GALLOWAY, N.J. – As America turns its attention to the Democratic and Republican Conventions, a group of women at Seashore Gardens Living Center (SGLC) are recognizing a related milestone, the 100 th anniversary of the women’s right to vote on August 26, 2020. Many of the ladies at SGLC were the first or second generation of women to vote in their families, and all stress the importance of making your voice heard.
“I think it’s important for everyone to vote, especially women,” said Lucille, the first one to vote in her family. “We’ve only recently begun to take advantage of our rights. For many years, we were focused on families. After World War II, we started becoming more active in the affairs of the state. I used to travel all over, and I could see how women were treated, held down and oppressed.” Lillian doesn’t consider herself political but over the years, she has supported women’s rights as well as civil rights and the environment.
Shirley, who does consider herself political, has shared her voice on nuclear power, gun laws, climate change, abortion, civil rights and desegregation. “My mother was the first woman in my family to vote,” she said. “I think it’s important for women to vote. We care deeply about the issues that affect everyday living.”
On August 26, 2020, Americans will observe the 100 th anniversary of ratification of the 19 th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The amendment came about after a lengthy campaign to grant American women the power to vote in all U.S. elections. It has been a rite of passage embraced by American women. “In recent elections, voter turnout rates for women have equaled or exceed voter turnout rates for men,” according to a 2019 report from the Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University. “Women also outnumber men among registered voters.”
At SGLC, of the 24 women asked, five were the first women in their families to vote and two had older sisters who voted before them. The remainder had mothers, great aunts or grandmothers who were among the first women to vote. “My mother insisted that her children vote regularly,” said Shelley. “She took it very seriously and would not reveal her party or candidate to anyone.”
Margaret was inspired to become an election judge for the democratic party for eight years. “If a woman could marry, raise a family, graduate college, go to work in order to help with the finances, she without a doubt should have every right to vote,” she said.
Reinstating the Right to Vote
It is important to note that women had the right to vote well before the 19 th amendment. At the time of our nation’s founding, women living in all of the 13 original states had the authorization to vote in all elections. They also had the authorization to vote in all 13 colonies that were to become the 13 states. As the new American states were establishing their own methods of governance (circa 1805) however, the privilege allowing women to vote was never included in any of the state constitutions, thus disallowing women the power of the vote. This enraged American women and they sought to remedy this situation via a series of meetings with male government officials which proved non-productive.
In 1848, a group of women including Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Stanton Cody and Alice Paul, assembled a meeting of fellow activists. The meeting, titled the Seneca Falls Convention, produced a Declaration of Statements and established a cadre of protesters that became known as the Suffragettes. For the 72 years following the Seneca Falls event, the Suffragettes, always clad in white garments, took part in demonstrations, parades and other forms of public display to push for the necessary amendment to the Constitution that would finally make women’s suffrage a legal right.
The 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote nationally on August 18, 1920, but it wasn’t made official until it was certified by the U.S. Secretary of State on August 26 of that year. The day is now known as Woman’s Equality Day.
On the 100 th anniversary of the 19 th amendment, the women at SGLC encourage everyone to get out and vote this November.
About Seashore Gardens Living Center
The Simon & Sylvia Zisman Seashore Gardens Living Center (SGLC) is a nonprofit home for the aged, guided by Jewish tradition, law, and charity, dedicated to enriching the quality of life for its residents. The 125,000 square foot senior Living Center features a continuum of services which include assisted living, short and long term nursing care, Alzheimer’s care, respite care and full rehabilitation services all under one roof. For more information, visit www.seashoregardens.org.
