21st Annual Student Research Conference
From Petitions to Pickets to Prison: Militant Feminism in the American Women's Suffrage Movement
Shahrbonu J. Rezaiekhaligh
Dr. David Robinson, Faculty Mentor
Alice Paul's legacy, over time, has faded and slowly disappeared from historical textbooks. Instead, the contributions of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Carrie Chapman Catt have been emphasized in accounts of the US women's suffrage movement. Since Paul has been taken out of textbooks, it is the purpose of this paper to trace the influence that Paul and the National Woman's Party had on the ratification of the Susan B. Anthony Amendment. Looking at six stages of development of the movement, we can trace the influences on Paul, her relationship with NAWSA, the creation of the NWP, the establishment of the NWP as a militant-nonviolent organization, the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment, and the creation of the Equal Rights Amendment. Through this historical gender analysis of Paul and the NWP, from the period of 1912 to 1920, one cannot escape the significant contribution that Paul made to the American women's movement.
Keywords: Women's Suffrage, Feminism, National Woman's Party, Alice Paul, American Women's History
Topic(s):History
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 7-3
Location: OP 2111
Time: 8:45