Celebrating the 100th Year of Women’s Voting Rights
"The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex."
On May 19, 1919, these words were proposed as an amendment to the U.S. Constitution extending the right of suffrage to women ("19th Amendment" 1). Ratified in 1920, this year marks the 100th anniversary of the constitutional amendment and with it comes celebrations of what it took to get this far.
Many individual states and organizations are hosting events to commemorate 100 years of women's suffrage. On the federal level, the U.S. Department of Labor marks the centennial with a year-long celebration of women in the workforce ("U.S. Department"). Museums across the country have curated women's history exhibits (2020). And the National Women's History Project published a Gazette that both celebrates the anniversary and builds on the heritage of the movement (NWHP). It was not an easy journey to win the right to vote. The drive for civil rights was made of "a nonviolent grassroots uprising of women that won citizenship, political liberty and the right to vote for one half the country" (NWHP).
However, it's important to remember that "the fight for full gender and social equality [is] far from over" (Pursell 275). Today, thousands continue to march for women's rights in 2020. The January 2020 official Women's March event focused on such modern issues as climate, reproductive justice, and immigrants' rights (Wilson).
While this year is the perfect time to celebrate 100 years of history, this month is always the time to celebrate Women's History Month! CSN has several events throughout March to mark the occasion:
March 5 is the first meeting of the World Languages International Women's Group, 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. in room 128 of the Student Union on the Charleston Campus.
March 14 is the CSN Women's Alliance: Status of Women Conference 2020, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. in room 130 of the Student Union on the Charleston Campus.
March 21 is the CSN Women's Alliance: Meet the Judicial Candidates, 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in room 130 of the Student Union on the North Las Vegas Campus.
March 26 is the Women's History Month Henderson Mixer, 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. in room C-133 on the Henderson Campus.
March 30 is a Panel Discussion on Women's Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice, 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in room K-101 on the Charleston Campus.
If you're interested in women's issues past and present, be sure to stop by one of the events, or learn even more rights right here at the library! We have a large collection of documentaries on women and society, great resources in our books and articles, and more listed below in our Works Cited. Be sure to ask a librarian if you have any questions!
Works Cited
“19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Women’s Right to Vote.” 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Women’s Right to Vote (NARA), Jan. 2011, p. 1. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=khh&AN=59492311&site=ehost-live.
2020 Women's Vote Centennial Initiative. "2020 CENTENNIAL EXHIBITS." 2020Centennial.org, 2020, https://www.2020centennial.org/exhibits-2. Accessed 3 March 2020.
NWHP. "How Women Won the Vote." National Women's History Alliance, 2020, https://nationalwomenshistoryalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/gazette_How-Women-Won-Vote-.pdf. Accessed 3 March 2020.
Pursell, Jessica O’Brien. "Women’s Suffrage Movement—United States." Women's Rights in the United States: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Issues, Events, and People, edited by Tiffany K. Wayne and Lois Banner, vol. 2: Suffrage and a New Wave of Women’s Activism (1870–1950), ABC-CLIO, 2015, pp. 275-283. Gale eBooks, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX6194000354/GVRL?u=las55353&sid=GVRL&xid=40845f83. Accessed 28 Feb. 2020.
"U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR CELEBRATES WOMEN'S BUREAU CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY, ANNOUNCES PLANS TO MARK CENTURY OF ACHIEVEMENTS." US Fed News Service, Including US State News, Jan 28, 2020. ProQuest, http://ezproxy.library.csn.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/2348837107?accountid=27953.
Wilson, Samantha. "Women’s March 2020: Thousands March for Women’s Rights in DC, NYC & Around Country." Hollywood Life, Jan 18, 2020. ProQuest, http://ezproxy.library.csn.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/2340509752?accountid=27953.