Women in the White House

Disclaimer: This post doesn't reflect my opinion or political affiliation. It's merely just a post for the purpose of discussion. 

Mary Wollstonecraft’s wrote A Vindication of the Rights of Women in 1792 during a time when women were “property” of the men in their lives and couldn’t work, receive an education, own property, or even have control over their own bodies. She advocated that women should receive an education to become better mothers and “independent and rational beings in a world that framed the female of the species as irrational and incapable of reason and intelligence” (Lecture 6, Slide 13). She wasn’t advocating for women to have power over men, but instead to empower themselves through education, thus liberating the family and society and demolish gender roles.

Wollstonecraft helped paved the way for women's suffrage many, many years later. The right to vote originally belonged to only "white men, regardless of how much money or property they had" (History).  Religious movements and reform groups were prominent during the 1820s and 30s with women spearheading them. In 1848, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott invited women activists to the Seneca Falls Convention to discuss women's rights (History). Once the Civil War began, women's rights lost momentum. Stanton and Mott with Susan B. Anthony continued to advocate for women's rights after the Civil War. Again, their advocation slowed slightly as WWI began, however, it helped their suffrage campaign through their work for the war effort. This showed that women " were just as patriotic and deserving of citizenship as men, and on August 26, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was finally ratified" (History). 

Thanks to Wollstonecraft's advocation for women's empowerment through education, and Stanton, Catt, and Anthony's advocation for women's right to vote, we now have a woman as the possible Democratic nominee. Hillary Clinton has been in the White House previously for eight years as the First Lady to former President Bill Clinton. She was also the Secretary of State, New York state Senator, and First Lady of Arkansas. In addition, she tried to run for president once before, however, didn't make it as far. She is now running for president once again and it's a possibility she might be the Democratic nominee. If it wasn't for the women who came before her, Clinton would not have the possibility to be the Democratic nominee or future president. 

Sources:

Bredin, R. (2016). Lecture 6.

History. (2009). The Fight for Women’s Suffrage. Retrieved May 13, 2016, from http://www.history.com/topics/womens-history/the-fight-for-womens-suffrage