Gender equality in America is a war that is still being fought today. Around the time of the war of 1812, American women were silenced from debate in public circles which forced them to share their opinions, perspectives, and ideas in private. Rosalie Calvert lived in Maryland during the war and she took responsibilities that many women did not. For example, she took control of family investments, land purchases, and decision for her children. She wrote a series of letters to family members to express her opinions, experiences, and perspective. Her letters represent the desire of American women to delve into the public sphere, to gain equality by establishing themselves as intelligent, and to raise their daughters to become independent in the hope of future gender equality.
America did not begin as a beacon of freedom for everyone. Society had determined that a woman’s role was to help her husband by caring for the family. Some women were happy to heed to the societal rules, but the seeds of women’s suffrage were planted by women like Rosalie Calvert who pushed boundaries to express her opinions. She felt compelled to prove intelligence
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The use of “I” in the letters when referencing decisions that she made shows that Rosalie had earned her husband’s respect and blessing to make decisions on her own. As a result, she was able to show her daughter that women are just as capable as men, values that we often take for granted today. Rosalie’s language also highlights her strength which would be important for her daughter to see in the face of hardships. For example, Rosalie wrote to her sister about the severe destruction caused by the war, but instead of expressing that she is afraid she says “I don’t know how it will end” (p 270). Rosalie Calvert shows her strength in the face of danger and undoubtedly shows her strength by raising her daughter to be
From the mouth of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the author of “Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions,” came the fiercely depicted words that draws a picture of disparity among the treatment between man and woman. She wholeheartedly believed in the justice of having equal representation of the rights of either gender. When she decided, in July of 1848 in Seneca Falls, New York, to present this document to the members of the rudimentary women’s right convention, she knew this would be the colossal beginning for the dissension of gender equality. In addition to being published in the same month of the Declaration of Independence, it also borrowed the structure and intended purpose to create an eye-opening declaration
Margaret Brent stands out in the beginning of American history for her daring and self-determination. She never married but that did not keep stop her from flourishing in a world ruled by men. Instead, she became a successful businesswoman, trading land and servants, and earned the respect of Governor Leonard Calvert, who entrusted her with managing his estate upon his death. (Witkowski) While these achievements were both unusual and significant, Margaret is best known for being the first woman in America to request the right to vote.
Women faced multiple challenges to establish themselves as equals to men throughout history however, this would have never been possible if not for social progress movements to eliminate gender barriers. Consider the statements of “that is woman’s work” and “that is man’s work”. First, imagine the year is 1920; what vision instantly comes to your mind in what was woman’s work and what was man’s work? Now, fast forward to current day; what instantly comes to mind in consideration of what is woman’s and man’s work? The comparison of the differences of 1920 and 2014 is night and day. Crystal Eastman, a socialist feminist, observed that the 19th Amendment was an important first step but that what women really wanted was freedom and equality. She was campaigning for the equivalence of women in social, political, cultural, and economic status. In the essay titled "Now We Can Begin," she laid out a plan toward this goal that is still relevant today and shared her vision of life that she wanted for herself and women across the nation. (Eastman)
This movement which was inspired by the ideologies of courageous women and fueled by their enthusiasm and sacrifice is often unacknowledged by most historians in the chronicles of American History. Today the movement is often misunderstood as a passive, white upper class, naive cause. But a deeper study would reveal that the women’s suffrage movement was the one that brought together the best and brightest women in America, which not only changed the lives of half the citizens of United States but also changed the social attitudes of millions of Americans.
The need for women’s rights began back in colonial America where women were referred to as “inferior beings”. This era, though it is not particularly noted for it’s feminist movements, did hold such people as Margaret Brent, who was a wealthy holder of land in Maryland and was a strong, but unsuccessful voice in securing a place for women in the legislature of the colony. It was also a period where Quakers, and many other individuals, such as famous American patriot, Thomas Paine supported the rights of women, but at the time it was not enough to make a significant difference and it wasn’t until the 19th century that women would get the real chance to make a difference.
The critical rank for reducing gender inequalities should be education, labor force participation, and lastly, wages. There are obvious differences between men and women whether it’s anatomically, financially, and so forth. The gender inequalities women face compared to men is alarming and saddening. Gender stereotypes reinforce gender inequalities because stereotypes can often be internalized which results in biases against either sex. These biases against a person can result in negative results. Gender inequality has been within our society for a long time especially amongst women.
