I remember going to a writer’s workshop years ago. We crowded into a small room in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The most asked question could be summed up in this way: “Is writing the same as activism? Are we contributing to a safer saner climate by retreating into a closet and writing?”
Naturally the instructor was of the opinion that writing and spreading the word is as important as bodily action. Writing can be isolating. Some individuals make sure they are out in public and writing in less than conventional spaces. The answer to the question stated above is—it depends on what you write, its audience, and the passion you lend to the experience.
So far, on this web site there have been over 600 posts. Not all of these posts are gems. Some are. They were geared to opinion leaders. It wasn’t just me volunteering. Many of us toiled quietly and persistently for close to a decade before the 2020 centennial of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution. We worked into the early mornings.
JUST BECAUSE THE SUFFRAGE CENTENNIAL IS OVER
DOESN’T MEAN WE’RE NO LONGER ON THE CASE!
And the impossible was realized—even though the COVID-pandemic took a chunk from our expenditure of such massive effort, it was worth it. The 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution meant that a unique and noteworthy anniversary was celebrated from top to bottom of the social and financial top-down hierarchy.
The anniversary wasn’t perfect. The people involved weren’t perfect. But boy, were we determined to make this 100 years of women voting something to remember. It agitated the base. Suffrage centennial celebrations would not have taken. place without the participation of so many over a long period of time.
WAS THE CENTENNIAL OBSERVANCE A SUCCESS OR A FAILURE?
There were books, conferences, t-shirts, articles, events, and more, more. Those behind the scenes found themselves in diverse situations, from those who never heard of the voting rights movement to those who made snap judgments about people they never met. We are acutely aware now that this social change movement opened the door to people and locations that were significant in their own right, as well as present-day historians.
I never thought I’d be starting at the age of ten and realizing that my future would contain tons of volunteering, the learning and performance of skills I never could have anticipated being familiar with, and more. My first book is about the suffrage movement and how it played itself out in one family. Curious? You will be even more curious about how suffrage centennials move into the future.
During 2023, US women could recite their history of working on a suffrage centennial project for 100 years. That’s how long we’ve been working for the establishment of an equal rights amendment to the US constitution. We have minds like steel traps. We remember, and we’ll never forget.
SUFFRAGE CENTENNIAL SUPPORTERS ARE WORKING HARD
FOR THE PASSAGE OF AN EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT
The year 2023 marks the 100th year that US women have been supporting and working for an ERA.
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