Weekend Reading on Women's Representation August 21, 2020
By Cynthia Richie Terrell on August 21, 2020
Mosaic Theater Company's rendition of 'The Agitators' with Marni Penning as Susan B. Anthony and Ro Boddie as Frederick Douglass - Photo by Stan Barough
Dear fans of women's representation,
On Tuesday, August 18th, we celebrated the centennial of the ratification of the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution that expanded the franchise dramatically and fundamentally altered the practice of democracy in these United States.
To mark this milestone, the president pardoned Susan B Anthony for her 'crime' of voting - there were polite stories on this strange event in The Washington Post and Politico. While most agree that Anthony would have dismissed this 'pardon' as political theater, there is a deeper story about the suffrage movement that requires not a 'pardon' but a grounded discussion of the history and present day movement for women's equality. There were a number of very thoughtful responses to The New York Times editorial last Sunday on the suffrage movement that you can find here. I highly recommend the play The Agitators by Mat Smart for a deep dive into the decades-long debate between Susan B Anthony and Frederick Douglass that brings alive their shared passion for equality and their frustration with one another and the movement/s they led:
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