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Outline

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The Women's Suffrage movement began in the north as a middle class white woman's movement. Most of their members were educated white women primarily from Boston, New York, Maine, and the Northeast. They were predominately a middle class movement but attempts were made by the NWSA (National Women's Suffrage Association) to include working class women, as well as black suffragists. In 1848 the American Equal Rights Association was formed and they believed that everyone regardless of race or sex should be given the the right to vote. Leadership of the NSWA included names like Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Lucy Stone. During this time period a division was forming among the women's movement. The 14th Amendment was being proposed and black males were on the cusp of receiving the right to vote. The NSWA held a convention to discuss how to go forward and the women were divided on the issue. Some women didn't want to risk losing the chance for black males to get the right to vote, and figured that the women would get their turn. They saw this proposed amendment as a victory of sorts. Other women like Anthony and Stanton were angered by this decision and felt that this decision wasn't good enough, and that women black or white, should not be excluded from the vote. The Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendment were eventually passed by Congress and women were still not granted the right to vote. As time went on the leaders of the National Feminist Movement began to see african american suffrage and white suffrage as different issues. The reasons for this change in ideals varies but in the 1890's younger women began to take the leadership roles and people like Stanton and Anthony were no longer in charge. Another reason for the change in ideals among the movement was the growing "white supremacy" thinking of women entering the movement from the south. Now with dissention and disagreement among the NWSA, african american women left and banded together to form their own organizations.

With african american women realizing that organization among them was needed, in June of 1892 the Colored Women's League was founded in Washington D.C. The president was Mrs. Helen Cook and the CWL did a variety of things for women of color. They fought for black suffrage and held night classes to better their reading and writing skills. A few year later black women began to organize on a national level. A Boston area group under the leadership of Mrs. Booker T. Washington called the National Federation of African American Women joined the Colored Women's League out of Washington D.C. In 1896, both groups joined together to form the National Association of Colored Women under the leadership of Mrs. Mary Church Terrell. Mary Church Terrell was a college educated woman and was the named the first president. This group did many things to contribute to the betterment of black women, as well as many other smaller groups who are not named.

Wiki article --

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African-American_Woman_Suffrage_Movement

Sources

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Kolmer, E. (1972). NINETEENTH CENTURY WOMAN'S RIGHTS MOVEMENT. Negro History Bulletin, 35(8), 178. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.proxy.lib.ohio-state.edu/docview/1296734776?accountid=9783

Taylor, U. (1998). The historical evolution of black feminist theory and praxis. Journal of Black Studies, 29(2), 234+. Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com.proxy.lib.ohio-state.edu/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA21257393&v=2.1&u=colu44332&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w&asid=b2e44d894e84453669369b7725822b7c