Left to right: Mary McLeod Bethune, Fannie Williams and Maggie Lena Walker. They were pioneers for Black Women’s rights. More on the meaning of the 19th Amendment for Black Women here. Wikimedia Commons; Library of Congress.
On a Monday evening in March, TWR’s Youth Action Network got together to discuss recent events happening in our country and what we can do as young people to make a difference. The Youth Action Network is a community of youth from all over the United States with a passion for raising awareness on a variety of social issues through virtual events and conversation, along with other practices. We were inspired by TWR’s mission to turn remembrance into action to end identity-based violence and combined it with our skills and interest to create the idea of writing collaborative blog posts highlighting voices of community members from various walks of life. Every month, we will discuss a different question about current events.
This month, we are back to discuss a milestone in United States history. Living through both a pandemic and a time of immense, necessary change, it is important that our generation takes a stand and bridges the gap between awareness and action. This month’s question prompt is the following:
What does the centennial of women’s right to vote in the United States mean to you?
Additionally, we want to encourage a powerful discussion among members of the TWR community. If you feel inspired by our dialogue and want to submit your response, please email it to info@togetherweremember.org and we may add it to this blog post! Enjoy!
Angelina Dalloul and Ananya Gera, 16 | Terre Haute, Indiana
As young women in the activist community, the centennial of women’s suffrage has brought upon an atmosphere of consideration and gratitude. Finding our footing in these past few years have been difficult for us as both female and People of Color (POC) activists. Throughout history, Women of Color (WOC) have been underrepresented, and there are harmful stereotypes that surround us today. Even though WOC got the right to vote later in history, we still value this day as it marked the beginning of an era for women as a whole. Dealing with oppressive comments and stereotypes tended to hold us back from speaking out and using our voices; however, we have learned to embrace our different perspectives and values. Everybody has something unique to offer the world: it’s just about finding an encouraging environment to prosper and grow. For us, that was our STAND and TWR communities who uplifted us and helped us in discovering our true potential. This anniversary is a celebration of women who fought for what they deserved. Today is a day to be thankful for how far we’ve come, and how far we will go!
Dorene Hantzis, 16 | Terre Haute, Indiana
To me, the anniversary of women’s rights and suffrage is a day of recognition and reflection. I recognize those who have fought for decades for my rights. I recognize the amazing womxn who have suffered and died for the cause. I recognize the people of color who have been pushed aside and cast away. And I also recognize the efforts of my womxn peers who are fighting for our voices to be heard and ushering in the next generation. I also reflect on the struggles I’ve had to endure as a young African-American, womxn activist. I reflect on my battles of self-acceptance and the battle of trying to get others to accept me. My reflection reminds me of why I fight for myself and girls around the world. As a person of color, my passion is sometimes mistaken for anger. My leadership is taken into question or ignored. My views are sometimes glossed over or discredited. The road to being seen hasn’t been easy for me. But it's all worth it knowing I am paving that way for more girls to advocate, educate, and wage their battles against bigotry, hate, and misogyny. This anniversary is a celebration of all the women who have lived out loud, marched down the street, and stood up for one another. It's also a day to celebrate all the glass ceilings we have and have yet to shatter.
Jocelyn Paulin, 16 | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Periodically throughout history, women have had to face their battles of activism to gain a voice and impact. Remembering the centennial of women’s right to vote marks the progress of women activists. We remember because it was a day women started to gain traction on their march to a greater voice in history. No longer overshadowed or overpowered by men, women had the chance to change history as well. As a young woman activist, I believe I stand on the same path that the past young women activists paved. Though I do not know how far I’ll go and what footstep I will leave behind, I do know that every step counts. Through my premature journey of activism, I have witnessed the doubt that a young woman activist can receive from men who think they know better. Whether it is my youth or my gender that holds me back, I exceed the expectations of both. I exceed the expectations that youth have no impact and a weak voice. I exceed the expectations that women are somehow less intelligent and able. Still, as I remember this day, I am humbled by the fact that young women activists a hundred years before my time faced a hundred times the struggles than I. I consider myself lucky to be born in a day and age where my voice reaches and causes an impact. Nonetheless, I fight for the day when young women activists alike face no criticism at all for their gender. So, during this time, let us be both introspective and extrospective of ourselves as young women activists and all those who came before us.
