For several years, women in the United States were disenfranchised despite their increased participation in progressive era reforms. The mid-nineteenth century saw lots of women leaders take center stage in the struggle to get women to vote. The liberation efforts were advanced through the activities of various suffrage organizations. Some of the notable organizations involved in these efforts were the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) and the National Women’s Party (NWP) (Schultz, 1). The two organizations used different approaches to further the cause of women’s right to vote. The NAWSA favored a non-radical approach while the NWP opted for radical and aggressive tactics. The current paper addresses the different approaches used by these organizations, their key leaders, and the achievements that they realized.
The NAWSA was established in 1890 (Schultz, 1). Its women suffrage efforts were advanced through a non-radical approach that involved convincing the opponents to women’s enfranchisement that women were equally deserving of voting as their male counterparts (Schultz, 1). The NAWSA advocated for a federal constitutional amendment to enfranchise women. It also led state-wide campaigns to enfranchise women (Library of Congress, 2). The NAWSA achieved women enfranchisement in the western states such as California, Kansas, Montana, etc. between 1911 and 1915 (Schultz, 1). Carrie Chapman Catt was one of the key leaders of the NAWSA after taking over the leadership from Susan B. Anthony (Michals, 3). Catt led the state-wide campaigns by giving speeches and organizing local suffrage chapters (Michals, 3). Catt was part of the bigger team that helped achieve the 1920 constitutional amendment that allowed women to vote (Schultz, 1). The NAWSA was afterward renamed the League of Women Voters.
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The NWP was established in 1913 (Schultz, 1). Some of the notable women leaders in this organization were Alice Paul and Lucy Burns. They had schooled in England and witnessed some of the radical tactics that were used by English suffrage activists (Library of Congress, 4). As such, the approach used by NWP was mainly radical and involved militant tactics. The NWP employed aggressive lobbying in its efforts to have women enfranchised. The NWP focused on US constitutional amendment to allow women the right to vote (Michal, 3). Alice Paul organized a rally of about 5000 women on 3 rd March 1913, advocating for a federal constitutional amendment to enfranchise women (Graddy, 5). The rally coincided with the eve of President Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration; hence it received a lot of attention and public support (Graddy, 5). Alice continued with her aggressive agitation for women enfranchisement. She led several demonstrations, and in 1917 she led a six-month picket outside the White House (Library of Congress, 4). The aggressive efforts bore fruits in 1918 when President Woodrow supported the constitutional amendment to enfranchise women (Library of Congress, 4). In 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment was passed (Schultz, 1). The amendment enshrined the women’s right to vote.
The approaches used by the two women organizations had their strengths and weaknesses. One of the strengths of the non-radical approach used by the NAWSA is that it helped the organization members to be safe since it avoided conflicts with the authorities and the public. One of the downsides of the non-radical approach is that it failed to embrace other women leaders who favored an aggressive and militant approach. The NAWSA cut ties with the Congressional Union for Woman Suffrage (CU), which had been founded by Alice Paul (Library of Congress, 4). By failing to embrace radical members, the NAWSA missed the opportunity to create a formidable force that would agitate for women’s enfranchisement.
On the other hand, the radical approach adopted by the NWP was beneficial in that it helped the organization to win public support. The public sympathized with the organization members who were imprisoned during protests and offered them unconditional support (Library of Congress, 4). The success of their efforts is demonstrated by the President’s declaration of his support for women enfranchisement in 1918 (Library of Congress, 4). One of the significant weaknesses of the radical approach adopted by the NWP is that it led to the imprisonment of the protestors who were in support of their cause. The imprisonment was both physically and psychologically draining (Graddy, 5). The radical and non-radical approaches had their strengths and downsides. However, they complimented each other and helped in the attainment of women enfranchisement.
Conclusively, the NAWSA and NWP led the efforts that eventually culminated in the constitutional amendment that allowed women the right to vote. The organizations differed on the strategic approaches that would be used to achieve women’s right to vote. NAWSA favored a non-radical approach, while the NWP was quite radical and used militant tactics. The liberation efforts spearheaded by the women leaders in this duration helped inspire future women leaders to fight for equal rights amongst all persons.
Sources
Schultz, K., 2015. HIST: US History Since 1865, Volume 2, Volume 2 . 4th ed. Cengage Learning, pp.364-366.
The Library of Congress, n.d. The National American Woman Suffrage Association | Articles And Essays | National American Woman Suffrage Association Collection | Digital Collections | Library Of Congress . [online] The Library of Congress. Available at: <https://www.loc.gov/collections/national-american-woman-suffrage-association/articles-and-essays/the-national-american-woman-suffrage-association/> [Accessed 5 August 2020].
Michals, D., 2015. Carrie Chapman Catt . [online] National Women’s History Museum. Available at: <https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/carrie-chapman-catt> [Accessed 5 August 2020].
The Library of Congress, n.d. Historical Overview Of The National Woman’s Party | Articles And Essays | Women Of Protest: Photographs From The Records Of The National Woman’s Party | Digital Collections | Library Of Congress . [online] The Library of Congress. Available at: <https://www.loc.gov/collections/women-of-protest/articles-and-essays/historical-overview-of-the-national-womans-party/> [Accessed 5 August 2020].
Graddy, L., 2012. Alice Paul: Champion Of Woman Suffrage . [online] National Museum of American History. Available at: <https://americanhistory.si.edu/blog/2012/05/alice-paul-champion-of-woman-suffrage.html> [Accessed 5 August 2020].
