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Women got the right to vote 100 years ago; leaders in Berks County say there's still work to be done

Washington, August 26, 2020

Originally published in the Reading Eagle.

Written by Karen Shuey.

They marched through the streets in cities large and small.

They organized national conventions and hunger strikes. They protested for months outside the White House.

They were assaulted, ridiculed and humiliated.

But, through the tireless efforts of some, they achieved something extraordinary that would forever change the American democratic system. They fought for the passage of the 19th Amendment, which prohibits government from denying the right to vote on the basis of sex.

On the 100th anniversary of the adoption of the 19th Amendment, some of the most prominent female leaders in Berks County want to remind others that women's suffrage was not the triumphant end of a movement.

It was just the beginning.

"These women were not afraid to stand up and have their voices heard," said Candace Stitzman-Duley, a Muhlenberg Township resident and distant relative of suffragist Susan B. Anthony. "The best way to pay tribute to the sacrifices these women made is to do what they fought so hard to do — vote."

Stitzman-Duley, who serves as chairwoman of the Women's Caucus of the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, will bring that message to the steps of the State Capitol in Harrisburg Wednesday as the group commemorates this historic anniversary.

In some ways Stitzman-Duley said she feels conflicted about what suffragists like Anthony would think about the current state of politics.

She knows that 100 years ago none of them would have expected that voters would be faced with the choice to elect Sen. Kamala Harris as the nation’s first female, first Black and first Asian American vice president all at once. But, then again, they might wonder why it took so long. 

A reason to celebrate

Big plans to celebrate the anniversary of women's suffrage were slated to take place throughout the year in Berks County.

The Berks Women's History Alliance had even been awarded a $25,000 grant to underwrite a series of events and lectures culminating with a celebration dinner that was supposed to take place Wednesday night.

But the coronavirus pandemic threw a wrench in those plans, with most of the arrangements called off or postponed.

That doesn't mean the occasion is going unnoticed, though. It's simply too important.

"This anniversary is a way to honor that level of commitment these women had to women that they would never ever meet,” said Wenda Kincaid, president of the League of Women Voters of Berks County. “And they were committed heart, body and soul to get us the vote.”

Kincaid said even though big events had to be canceled, the spirit of what was accomplished a century ago can be honored every time a woman casts a ballot.

"There are a lot of us who go to the polls and understand what an honor it is that we get to vote," she said. "There are people all over the world who have worked so hard to have real and meaningful elections where everyone can go to the polls. And we have that and we fought for that."

Kincaid said the memories of the sacrifices and hard work of so many so long ago can fade.

"You know what, a lot of people take it for granted," she said of the 19th Amendment. "And I think that’s fabulous that we are so secure in our voting rights that we just take it for granted. But that comfort can turn into apathy."

So far, that has not been the case.

In fact, the proportion of eligible women who voted has exceeded the proportion of eligible men in every presidential election since 1980, according to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University.

State Sen. Judy Schwank said the sacrifice and struggle of those who fought for the right to vote is an important chapter in American history that should serve as a reminder that the path for equal rights and female empowerment is filled with roadblocks.

"I've spent the last year looking at the history of this and it was an amazing journey that spanned more than seven decades," she said. "It was a difficult process that became a lightning rod issue — particularly as we got closer to the passage of the amendment.

"It was an issue that divided families and ended friendships. And not all women were on board."

The Ruscombmanor Township Democrat pointed out that there was even division among the suffragists themselves based on race and class.

"Many of these women were flawed," she said. "They had significant prejudices. So the history is somewhat complicated."

Though there were hundreds of Black, Native American and Chinese women who played a critical role in the fight for the 19th Amendment, its passage failed to lift their exclusion from the polls. Native Americans and Chinese immigrants were simply denied this right while Black women were not fully enfranchised until the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Schwank said she believes more people should know about the movement, including its difficulties and shortcomings. 

That's why she worked with the Berks County Women’s Commission and the Women's Vote Centennial 2020 to create a booklet highlighting women with ties to Pennsylvania who fought for the right to vote.

A long way to go

Schwank said the anniversary serves as a reminder that women are still grappling with some of the same issues they were dealing with back then. Among them are expanding voting rights, economic inequality and systemic racism.

U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan shares that view.

"It really is a historic anniversary; this is something we should commemorate, honor and celebrate," Houlahan said. "But we should also take this time to talk about how much work we still have to do.

"This is a time to reflect on the progress that we made 100 years ago and set our sights on what the next 100 years will bring," she continued. "We have a really interesting 100 years ahead of us."

Schwank said much the same, noting that despite the gains made by women over the last century, women are still greatly outnumbered by men in the political arena.

Women occupy only 27% of the Pennsylvania Legislature: 55 of 203 House positions and 13 of 50 Senate seats. Data compiled by the Rutgers Center for American Women and Politics show that the state ranks 31st in the U.S. in terms of female state legislators.

Schwank said there are several factors that contribute to the gender gap. And one of the most important factors is that women are less likely than men to be asked to run for office.

"Women are more likely to think they don't have the qualifications to run for office, whereas when men run that's not something that really enters their minds," she said, acknowledging she probably would have never run for office if she had not been asked by former Berks County Commissioner Randy Pyle.

Houlahan, a Chester County Democrat who represents Reading and much of southwestern Berks County, agreed that more work needs to be done to achieve equity in the political sphere.

"We have a long way to go to make sure we are heard," she said. "We still have a very long way to go, not just for women to reach their full equality but for all kinds of people to reach equality that is guaranteed in the constitution."

Houlahan said she has spent a large part of her life involved in that fight for equity. She said it dates back to her childhood, seeing her mother's involvement in the League of Women Voters.

"Some of my earliest memories are of my mom participating in work to organize women around the right to vote," she said. "So it's not surprising to me that women are engaged in politics. We are the caretakers of our families, our communities and our country."

Recently, Houlahan has worked with the advocacy group EMILY's List, which works to help get women elected to public office. She was part of the historic class of 2018, which saw a record 117 women sent to Congress.

"We have been uniquely motivated over the last several years to be better represented, and what I think is cool is that people responded and people voted for us to be part of the solution," she said.

Houlahan said she thinks many women have been vying for office recently because they've grown tired of not having an equal say.

"I think women started getting frustrated not having their voices heard," she said. "I do pin it to the fact that Hillary Clinton was not successful. I think it ended up with a lot of women looking at themselves and their qualifications.

"Her loss, in many ways, inspired more women to run. That was certainly part of my reason to run. I had this realization that no one was going to ask me to run, I had to raise my hand."