Impact of Women Suffragists (Partial)

The Social Impact of Women Suffragists

Before the nation tore itself apart over what some argue as states’ rights and others insist was bitter racism, the seeds of both abolition and the women’s rights movement were sown in both Northern and Southern soils. Women, no matter nationality, creed, color, or class, were generally treated as subhuman. That isn’t to say they were slaves, they could not be bought or traded as a commodity, but they had few if any rights. The lack of property ownership, suffrage, and a living wage(far worse than those of males in the same occupation even by the standards at the time) led many to compare the struggle for women to that of the slave. One abolitionist, William Lloyd Garrison, even used the issue of women’s rights to further his own goal of abolition using his paper The Liberator. He even went so far as to attend the Seneca Falls convention in 1852, noting that, “. . . When you stand on a political equality with men, when you have the power to maintain and protect your rights, they will be maintained and protected, but never until then.” (Proceedings, 1852) Although there were other conventions in the past, most notably in 1848, none had met without criticism. In fact one entry in the Oneida Whig concerning the 1848 convention stands out, “This bolt is the most shocking and unnatural incident ever recorded in the history of womanity. If our ladies will insist on voting and legislating, where, gentleman, will be our dinners and our elbows? Where our domestic firesides and the holes in our stockings?” (Oneida, 1848) Eventually Susan B. Anthony gained interest and attended a convention in Syracuse, New York in 1852. While there she began long professional relationships with several activists and following began her own crusades in earnest. (Lutz, 2007,pg 34)

Although the political fallout of antebellum meetings and awareness was minimal, it provided a place to start. In essence it made everyone aware there was a gun in the...