1) United States, 1919. Hanna and her sister, Ali, anxiously await their mother’s return. Their mother, who is the niece of the late Elizabeth Cady Stanton, is out voting for the first time since the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment—a law which guaranteed women the right to vote.
2) HANNA: I’m still astonished that mother is out voting in the election today! Mother must be very proud of her Aunt Elizabeth—after all, it was the work of the suffragists that helped women gain the right to vote. She even helped organize the convention about women’s rights in Seneca Falls.
3) ALI: I wish that Aunt Elizabeth was alive to participate in today’s election. From what mother says about her, Aunt Elizabeth would have enjoyed showing others why it is critical for women to take part in the political process.
4) HANNA: It was always Aunt Elizabeth’s dream for women to win the right to vote. She spent many years lobbying politicians to get women the same rights as men.
5) MOTHER enters the room, smiling and wearing a pin that reads, “I voted today.” Hanna and Ali rush toward their mother and hug her.
6) ALI: Mother, did you vote in the election?
7) MOTHER: Yes, I did! I wish more women had participated in today's election, but I’m sure they will take advantage of this right in the future. Aunt Elizabeth and her friends would have been extremely proud. They spent many years trying to make politicians understand that women deserved the same rights as men. All of the American women who voted today owe them a debt of gratitude for their bravery.
8) HANNA: Mother, I am very proud of you for voting today. All the women who voted today helped show the nation and the world that American women are ready to take part in the political process.
9) ALI: I agree, Hanna. Mother, you set a great example for Hanna and me. Someday, I hope we are just like you and Aunt Elizabeth!
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the Declaration of Sentiments
10) Elizabeth Cady Stanton was a suffragist who worked to gain voting rights for American women. During her struggle for women’s suffrage, Stanton helped organize a convention that took place in Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848. At the convention, Stanton and other suffragists developed a document they called the Declaration of Sentiments. This document asserted that women in the United States were suppressed by men, and they deserved rights—including the right to vote—equal to those of their male counterparts. Among other things, the document claimed:
11) The history of mankind is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman, having in direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny [SIC] over her. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world.
12) He has never permitted her to exercise her inalienable right to the elective franchise.
13) He has compelled her to submit to laws, in the formation of which she had no voice. . . .
14) He has taken from her all right in property, even to the wages she earns. . . .
15) Now, [women] insist that they have immediate admission to all the rights and privileges which belong to them as citizens of the United States.
16) The Declaration of Sentiments served as a powerful statement of the injustices faced by women and their demand for equality. Through their efforts and determination, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and other suffragists ultimately played a crucial role in securing women the right to vote with the passing of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920.
17) The fight for women’s suffrage was a long and difficult one, but the bravery and dedication of women like Elizabeth Cady Stanton paved the way for future generations of women to participate fully in the democratic process. By exercising their right to vote, women continue to honor the legacy and hard work of those who came before them.