Susan B. Anthony Quotes
Suffrage is the pivotal right.
Susan B. Anthony, 1820-1906, Woman's Suffrage Leader, The Arena, May 1897
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
First female presidential candidate & first divorcee to run for that office. The half to which she was referring were the females, who by many narrow laws were unable to participate in the intellectual and political life of the country. At the time, women could not even vote.
This was de facto Equal Rights legislation.
Hunt gave as an example Mary Smith of Stanmore. This quotation is very interesting in the history of women’s suffrage. Hunt was a strong advocate for Universal Suffrage (See {616653}.) At the time, even men had to be a taxpayer and own a sufficient amount of property to vote. Less than 20% of the population of Britain were allowed to vote. The argument at the time was that the husband would represent the family’s interest at the ballot box and there was no need for women to vote. But by facing parliament with the logical inconsistency of its position, he was able to make his point, although there were very few women like Mary Smith who were single and had the economic resources to qualify. Most widows remarried so even if they had economic resources, there was a man who could assume the then perceived role of head of the household.
He was referring to Negroes who did not then have the fight to vote.
Susan B. Anthony was an American social reformer and women's rights activist who played a pivotal role in the women's suffrage movement. Born into a Quaker family committed to social equality, she collected anti-slavery petitions at the age of 17. In 1856, she became the New York state agent for the American Anti-Slavery Society.