Sixty- nine years after the Declaration of Independence, one group of women gathered together and formed the Seneca Falls Convention. Prior and subsequent to the convention, women were not allowed to vote because they were not considered equal to men. During the convention, Elizabeth Cady Stanton delivered the “Declaration of Sentiments.” It intentionally resembles the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men and women are created equal…” (Stanton, 466). She replaced the “men” with “men and women” to represent that women and men should be treated equally. Stanton and the other women in the convention tried to fight for voting rights. Dismally, when the Equal Rights Amendment was introduced to the Congress, the act failed to be passed. Even though women voiced their opinions out and urged for justice, they could not get 2/3 of the states to agree to pass the amendment. Women wanted to tackle on the voting inequalities, but was resulted with more inequalities because people failed to listen to them. One reason why women did not achieve their goals was because the image of the traditional roles of women was difficult to break through. During this time period, many people believed that women should remain as traditional housewives.
Women throughout the suffrage act were faced with many challenges that eventually led into the leading roles of women in the world today. Suffrage leaders adopted new arguments to gain new support. Rather than insisting on the justice of women’s suffrage, or emphasizing equal rights, they spoke of the special moral and material instincts women could bring to the table. Because of these women taking leaps and boundaries, they are now a large part of America’s government, and how our country operates.
In the mid nineteenth century America was going through an age of reform. The person who would be the center of these reforms would be the women in society. Women soon realized that in order to make sure that all the reforms went through they would need more power and influence in society. The oppression and discrimination the women felt in this era launched the women into create the women’s right movement. The women fought so zealously for their rights it would be impossible for them not to achieve their goals. The sacrifices, suffering, and criticism that the women activist made would be so that the future generations would benefit the future generations.
Through the 20th century, the communist movement advocated greatly for women's’ rights. Despite this, women still struggled for equality.
Not long ago, in the nineteenth century, the words that our forefathers wrote in the Declaration of Independence, “that all men were created equal,” held little value. Human equality was far from a reality. If you were not born a white male, then that phrase did not apply to you. During this period many great leaders and reformers emerged, fighting both for the rights of African Americans and for the rights of women. One of these great leaders was Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Stanton dedicated her entire life to the women’s movement, despite the opposition she received, from both her family and friends. In the course of this paper, I will be taking a critical look at three of Stanton’s most acclaimed speeches “Declaration of Sentiments”, “Solitude of Self”, and “ Home Life”, and develop a claim that the rhetoric in these speeches was an effective tool in advancing the movement as a whole.
From the beginning of history and to this day women still get paid less than the average man, but why? Whoever said that women are incapable of good work performance? Whoever said that women do not have the same responsibilities to maintain? What really makes a women’s work inferior to men? The answer is nothing. Today, women are depended on just as much as men, and are capable of performing at their level. However, a full-time working woman earns only seventy-seven cents for every dollar a man makes. These days women make up half the workplace in our society; they work just as hard and for the same reasons. Women deserve to be paid at an equal rate as men because they are relied on to uphold the same responsibilities and are just as qualified to perform at a man’s level.
The pre-feminism concept of gender differences is captured by Harvey C. Mansfield: “Formerly society recognized the differences between the sexes, and with laws and customs accentuated those differences (435).” And indeed, accentuate them it did, as women were left without many opportunities enjoyed by their male counterparts. The absence of such opportunities, included voting rights, education, and property rights, is documented in Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s Declaration of Sentiments (411). Stanton does not speak to innate gender differences per se, but roundly testifies of the political injustice experienced by American women in the 1800’s. She shines the “equal station to which they [women] are entitled” through the prism of the Declaration of Independence, matching the inequality of women to men with the colonies to the English Crown, to reveal a sad portrait of female personhood (411-412, Italics mine).
If there is one thing that affects all African regardless of class, it is the nature of safety within the continent. Has crime continue to grow as a method of income we find that it is a way in which Africa is also further pushed into turmoil. Most African nations suffer from constant armed robberies. Everyday citizens are provoked by groups of young men and women wielding guns and threaten lives in whatever it is they want to take (Rwomoire, 2001). There is no safety within one's home there is no safety outside of it. Of course the issue is not one-sided, seeing as a criminal is only as strong as the system which prosecutes them. And too often African legislative and judicial program failed to do so. Perhaps it is because they themselves to
Women have fought through torture, blood, sweat, and tears to help women stand strong in our