Harsha, 18 | Texas
When something is allowed to happen, it can be taken away as well. A woman’s capability, and right to exercise a political voice is not something that has been allowed. Rather, it is something that had been ignored, then acknowledged. This anniversary marks 100 years since women’s right to vote was granted- no acknowledged. I am not celebrating. For celebration is something which highlights things that one should be grateful for, not something which is an innate right. This anniversary is also not a complete one: all of the women in the United States could not exercise this right freely until much later. This anniversary is to me a reminder that in order for justice, freedom, and peace to truly exist, our pens, and our practices must be one.
Savanna Tess, 17 | Dallas, Texas
I remember learning about the women’s suffrage movement and marveling both at the courage of those involved but also at the amount of effort it took to achieve a right that I don’t think we could exist without. I have long felt conflicted viewing women in activism, struggling with what it means to be a woman, and what it means to be accepted. At a young age, I was taught to view female activists as barbaric, angry, and uneducated. This is utterly incorrect. It took growth and my discovery of social media and the internet for me to discover the reality of women in activism: passionate, eloquent, and never accept an unjust status quo. Understanding the gravity of this right fills me with gratitude for the women who dared to be unlikeable, who dared to question, and who dared to fight.
Allison Weiner, 17 | Terre Haute, Indiana
As a young female activist, I hold the most value in being able to use my platform to educate people and inspire everyone, including young girls all over the world to follow their dreams and not let misogyny get in their way. It is incredibly important that I use the platform that I have to set a good example so others can follow and create the change we need. As a Chapter Leader for my school’s STAND Club, there’s nothing that makes me happier than when an underclassman comes to me for advice on projects or how to get more involved and wants to follow in my footsteps. It is such a rewarding experience to have, and it is one that I wouldn’t trade for the world.
Additionally, I have a lot of value in being able to use my platform to advocate for women empowerment. It is important to me that I do whatever I can to show society that it is more than okay to have a woman in a high position in a company or organization, and there should be way more in this world. Likewise, I feel very strongly about using my platform to advocate for feminism and to teach society that we should embrace womanhood. To me, it’s very valuable to teach everyone to honor the female body. We should teach society that women being open about their bodies is completely acceptable and should not be frowned upon. We should teach people that a woman shouldn’t be derided for openly talking about her menstrual period or for publicly saying that pregnancy isn’t always easy. We have always been taught that saying anything publicly about these topics is inappropriate and uncalled for, and that isn’t and shouldn't be the case. Being a female activist means advocating to society that a woman's body should be accepted and worshipped, not abused, and mistreated.
Furthermore, the journey of being a young female activist these past few years has been great, and I’ve loved every minute of it. It has been amazing to be able to organize and lead events as a feminist to spread awareness and create change! The young female activist community is determined, hardworking, and accepting. It’s been an honor and a pleasure to work with such an amazing community of female activists! Of course, I have seen a good amount of hate comments regarding being a female activist throughout my time. I don’t want to ignore the hate and pretend it doesn’t happen. I have gotten a few hateful comments telling me that “no one cares about any of the topics you’re advocating for” and that “You’re being too open about your feminist campaign, shut up, no one wants to hear it.” Even though I have occasionally had this happen to me, I wouldn’t trade any second of it. I want to take all the experiences I’ve had, both good and bad, to move forward after the centennial of the 19th Amendment to give us optimism for the future that we as women can stand up to get rid of the misogyny, the inequality, and the stereotyping that still goes on. We need to get rid of men thinking that they have the right to catcall us, objectify us, let them do whatever they want with our bodies because “they have power over us,” discriminate against us because apparently having a uterus makes you incompetent and undeserving of equal pay. Yes, women can vote, and that’s amazing! However, we should use the anniversary of the women’s right to vote as an opportunity to stand up and take action and demand to see the change we deserve.