Women's Equality Day
August 26th is the Anniversary of Women Winning the Vote! Are you ready to celebrate? Join the UofL Women’s Center in the celebration! Women’s Equality Day is celebrated in the U.S. on August 26 in recognition of women winning the right to vote. In addition the Voting Rights Act of 1965 will be celebrated.
There will be voter registration, informational booths and refreshments in the Red Barn. Come out and learn more about Women’s Equality Day!
***Masks required while in the Red Barn. per the University's requirement for masks in public, indoor spaces for all university and community members.
Women’s Equality Day Virtual Scavenger Hunt
Commemorate Women's Equality Day by going on a Virtual Scavenger Hunt with us! When you have completed the scavenger hunt, email it to womenctr@louisville.edu by Friday August 27th by 5pm. The first 20 who send in their completed form will win a prize. Stop by our Women’s Equality Day event on August 31st to receive your prize. *Prizes are for UofL students, faculty & staff, but we encourage the community to participate too!
Optional, but encouraged: Share your finds on social media and tag us so we can celebrate these women and acknowledge their fight for the right to vote! We will be sharing your photos on our Instagram and Facebook.
- In 1920, the 19th Amendment was passed giving (White) Women the right to the vote. But not all women were granted this right. Visit the page Not All Women Gained the Vote in 1920. a. What is something you learned and found interesting? Do we all have the right to the vote now?
- Go to the 19th Amendment by State page. Find you state or territory and click on it. (If you are not from the U.S., choose a place you would like to visit!) a. When did that state ratify the 19th Amendment? b. List something you learned that you found interesting c. Share a picture of your state with the information you found! Tag @uoflwomencenter.
- Visit the page 20 Suffragists to Know for 2020. Pick one of the suffragists listed and read their story. a. Name them and list something you learned that you found interesting. b. Share a picture of them with the information you found! Tag @uoflwomencenter.
- Visit the page Black Women and the Fight for Voting Rights.. a. Name a woman who was instrumental in fighting for the right to vote for women and in particular, Black women. What is something you learned that you found interesting? b. Share a picture of them with the information you found! Tag @uoflwomencenter.
- Visit the pageThe Very Queer History of the Suffrage Movement. a. Name a woman who was instrumental in fighting to the right to vote. What is something you found interesting? b. Share a picture of them with the information you found!
- Visit the page Representation with a Hyphen: Latinas in the Fight for Women's Suffrage. a. Name a woman who was instrumental in fighting for the right to vote. What is something you found interesting? b. Share a picture of them with the information you found!
- Visit the page Mabel Ping-Hua Lee: How Chinese-American Women Helped Shape the Suffrage Movement. a. Name something you learned and found interesting.
- Visit the Kentucky Woman Suffrage Project website. Got to Gallery of Suffragists. a. Name a woman who was instrumental in the fight to vote for women in Kentucky. i. Where did she live (i.e. Louisville)? List something you learned that you found interesting. b. Share a picture of them with the information you found! Tag @uoflwomencenter.
- Visit the Kentucky Woman Suffrage Project website. Got to Votes for Women Trail. a. Name 1 location that is on the trail. Have you been there before?
- Name someone who you think is a modern-day suffragist and why. b. Share their picture! Tag @uoflwomencenter.
- Share your thoughts on the women of the suffrage movement and voting rights today.
OPTIONAL:
- Fill out the “I’m Voting because…” sign and take a photo of your sign or share it written. a. Share your picture! Tag @uoflwomencenter.
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People often forget that women could not vote throughout the U.S. until 1920. This August 26th is the 100th anniversary of women winning the right to vote through passage of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution. The 55th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act was also celebrated this year.
Both women and men owe a great deal to the brave suffragists who persevered over seventy years until they succeeded. They were led by outstanding American patriots like Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucy Stone, Susan B. Anthony, Ida B. Wells, Carrie Chapman Catt, Alice Paul, and many others. We remember them all - speakers, field workers, political organizers, strategists, demonstrators, and prisoners - and honor their love of democracy on Equality Day, August 26.
This 95th anniversary also marks the start of the drive to recognize the final five years of this great civil rights movement, leading up to its centennial in 2020. New efforts like the campaign to put a woman on the $20 bill and placing statues of suffragists in New York and Tennessee show that exciting activities have already begun.
Since women in every state were involved, it can be very rewarding to learn about that part of local history.
This year, celebrate women's vital victory for democracy.
Remember, women won their political independence with the help of supportive men and their success made the U.S. a more complete democracy. Like the Fourth of July, Women's Equality Day is a day for all of us to celebrate.
(Source: National’s Women’s History Project, 2015)
