The Past
Women's Marches and Censorship in US History
by Elizabeth Byland
The Women's Suffrage Movement, 1830-1920
The history of women's activism in the United States begins with suffrage in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Starting even before the 1830s, the Women's Suffrage movement didn't begin to gain momentum until the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848. This convention convinced many that women deserved equal rights and respect as men in the United States. After the 15th amendment was ratified to give black men the right to vote after the Civil War, American women saw this as another step closer to their rights being recognized as well. This continuously did not happen. By 1890, the call for action became a yell and a chant as the National American Woman Suffrage Association was formed. This is when the movement shifted from a generalized cry for equal rights, but specifically a call for a woman's right to vote in U.S. elections.
Fast forward a bit to when women began to get fed up with the lack of response to their movement for equal work and voting rights from the U.S. government and decided to organize the first women's procession in Washingon, D.C. on March 3rd, 1913. The march on the capitol garnered about 5,000 participants and led to an uptick in support for the cause. By this time, 9 states had passed into law the ability for women to vote, and by the time the 19th amendment was ratified, 6 more would pass the law into effect.
American women won the right to vote in all 48 states with the passing of the 19th amendment on August 18th, 1920.
The Suffrage Movement would go on to inspire multiple more marches and protests for women's rights even after the 19th amendment is passed. As most things do, when one issue was solved and women were legally allowed to vote, the mission continued to evolve for other basic rights that women felt were necessary to fight for in the coming years. Most notably, the 50th anniversary of the win for the suffragettes would kickstart a new wave of women's advocates with the Women's Strike of 1970.
"The vote is the emblem of your equality, women of America, the guarantee of your liberty."
-Carrie Chapman CattSince that initial march on Washington in 1913, women have continued to march for equal rights throughout the years in almost every state and major city in the U.S.
To the right, you'll find a quick video from NBC news about women's rights and marches in the United States.
New York Women's March, 1970
Also known as the Women's Strike for Equality March was held on August 26th, 1970 in New York City. The march not only celebrated 50 years since the passing of the 19th amendment but was ignited by Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique that caught the attention of women across the United States as a bestseller in the 1960s. The idea's in Friedan's book helped to fuel the discussion of equality and women's rights in the United States that had quieted since 1920 and ultimately led to the march in 1970. Marchers came for different reasons but shared that common goal. Most carried signs and spoke out for the three of the major topics that needed to be addressed: the right to decide healthcare decisions like abortions for themselves, the fight for free 24/7 childcare, and equal pay for women in the workplace.
Women carried signs for their cause through the streets of New York, Aug. 26th, 1970.
Photo by Bettye Lane, Courtesy of Schlesinger Library
Men marched alongside women in New York, Aug. 26th, 1970.
Photo by Freda Leinwand, Courtesy of Schlesinger Library
Friends gather to march together, Aug. 26th, 1970.
Photo by Bettye Lane, Courtesy of Schlesinger Library
Betty Friedan, Author of The Feminine Mystique and member of NOW
Photo courtesy of Schlesinger Library
The 1970 march led to a wave of changes in standards originally turned against women. The movement resulted in huge wins that we still recognize today:
the Title IX act in 1972 for student athletes
the Equal Opportunity Commission in 1980 for women in the workplace
The 1973 legalization of abortions in all 50 states by the U.S. Supreme Court
One issue being fought for that never saw any significant movement following the strike was the call for free and accessible Childcare. This is still being fought for today and has not seen a solution in the 50 years since this particular strike.
"A movement is much more than a march. A movement is that different space between our reality and our vision. Our liberation depends on all of us."
- Janet MockWomen's March on Washington, 2017
The 2017 Women's March in Washington was held on January 21st, 2017. While the march continued with the theme of women demanding their equal rights, this march was mainly held as a peaceful protest against the inauguration of President Donald Trump. The walk took place the day after the inauguration and drew almost 500,000 protesters to the streets and National Mall of Washington, D.C. While this march on the capitol was the original, similar 'sister' marches were held simultaneously in all 50 states and some foreign countries that wanted to add additional support. Overall, the marches collectively set a record for the largest single-day protest in U.S. history with over 3 million total participants.
Donald Trump's right-wing political views and negatively degrading comments towards women were a big part of the protest's conception. In the photos below, many women participating in the march don pink cat hats that were an unofficial symbol of the march and meant to represent a crude comment made by Trump in a 2005 video that surfaced during the election.
Also below, please click the white button to watch a quick interview from the Guardian with women marching in the 2017 movement and their thoughts on the purpose of the protest.
Censorship in the United States
Believe it or not, the first known act of significant censorship in the United States came directly from the feud between Presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson in 1798. According to a Thoughtco.com article about the history of censorship, Adams was slighted by a Jeffersonian reporter and in response signed a bill "that made it illegal to criticize a government official without backing up one's criticisms in court". (Jefferson later pardoned all charged from this bill after becoming president in 1800)
While this first form of censorship may have been enforced out of spite, it was only the beginning of the U.S. Government taking control over public accessible information. Another major event that is still a hot topic of debate revolves around the Pentagon Papers leak of 1971. When the New York Times got a hold of and published a series of confidential documents relating to the purposeful extension of the Vietnam war by the U.S. Government, it brought the question of censorship and confidentiality to the table. Should this kind of information pertaining to Americans be kept from their grasp? Was the New York Times in the wrong for publishing these papers, or were they doing a public service in revealing more to Americans than they were supposedly allowed to know? The Pentagon and the government had to scramble to try and explain why this kind of information was being purposely kept from the public, but ultimately, the Supreme Court ruled that the NYT was allowed to publish the documents.
These questions have only been growing in the past years in the United States, and more and more citizens are uncomfortable with feeling like they have limited control of their lives under the government's watchful eye. Censorship has now expanded into books, media, and what is openly available on the internet. The ongoing questions of why certain things are being kept from the public eye have been consistently met with mediocre answers, typically blaming the protection of children on what is and isn't available. What people are able to rely on as fact is institutions like the National Archives that have proof of historical events actually happening. We are meant to trust these institutions to be transparent about our past, though we are constantly learning more history of our country that has been purposely forgotten. When we see events like this ungarnered censorship of the Women's March photo at a reputable institution like the NARA, it is especially hard to forgive and forget an event that most were alive to see for themselves be told differently out of caution to the public.