In The Interest Of Votes For Women
THE KNOXVILLE EQUAL SUFFRAGE LEAGUE.
Edited by Emma Farrand Tyler.
VICTORY IN TENNESSEE
At last the Tennessee legislature has followed the example of 26 other states, and
conceded to women the right to vote in
presidential and municipal elections. The
members from Knox county as usual were
solidly for the measure, it would seem
East Tennessee leads the states in the
march of progress. Senator Houk has always advocated the woman's cause and
now Senator Patten has proved equally
as good a friend.
Women in the 1920 Election
The 26 states in which women now have
presidential suffrage control 40 per cent
of the electoral college, over half of the
senate, 45 per cent of the house, and almost
half the votes in the party conventions.
Equal Suffrage
Granted
Wyoming 1869
Colorado 1893
Utah 1896
Idaho ... .. .. .. 1866
Washington ... ...1910
California ... ... ...- ... ... .... ...1911
Kansas 1912
Arizona ..1912
Oregon 1912
Alaska ... ... ... 1913
Montana ...1914
Nevada ...1914
New York . . ... 1917
Michigan ...... ..1918
Oklahoma ...1918
South Dakota 1918
Presidential
(Those * have municipal also)
Illinois* ...1918
Nebraska* ...1917
Rhode Island . ...1917
North Dakota* .. ..1917
Vermont* ... ...1919
Wisconsin* ... ...1919
Indiana* ...1919
Maine . ... 1919
Minnesota 1919
Missouri ... 1919
Tennessee* 1919
THE WOMAN'S FARTY IN THE UNITED
STATES
(Translated from, the Italian- of an Article
in "J/Kpoca" Rome, Italy Feb. 16, 1919)
One of the most interesting of American
social movements 1$ certainly that of the
women, who have formed here a real party
of their own, active and powerful both
in those states in which they vote (about
one-half) and in those in which they do
not v«»t vote.
, It ie not possible to be long in America today without hearing the "pickets"
spoken of, at times with harsh severity,
and at others with the highest and most
sincere enthusiasm, even on the part of
men.
Anything which excites such dtversiy of
opinions and sentiments cannot fall to
arouse the interest of one who studies
a given country. "The Pickets," the name
which familiarly distinguishes the members of the National Woman's party, are
not exceptions to this rule. This party
which constitutes the ■most active section of the suffrage movement in America, represents a particularly interesting
phase of the political activity of the women of the United States.
The National Woman's party was formed a few years ago by the younger and
more 'militant spirts of the "National
Woman's Suffrage Association of America." Under the active direction of Miss
Alice Paul, a small band of crusiaders be
came convinced that for effective propaganda and sucessful political action it was
necessary to use more direct and more
energetic methods. It was out of a schism
over this question of methods that there
developed the National Woman's Party,
with a quite definite plan of actiou, under the clever leadership—and, we may
say, somewhat autocratic leadership—of
Miss Alice Paul, who had learned political strategy and drawn inspiration from
her experiences in the pre-war campaigns of the English suffragists.
During the war, the continued propaganda and agitation of the National Worn-,
an's Party served only to increase the animosity of their enemies. The spirit
which animates this indefatigable band of
women, the spirit which is characteristic
of the methods they employ la one of
grand Impatience. WhjM da they want?
; Ther want the vote, and they are tired
; ot empty promises tod unredeemed poiui-
l"eal pledges. They know that the grant-
I trig of this right depends upon a group
i of politicians and they beWeve that only
I the pressure of public opinion will force
l.tht-m to cede It.
' As. the swiftest and most satisfactory
aieans. of guaranteeing equgl political
rights to alt American women, the party
demands that congress shall approve without dxiaj* the famoaa Susan B. Anthony
amendment to the constitution of the
United States. The text o.C this amendment, guaranteeing- equal political rights
to women', was^tLrawn a half century ago
by the famous pioneer of the feminist
movement in America whose name it bears.
i'"S':nlarly for many years the amendment
lias I ecu presented to congress, and as
regularly has been defeated.
U Is true that In many states the women
have finally wan the vote, but for the recognition of the rights of the women of j
the entire nation the National Woman's
Party demands swift and decisive action
by the ederal government. They maintain that the Federal government, which
enfranchised the negroes after the Civil
war, should exert this same authority ou
beiuiI? of the American women; aud hold
that the local and partial Cbncesaioms represent only a loss of time and a useless
waste of energy. For this reason they
concentrate their efforts upon the Federal
government, and more especially upon the
President himself, as the head of that government. They hold the President responsible for the passage of the amendment,
because—If he will he has sufficient power to urge and almost to compel its approval, and they believe that-if they concentrate all their attack upon him he will
end by taking up their cause.
Their strategy well known In military
science Is that of concentrating the greatest possible force upon a single point of
attack; and to this end they have sought
•to draw the attention of the whole country upon the question of enfranchisement
'by constitutional amendment. They
wished to create in the public mind the
conviction that the President, was chiefly
responsible for this right, and that he
could grant or withhold it. They wished
to create a psychological condition. to
draw into a single focus of attention;
President, congress, amendment.
However, one may view the methods adopted by the party— and opinions
upon this point greatly vary—it cannot
be denied that they contain a valid political theory, and that they are, based upon
sound principles of propaganda and adver
tislng- a science which reached an extraordinary development in the United
States. At. all events, it cannot, he denied that these methods have obtained sue'
What more could any politician
cess.
a-sln
The headquarters* of the party arc in
Washington, where Miss Paul directs its
yast national activity, which includes all
the various methods of propaganda familiar
to American political parties. Literature Is
prepared for the press, pamphlets and circulars are distributed, campaigns of
speeches: and meetings are organized
throughout tho country, and close contact
is maintained with senators and representatives,
M UA T.\ RV E FEE C T1 V.E N K 9 3
VINDICATED
'■One April 17, 191.1, Miss Alice Paul.,.then
head of the Congressional committee of
the National American Woman Suffrage
association, demanded ah audience with
tho President. The President was too busy
to sec the delegation The delegation
marched to the white liOtfse to see the
Presldnt anyhow--and It, did. The editors were shocked. it was "militancy."
Ten more times the militants sent delegations to see the President—and then he
came out for suffrage in New Jersey.
They fought him in 1916, picketed him
iu 1917—aud then ho c$mo out for the
Federal suffrage amendment. They stopped picketing for sis months. Then they
demanded, on Jum' 8, PU8, that he go to
the senate "and tell the administration servants" to vote for the Federal amendment.
Getting no results, picketing was renewed
on August 12, 19)8, aud continued until
tho President addressed the senate on
Sept. SO in favor of the force bill. Picketing stopped for three months. Then they
demanded a,-democratic caucus and started to burn the, President speeches. The
democratic caucus was fa#d—-but did not
adopt the suffrage resolution. Then the
suffragists burned the President in effigy. What will they do next? And, what
do they want, next?
"The more the President gives these'
militant children when they cry, the more
they cry, the more militant they become
"Something is surely the matter with
the. teaching of psychology in our universities when political crybabies can get
anything they want if they make enough
noise and show onorugh rage in suffrage,"
—From "The Woman Patrolt," Organ of
the Antl-Buffrage Association, March 1.
1919.
