caused President

Wilson to support this?7. THINKER: Even though women officially had the right to vote

in 1920, only 35% of women actually exercised this right. Why do you think this is? Who still opposed women’s suffrage?

Women’s Suffrage

How they won the right to vote!

History of Women’s Suffrage• In the WWI years, several European countries

granted women the right to vote…..– Finland – 1906– Norway – 1913– Denmark – 1915– Soviet Union – 1917 – England – 1918– Germany – 1919

• Why do you think it took so long for women in the U.S. to win the right to vote?

• Other European countries came later…..– Spain – 1931– France – 1944– Italy – 1946– Switzerland – 1971

History of Women’s Suffrage in Canada• National Council of Women in Canada – formed in 1894• Women had local votes in some provinces (Ontario – 1850),

where women owning property could vote for school trustees• 1916 - Manitoba was first province to grant full woman's

suffrage (Alberta & Saskatchewan)• The Military Voters Act of 1917 gave the vote to British women

who were war widows or had sons/husbands serving overseas. • In his 1917 campaign, Prime Minister Borden pledged equal

suffrage. After his victory, he introduced a suffrage bill in 1918 • This passed, but did not apply to Québec. (full suffrage in 1940)• The first woman elected to Parliament was Agnes Macphail in

Ontario in 1921

National Council

of Women

in Canada

Agnes Macphail• Her name was originally spelled

"McPhail", but during a trip to Scotland she discovered that her family's surname had been "Macphail" and changed her name to reflect this

• Worked as a teacher in Ontario before she became active politically, joining the United Farmers of Ontario (UFO)

• After suffrage was passed, Macphail was elected to the House of Commons in 1921 (and reelected three times)

• Macphail's main legislative interests included farm issues, women's equality, prison reform, and peace activism.

• After her time in Parliament, she was a journalist and worked with provincial governments

• Never married• Died at the age of 63 and buried in

Toronto, where her tombstone incorrectly spells her name “McPhail”

Agnes Macphail• March 24th is

Macphail day in Ontario!

Reading: How Women Won the Right to Vote in the U.S.

• As you read the handout, take notes on important events, people, groups within the U.S. Suffrage Movement.

• Be ready to discuss questions 1-3 in the “for discussion and writing” section.

History of Woman’s Suffrage in the U.S.

• 1848 Seneca Falls Conference: First Women’s Rights Convention in the U.S.

• 15th Amendment – more women joined the movement when freed blacks were given the right to vote, but still not women

• Wyoming became the first U.S. territory to grant woman’s suffrage in 1869

• 1890 formation of the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA)

The New Woman

• The flapper symbolized a modern woman who challenged traditional gender roles.

• She was rebellious, independent, and carefree.

• The flapper also patented a new fashion for women.

Leaders of women’s suffrage: Alice Paul,

Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady

Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, Carrie Chapman Catt

Susan B. Anthony

"it [suffrage] will come, but I shall not see it…...It is inevitable. We can no more deny forever the right of self-government to one-half our people than we could keep the Negro forever in bondage. It will not be wrought by the same disrupting forces that freed the slave, but come it will, and I believe within a generation."

Elizabeth Cady Stanton"The general discontent I felt with woman's portion as wife, housekeeper, caretaker, and spiritual guide ….. and the wearied, anxious look of the majority of women, impressed me with a strong feeling that some active measures should be taken to remedy the wrongs of society in general, and of women in particular. My experience at the World Anti-slavery Convention, all I had read of the legal status of women, and the oppression I saw everywhere, together swept across my soul”

Lucretia Mott “I have no idea of submitting tamely to injustice inflicted either on me or on the slave. I will oppose it with all the moral powers with which I am endowed. I am no advocate of passivity.”

Carrie Chapman Catt & Alice Paul

Women’s Suffrage• Women obtained the right

to vote in 1920 with the passing of the 19th amendment.

• Only 35% of women went to the polls and voted in 1920.

–Lived in rural areas

–Family discouraged it

–Not comfortable

• By 1928, there were 145 women in 38 state legislatures.

History of Women’s Suffrage in L.A.• Latin America did not grant suffrage until the

late 1920’s-1940’s; although some countries allowed women to vote in certain states.

• Ecuador – 1929• Brazil – 1932 • El Salvador – 1939• Dominican Republic – 1942• Venezuela – 1945• Argentina – 1947• Mexico – 1953

The Case of Mexico• In 1937, Mexican feminists challenged the

wording of the Constitution concerning who is eligible for citizenship - the constitution did not specify “men and women.”

• Maria García ran for election in her home district, Uruapan. (Michoacán)

• García won by a huge margin, but was not allowed to take her seat because the government would have to amend the Constitution.

• In response, García went on a hunger strike outside President Lázaro Cárdenas’ residence in Mexico City for 11 days in August 1937.

• Cárdenas responded by changing Article 34 in the constitution. By December, the amendment had been passed by congress, and women were granted full citizenship. However, the vote for women in Mexico was not granted until 1953.