Announcement: August 26, 1920: 19th Amendment is Official!

The 19th Amendment, guaranteeing women the right to vote, is formally adopted into the U.S. Constitution by proclamation of Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby! After more than a year of ratification by the states with Tennessee fulfilling the 2/3 requirement, the 19th Amendment officially became part of our Constitution!

The package containing the certified record of the action of the Tennessee legislature was sent by train to the nation’s capital, arriving in the early hours of August 26. At 8:00 a.m. that morning, Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby signed it without ceremony at his residence in Washington. None of the leaders of the woman suffrage movement were present when the proclamation was signed, and no photographers or film cameras recorded the event. That afternoon, Carrie Chapman Catt, head of the National American Woman Suffrage Association, was received at the White House by President Woodrow Wilson and First Lady Edith Wilson.

To celebrate the official adoption date of August 26, 1920, think about:
– Publicity: local papers, tv spots, radio spots, other media
– Dress in 1920s “suffrage garb” and walk around downtown or in your neighborhood (observing social distancing, of course) proudly displaying your support
– Have a virtual get-together with chapter members to celebrate and discuss the Amendment
– Print flyers and distribute where possible-free clip art can be downloaded
Many of you have already done many of these things-I applaud you!

And as we celebrate, daughters, let’s remember that women of color continued to press for the freedom to vote in their states which, even after the 19th Amendment was adopted, were frequently prevented.

I recommend a book to be published in November of this year by Cathleen D. Cahill, “Recasting the Vote: How Women of Color Transformed the Suffrage Movement” which is available at the following link along with a link to an article on Carrie Chapman Catt:

Book: Recasting the Vote

Women in History: Carrie Chapman Catt

Sue MacLaurinState Chair,

Constitution Week

suemack@earthlink.net

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