Women's Movement in America

THE RISE OF THE WOMEN'S MOVEMENT IN AMERICA:

Protests of Colonial Women. The republican spirit which produced American independence was of slow and steady growth. It did not spring
up full-armed in a single night. It was, on the contrary, nourished
during a long period of time by fireside discussions as well as by
debates in the public forum. Women shared that fireside sifting of
political principles and passed on the findings of that scrutiny in
letters to their friends, newspaper articles, and every form of written
word. How widespread was this potent, though not spectacular force, is
revealed in the collections of women's letters, articles, songs, dramas,
and satirical "skits" on English rule that have come down to us. In this
search into the reasons of government, some women began to take thought
about laws that excluded them from the ballot. Two women at least left
their protests on record. Abigail, the ingenious and witty wife of John
Adams, wrote to her husband, in March, 1776, that women objected "to all
arbitrary power whether of state or males" and demanded political
privileges in the new order then being created. Hannah Lee Corbin, the
sister of "Lighthorse" Harry Lee, protested to her brother against the
taxation of women without representation.

The Stir among European Women. Ferment in America, in the case of
women as of men, was quickened by events in Europe. In 1792, Mary
Wollstonecraft published in England the _Vindication of the Rights of
Women_--a book that was destined to serve the cause of liberty among
women as the writings of Locke and Paine had served that of men. The
specific grievances which stirred English women were men's invasion of
women's industries, such as spinning and weaving; the denial of equal
educational opportunities; and political disabilities. In France also
the great Revolution raised questionings about the status of women. The
rights of "citizenesses" as well as the rights of "citizens" were
examined by the boldest thinkers. This in turn reacted upon women in the
United States.

Leadership in America. The origins of the American woman movement are
to be found in the writings of a few early intellectual leaders. During
the first decades of the nineteenth century, books, articles, and
pamphlets about women came in increasing numbers from the press. Lydia
Maria Child wrote a history of women; Margaret Fuller made a critical
examination of the status of women in her time; and Mrs. Elizabeth Ellet
supplemented the older histories by showing what an important part women
had played in the American Revolution.