Harris & Ewing, Washington, D.C. Mary Winsor Penn. '17 [holding Suffrage Prisoners banner[. United States Washington D.C, 1917. [Oct.-Nov] Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/mnwp000225/.
This photograph is a powerhouse of protest art/photography. Here, Mary Winsor demonstrates what voting means to women in their earliest practices of freedom. It is also an outstanding example of direct-action political activism. Mary Winsor has just come out of prison after serving sixty days for nonviolent political protest for the right for women to vote. The photo represents the nonviolent practice of freedom through protest. It provides an example of a historical narrative that grades 7–12 students can understand. It will inevitably lead to discussions of how freedom was available for some, but not all, in the United States. It also underscores the core political value of voting in this country as a democratic republic, and it speaks to the importance of political voice.
The photograph shows Mary Winsor, who was active in the National Women's Party, after she returned from being jailed for sixty days in 1917 for engaging in nonviolent direct action for the rights of women to vote. She was subsequently jailed again for participating in further demonstrations. Some people argued that jailing women for engaging in peaceful political protest violated their First Amendment rights. What is striking is her smile while holding up the sign.
The unamended United States Constitution denied women the right to vote. Only New Jersey until 1807 allowed a woman to vote if she owned land/property in her own right. Categorically, women were denied the right to vote until 1920, when the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified. Over time, women argued that denying them the right to vote caused actual damage to them, their families, and their communities. Most important, women believed that if they had had the right to vote, they could have claimed their societal autonomy by using the ballot to obtain education and employment. The vote would have helped women to be seen as independent from their husbands, fathers, and male guardians. Prior to 1920, several states had already granted women the right to vote, but the right was not universal. The demand was for women’s universal right to vote in all elections, local and national.
- How does this photograph represent the importance of the First Amendment’s right to peaceably assemble?
- What constitutes free speech?
- What is political protest, and why is it important?
- How and why is the practice of freedom important in our country?
- Why is equality important in our society?
- Why is equality important in our society?
Common Core State Standards
11-12.2: Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary that makes clear the relationships among the key details and ideas.
- Have students view the photo to determine its importance given the time period. Then have students discuss the central theme(s) of the photograph as well as its significance in practicing freedom of speech.
- Then have students discuss how it relates to contemporary forms of nonviolent action and peaceful assembly under the 1st Amendment.
11-12.7: Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, as well as in words) in order to address a question or solve a problem.
- Teachers can ask students why they think Mary Winsor views this form of communication most effective for her audience? Who is her audience?
- Teachers could then have students ascertain what questions are raised by the photo and whether it provides a meaningful solution to the overriding “problem.”
- Have students work in small groups to discuss the photo’s visual impact. Have students connect this social issue to contemporary social issues; have students list what those issues are and how they are addressed in today’s world. How does authority react? Is it similar to or different from the Women’s Movement for the Right to Vote from 1913 to 1922?
- Queries for Students: When has governmental authority used intimidation or force to curtail peaceable assembly or nonviolent direct action to effect positive social change? What were the results? What was the global Impact?
- Teaching Approaches to Query: Have students discuss it in a Socratic Seminar or fishbowl. Create a TED Talk or video on what should be considered “peaceable assembly” and/or nonviolent direct action, demonstrating how it can and should be achieved.
- The document might be viewed as controversial given the time period; the country was about to enter into a World War and didn’t need a conflict both at home and abroad. There was the possible concern that, given the geopolitical landscape of the time, women may not not completely understand the issues at hand if given the opportunity to exercise their right to vote.
- It might be seen as controversial today given various ongoing movements around issues of gender autonomy. At the time, the Suffragette Movement was seen by some as encouraging resistance to governmental authority.
Links to resources for approaching those topics
- For assistance, educators can consult the following sources: this document sheds light on Winsor’s background and motivation for her desire for equality for women, including the right to vote. And this page provides various resources that outline the rationale for many of the protest modalities adopted by the National Women’s Party and why they were implemented strategically throughout their campaign to achieve the vote for women.
- Women’s Suffrage: When discussing or teaching about the right to vote for women, this resource offers a historical overview of what issues remained the same and which ones changed over time.
- The National Women's Party was unique in that it had a single party platform issue: obtaining the right to vote for women. It never deviated from that issue. Once women had obtained the right to vote, the party ceased to exist.
- Because leadership changed over time, the platform or the agenda changed. It is important to know who was at the helm and when.
- The right to vote is a form of freedom that must be practiced and taught to all young people. The Nineteenth Amendment continues to guarantee women’s right to vote; therefore, it is important for educators to have accessible resources that encompass the Suffragette Movement from its inception.
- Women's Suffrage: https://www.history.com/topics/womens-history/the-fight-for-womens-suffrage
- Voting Rights Act: Women's Right to Vote, a Timeline of Obtaining Equality:
https://www.tam.usace.army.mil/Portals/77/Women%27s%20Equality%20DAY%20Timeline.pdf - National Woman's Party History and Geography: https://depts.washington.edu/moves/NWP_intro.shtml