The right to vote, the cornerstone of democracy, belongs to all citizens, but this wasn’t always the case.
Until recently, most countries denied voting rights to half of their population, women.
To claim their voice, women began agitating for the right to vote in the early 19th century.
In the U.S., decisions about who could vote were left up to the states.
The 19th Amendment, ratified in 1920, ensures voting rights for everyone regardless of gender.
Today, Women’s Equality Day celebrates the achievements of women’s rights activists and reminds us of the unique daily struggles that women face.
To make sure women are not oppressed by anyone we need to empower them with education and to support their education they require funds that can help build a base for their strong future.
The continuous struggle for women’s participation and equality in all spheres of life and society is observed on Women’s Equality Day on August 26.
In the early 19th century, American women, who generally couldn’t inherit property and made half of a man’s wages in any available jobs, began organizing to demand political rights and representation.
By the early 1900s, several countries including Finland, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom had legalized voting for women as the movement continued to sweep across the world. In the U.S., the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was first introduced in 1878, but it failed to gain traction.
It wasn’t until women’s involvement in the World War I effort made their contributions painfully obvious that women’s suffrage finally gained enough support.
Women’s rights groups pointed out the hypocrisy of fighting for democracy in Europe while denying it to half of the American citizens at home.
Because a Constitutional amendment requires approval from two-thirds of the states, 36 of them had to ratify the 19th Amendment before its passage.
The deciding vote in the Tennessee legislature came from Harry T. Burn, a young state representative whose mother’s plea to support the amendment became a deciding factor in his vote (which he switched at the last minute).
To remind us of the struggles of the past, present, and future, Congress designated August 26 as Women’s Equality Day in 1971.
