Susan B. Anthony

 Susan B. Anthony-The fight for Women Across America

By Austin Horsefield

(Figure 1 is Susan B. Anthony sitting at a table)

    Susan B. Anthony was the voice that Women needed back in the mid to late 1800s. She voiced her opinion so that others didn't have to. She was an undeniable and tough lady who believed that if men have the same right to vote, why can't women? The women's suffrage movement consisted of many different women traveling across the country and speaking about women's rights that they most certainly deserved. Mrs. Anthony just wasn't an activist for women, but for slaves as well. She also gave public speeches (which women were not supposed to) about the disgusting thing that slavery became. Her consistency to have everybody obtain equal rights was one of the biggest leaps that vaulted woman's rights into what they are today. Granted, there are still problems that need to be fixed, but her work will always be talked about and praised. 

Her Life Growing Up and What She Believes In

(Figure 2 is a Face shot of Anthony)

Susan Brownell Anthony was born on February 15th, 1820, and grew up in Adams, Massachusetts. Her parents came from different backgrounds as her father was a quicker and her mother was involved in the government. Anthony got inspired by her father's beliefs in everybody is equal under god. Throughout her growing up, she was inspired to make a difference in some way shape, or form (1). On one occasion, she came home from her teachings and met some of her dad's friends that led the charge against slavery. She took up to the people and started giving speech after speech on abolishing slavery, which ultimately put her name out there with the general public. This information was provided by the National Women's History Museum and they cover more information on Susan B. Anthony and plenty of other courageous women. Click here for more. 

    Roughly around 1848, Susan B. Anthony was working as a teacher in New York and became involved in the teacher's union, to only find out that men were making a whopping ten dollars a month, compared to a measly two dollars and fifty cents for the women (2). The first Women's Rights Convention was held that same year, although Anthony decided not to go, her parents and sister decided to go (2). Convincingly enough, four years later, a speech by Lucy Stone made her get into the Women's Rights Movement. Fast forward to 1868, founded the American Equal Rights Association (AERA) and added her voice as a contributor to the newspaper The Revolution. Their motto is, "Men, their rights, and nothing more; women, their rights, and nothing less.” (2). The 15th Amendment was passed the same year, but no luck for any women voting rights. This made Susan B. Anthony put her sisters on the presidential ballot to make a point, but it lead to her being arrested. In 1890, the National Woman Suffrage Association merged with the American Woman Suffrage Association, which argued for state-by-state enfranchisement of women (2). Unfortunately, health became an issue in her older age and he eventually passed away from heart failure and pneumonia on March 13th, 1906. This information was provided by the National Park Service of the U.S. Department of the Interior. Click here to explore more of this website. 

Susan B. Anthony and Her Legacy 

(Figure 3 is a Headshot of Anthony)

    Susan B. Anthony's fight for slavery and women's rights is a heroic effort that has lasted for over a decade. Creating a multitude of organizations that would be still around to this day is amazing. What she did for Women in the late 1800s, opened up the possibilities of equal rights among men. Like the quote, I mentioned up above in her newspaper The Revolution, she never thought once that men needed things stripped from them, they just needed to be shared with the women equally. Today, anything a man can do, a woman can certainly do or even do better. We can't be stereotypical of women anymore because they do so many things good (I might even say better) than men. For instance, we just welcomed a Woman Vice President into the White House for the first time ever. This is a huge step taken and it all started with this person. Of course, she had help along the way with her family and other powerful women, but she ultimately was the figurehead of Women's rights and will always be remembered for her contribution to every single woman. She is even honored on the coin for a one-dollar bill here in America. All in all, I can't relate to her because I am a man, but reading her story and seeing how many steps we have taken from back then, is really amazing. She shredded the gender norms back then and they are still being broken to this day. If you want the definition of a strong and independent woman, look up Susan B. Anthony. 

Works Cited

This link is not used in my blog, BUT it has documents that are important to Susan B. Anthony and I feel like they are important to possibly look through.

(Fig 1) Susan B. Anthony Sitting at a Table. Lewis, Jone Johnson. "Susan B. Anthony Pictures." ThoughtCo, Aug. 29, 2020, https://www.thoughtco.com/susan-b-anthony-pictures-4123164. Accessed 10 February 2021.

(Fig 2) and (1) MLA – Hayward, Nancy. “Susan B. Anthony.” National Women’s History Museum, 2017. https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/susan-b-anthony.  Accessed 11 February 2021

History.com Editors. (2010, March 09). Susan B. Anthony. Retrieved February 14, 2021, from https://www.history.com/topics/womens-history/susan-b-anthony. 

(2) Susan B. Anthony (U.S. National PARK SERVICE). (n.d.). Retrieved February 14, 2021, from https://www.nps.gov/people/susan-b-anthony.htm.