A Timeline: The Women's Suffrage Movement

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A TIMELINE:

THE WOMENS SUFFRAGE MOVEMENT

B Y : A N A N Y A A M A H A J A N A N DA N U S H A N A T A R A J A N

The women’s suffrage movement is an international and on-going force that aims to propel women forward in a patriarchal society. In the United States, women’s suffrage can be dated back to the pre-Civil War Era. Globally, the movement attempts to break the boundaries for women that are set in society and while the progress throughout history has been slow, the results have certainly paved the way for women of all generations to this day.

As mentioned before, the first movement of women’s suffrage can be dated back to around the 1820s and 30s. Around this time, women were starting to question their roles in society and the definition of a true woman. A few women formed the “Cult of True Womanhood” which served to redefine the social, economic, and cultural boundaries that women were restricted with.

At the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention, a group of abolitionist activists agreed that women should be considered as their own political identities. It was this convention that started the path for women who wanted their voices heard as voting became their targeted goal. Another notable milestone towards women’s suffrage is the 19th amendment which gave women the right to vote. It is reported that over 8 million women voted in the 1920 election after the right was granted that August.

That timeline presented above are key moments in U.S. history, but women’s suffrage is a universal movement so it is important to understand it’s perspectives and ideologies. In South Australia in 1895, the government decreed that their women could run for the election and thus became some of the first few women in the world to do so. In 1905, South Australia also granted women the right to vote, making it 15 years before the United States did.

As decades passed, these laws and amendments granted rights to women, though universal women’s suffrage wasn’t reached until the 20th and 21st century. The first country to grant women’s suffrage was New Zealand in 1893. Later on, European countries picked up on this trend, granting the right for women to vote in elections.

The United States passed the 19th amendment shortly after World War I. Shortly after the independence movements in Africa, women were granted the right to vote too. In the 21st century, countries, such as the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, gave women the right to vote. In 2005, Kuwait also modified its law to permit women to run for office.

Analyzing the ways in which women were progressively breaking out of a stereotypical sphere, it shows how the role of culture defines gender roles in society. One factor as that countries only allowed women to vote due to religious and cultural reasons. Those countries’ societies were ultimately based on patriarchal ideas often caused by religious influences. For example, in Saudi Arabia, women were not allowed to drive on their own until 2018. Only in 2015, women were given the right to vote in elections. In some examples, this goes to show that countries with a strong religious and strict cultural identity can create barriers for women to vote or serve in the government.

Fast forwarding through time, we finally arrive at the window of 2020. The year 2020 marks the official 100th anniversary in the passage of the 19th amendment. This year, women are championing this right by voting and serving in their political office whether

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that is nationally or locally. As time goes by, it is a given that society manifests change. Specifically now, this is the time where history will make a turning point, given all challenges that the world will continue to battle, such as a global pandemic along with racial injustices. And these are only two of the many obstacles we have yet to face. The one thing that we hold in our power-- is the privilege to vote. We are lucky to live in a society that allows us to exercise our identities in voting and politics, causing our democracy to evolve within many lifetimes. Project your voice out there, show up and vote!

*Sources *https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/10/05/key-facts-about-womens-suffrage-around-the-world-a-century-after-u-s-ratified-19thamendment/ *https://www.history.com/topics/womens-history/the-fight-for-womens-suffrage

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