Susan B. Anthony's Role In Civil Disobedience

Susan B. Anthony, women’s rights activist, once said “The day may be approaching when the whole world will recognize woman as the equal of man.” (“Susan” Brainy). Anthony was famous for helping women achieve many rights that were once only given to men. Susan B. Anthony’s involvement in civil disobedience was due to personal influences, she chose to participate in civil disobedience to protest the rights of women, and she did achieve success using this controversial method of standing up for what she strongly believes to be right. Civil disobedience is when people deliberately infringe a law. The person who breaks that law is usually willing to accept any consequences that would be given to them. (Suber). The purpose of civil disobedience is

Anthony 's’ role in civil disobedience one should first know about her personal life. Susan B. Anthony was born on February 15, 1820, in Adams, Massachusetts, where she grew up in a Quaker family (“Susan” Bio). Her father, Daniel, owned a cotton factory most of his life. Daniel’s wife, Lucy, stayed at home and raised six strong kids. Guelma, Susan, Hannah, Daniel Reed were all born is Adams, Massachusetts (Gwynnie). Anthony was an intelligent child who learned to read and write at the age of three. After her family moved from Massachusetts to New York, she attended a district school, a home school set up by her father, and then a boarding school near Philadelphia (The Editors). When Anthony and her sister were in elementary school, their male teacher refused to teach them math due to their gender. This upset their father, Daniel, so he set up a home school for his children (Gwynnie). Anthony’s family was forced to move to Rochester because of the depression of 1837, which caused her father, Daniel, to go bankrupt and lose their home in Battensville (Margo). Anthony always made her work in life one of justice and sought to establish equality in the world. After she had taught for fifteen years, Anthony involved herself in the temperance movement. She also because active in the anti-slavery movement. Since she was

Anthony chose to participate in civil disobedience to protest for women’s rights. In 1851, Anthony attended an anti-slavery conference, where she met Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Anthony was inspired to fight for women 's rights while she fought against the use of alcohol (“Susan” Bio). Susan B. Anthony was one of the strongest advocates of women’s rights, and is a representative figure of politically oriented types of feminist politics (Halsall). Anthony was denied a chance to speak at a temperance movement conference because of her being a women, she then decided that no one would ever take a woman seriously unless they had a right to vote. In 1852, Anthony and Stanton established the Women’s New York State Temperance Society. Anthony traveled to many places to campaign on women’s behalf (“Susan” Bio). In 1872, Anthony was arrested for casting an illegal vote in the presidential election. She was fined $100 but refused to pay (Halsall). A warrant went out for Anthony after a poll watcher filed a complaint. Anthony was charged for voting in a congressional election “without having a lawful right to vote and in violation of a section 19 of an Act of Congress.” At the hearing on November 29th, Anthony was questioned by her lawyer and was able to tell why she believed she had the right to vote, as authorized by the 14th amendment; therefore, she was not guilty of willingly and knowingly casting an illegal vote (Dismore). Susan B. Anthony became a courageous leader in the