Today – August 18, 2020 – is the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which declared:
“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”
The truth is, though, that here in California, women were actually granted this right nine years earlier, when voters approved Proposition 4, creating state Constitutional Amendment No. 8, on October 10, 1911.
Also, despite those landmark amendments, women’s suffrage was not truly universal in either the state or the nation until many years later. For example, in California, according to Wikipedia, Native American women didn’t receive the right until the Indian Citizenship Act was passed in 1924, and Puerto Rican women had to wait until 1935.
Today, however, all female citizens of the U.S. share the right to vote, and we at the Buzz cherish the privilege. With our big election this year coming up in just 76 days, we’d like to remind all of our readers – regardless of gender – to register to vote if you have not yet done so…to double-check your previous registration to make sure it’s up to date…and to make sure you understand your voting options – whether by mail or in person – and know where your local polling places are as the big day approaches.
“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” – 15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” – 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
“The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax.” – 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
“The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age.” – 26th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
For more information on women’s suffrage and the 19th Amendment, see:
How L.A. suffragists won the vote for California women years before the 19th Amendment – Los Angeles Times
The American Experience: The Vote – PBS/WGBH-TV – “Tells the dramatic culmination story of the hard-fought campaign waged by American women for the right to vote — a transformative cultural and political movement that resulted in the largest expansion of voting rights in U.S. history.”
Suffrage at 100: A Visual History – New York Times
How Women Got the Vote Is a Far More Complex Story Than the History Textbooks Reveal – Smithsonian Magazine
Votes for Women: A Portrait of Persistence – Exhibit at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery
Rise Up LA: A Century of Votes for Women – Exhibit at the Natural History Museum
This is a great time to learn about voting – it’s your right!
