Suffrage Movement - American History, 1493-1945

An Appeal to the Women of the United States

19 April 1871

View the Appeal to the Women of the United States in the resource

An Appeal to the Women of the United States is a pamphlet from the National Women Suffrage and Education Committee; it is a call to arms for the women of the United States to recognize and demand their rights during the time of change that their country was undergoing in the second half of the nineteenth century.

Produced April 19, 1871, the pamphlet outlines the Committee’s argument for votes for women; first by stating that it is the natural right of women to be mothers and to be protective of their children. Logically, they therefore are entitled to have power in the political society into which their children have entered.

Secondly, they make the argument that it is not only their natural right, but their constitutional right as well. The constitution refers to “People” not men or women and if allegiance to the United States is expected, then it follows that women should also have a right to help shape the political landscape of their society.

The Committee’s constitutional argument hinges on the introduction of the fourteenth and fifteenth amendments which they claim have confirmed and clarified the rights of women. They argue that amendments which call for all people to have a right to vote and prohibit the exclusion of any person from the voting process must also be applicable to women.

Throughout the pamphlet great importance is placed on the duty and responsibility that women must bear as voters in their country and the importance of educating women and consciousness raising. The Committee recognize that if women are to be granted the vote, they will also have to uphold other civic duties, and they must be equipped to do so. The Appeal also hints at legal action against congress if women’s natural and constitutional right to vote is not recognized.

Significantly, the committee is made up of six women – Isabella Beecher Hooker, Josephine S. Griffing, Mary B. Bowen, Paulina Wright Davis, Ruth Carr Denison and Susan B. Anthony – all of whom were major figures in the suffrage movement of America. This opportunity for women to champion women’s rights signals the beginning of the first wave of feminism in America. Not only that, but it heralds a great advancement in attitudes towards educating women.

The Appeal makes reference to other countries where women have similarly entered into political activism; referencing Sweden, Austria and Great Britain. This situates the United States in the wider global call for women’s suffrage.

The Committee also highlight the political benefits of this issue; if women were granted the right to vote, this would see political parties gain voters that had previously been voiceless. This adds to the political changes which took place after the Civil War and Reconstruction.