Women walk the Suffrage Centennial March in Washington, D.C.

 

Delta Sigma Theta members march down Pennsylvania Avenue March 3, 2013 to commemorate the Women's Suffrage March 100 years ago on the same route/Photo by Patricia Leslie

On a cold and blustery day, thousands of members of Delta Sigma Theta sorority from around the world turned out to herald the 100th anniversary of the Women's Suffrage March in Washington, D.C.

 

Delta Sigma Thetas from Arkansas on Pennsylvania Avenue March 3, 2013/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Members from Germany, England, and Bermuda mixed with their U.S. sisters, most wearing red coats, scarves, hats, pants, or gloves which seemed to warm up the marchers who walked, talked, and celebrated the day with smiles and knowledge of how far they have come, and ongoing efforts to make more aware of their common goals. 

Delta Sigma Thetas from Washington, D.C. walk the walk March 3, 2013 down Pennsylvania Avenue/Photo by Patricia Leslie

The website says Delta Sigma Theta was founded on January 13, 1913 by 22 women at Howard University who "wanted to use their collective strength to promote academic excellence and to provide assistance to persons in need."  The sisterhood's first public act was participation in the March 3, 1913 women's suffrage march when 5,000 women marched to the White House.

1913's march was quite different from 2013's.  In 1913 a woman on a white horse led the women who were "jeered, tripped, grabbed, [and] shoved" and pelted with vulgar language by men along the route who were seemingly encouraged by police, one of whom, according to a report, said "women should stay at home where they belong." 

Upon request from the chief of police who sought assistance in 1913 to help control the crowds, the U.S. Secretary of War authorized troop reinforcements.  The women were forced by the crowd size to march single file in some parts of the route, and 100 were taken to hospitals.  (Read more of the details here in a Library of Congress document.)

Hello from England and Florida, say Delta Sigma Theta members/Photo by Patricia Leslie

 

And Georgia.  Don't forget Delta Sigma Thetas from Georgia/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Fortunately, none of that was observed today.  "We've come a long way, baby," but we ain't there yet.

Delta Sigma Theta has more than 200,000 members and 900 chapters whose mission targets economic and educational development, international and political awareness and involvement, physical and mental health.  On March 3, 2013, they talked the walk, strengthened by numbers, energy, and enthusiasm to never abandon the quest for common good.

Children and babies walked (or rode) in the Delta Sigma Theta 100th anniversary walk/Photo by Patricia Leslie

"Sprechen Sie Deutsch?" asked Delta Sigma Theta members from Germany and behind them, members from Hawaii said "Aloha!"/Photo by Patricia Leslie

 

"Anybody heya speak 'Suthern'?" Delta Sigma Theta members from Louisiana wanted to know, celebrating their centennial and the Women's Suffrage Centennial, too, on their walk down Pennsylvania Avenue March 3, 2013/Photo by Patricia Leslie

 

Stretching all the way to the U.S. Capitol, the crowd looked like it numbered more than 20,000/Photo by Patricia Leslie

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Suffragists celebrate March 1 - 3, 2013, Washington, DC

The cover of the 1913 program for the National American Women's Suffrage Association/Library of Congress, Wikipedia

Hundreds of expected women (and men) will walk this Sunday beginning at 9 a.m. from the West Lawn (mall side) of the U.S. Capitol down Pennsylvania Avenue to commemorate the 100^th anniversary of the women’s right to vote march which culminated in 1920 with the passage of the 19^th amendment. 

Many other events are scheduled to honor this significant piece of American history:

Saturday, March 2, 2013:

10 a.m. – 12 p.m. Panel discussion: Modern Day Activism and the Role of Social Media with UniteWomen.org, the American Association of University Women, and PunditMom at AAUW, 1111 16^th St., NW, Washington, DC 20036. Ph. 202-785-7700. Metro station: Farragut West

12 p.m.  Iron Jawed Angels (2004 film; may be too intense for some audiences) about the 1913 suffragists with discussion, McGowan Theater, National Archives, no charge . Use the Constitution Ave., NW entrance, between 7th and 9th Sts., NW. Metro station:  Archives-Navy Memorial

12:15 p.m. – 1:45 p.m. Activism training at AAUW, 1111 16th St., NW

2 p.m. – 4 p.m.   Book talk: Winning the Vote with Robert Cooney at AAUW

2:30 p.m. Book talk:  Eighty Days: Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland’s History-Making Race Around the World with Matthew Goodman at the Newseum, included with museum admission ($21.95 + tax, adult) 555 Pennsylvania Ave., at 2nd St., NW, Washington, DC 20001. Ph. 888-639-7386

Sunday, March 3, 2013:

9 a.m. The march begins at the Capitol's West Lawn and continues 3.1 miles to the Washington Monument. Sponsored by Delta Sigma Theta

10 a.m. - 2 p.m.  National Park Service rangers and volunteers will reenact the 1917 "silent sentinel" demonstrations outside the White House.  Hear about mob violence and police brutality.  For more information:  202-208-1631, ext. 215 or 202-822-5080, ext. 25. Metro station: Farragut West or Farragut North.

11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Rangers and volunteers from the National Park Service will give formal talks in front of the White House about the historic protests that led to the passage of the 19th amendment.

2:30 p.m.  Book talk:  Women of the Washington Press with Maurine Beasley, at the Newseum, included with museum  admission ($21.95 + tax, adult)

Exhibits:

The 1913 Woman Suffragist Parade

National Museum of American History, no charge

On the National Mall, Constitution and 14th St., NW, Washington, D.C. 20001

Open 10 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. every day. Metro station: Federal Triangle or the Smithsonian

A 30-foot long display recreates the mood of the parade and illustrates its impact using costumes worn by participants along with banners, sashes, postcards, letters, and photographs.

The 1913 Suffragist Parade and the Role of the Press
Through March in the lobby of the National Press Club, no charge
529 14th St. NW (just south of F St.), 13th Floor, Washington, DC 20045. Ph. 202-662-7500

Metro station:  Metro Center
Learn about key figures in the historic suffrage movement and the role of the press in helping to turn public opinion in favor of women’s voting rights. Created by the National Women’s History Museum with support from the Sewall-Belmont House & Museum.  

Fashioning the "New Woman" 1890-1925

Through August 31, 2013 at the Daughters of the American Revolution,  no charge

1776 D St., NW, Washington, DC 20006. Ph. 202-628-1776. Open Saturday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.  Metro stations:  Farragut West or Farragut North

The exhibit traces the evolution of women’s fashion and how it reflected the changing societal roles and activities of women during the Progressive Era.  The “New Woman” represented women venturing from the home where society had confined them, to offices, sporting events, working for social reform, and the pursuit of a higher education.

Historic newspaper front pages and photos from the period
In the outdoor display cases through March 14 at the Newseum, no charge

555 Pennsylvania Ave., at 2nd St., NW, Washington, D.C. 20001. Ph. 888-639-7386

Metro stations: Archives-Navy Memorial, Judiciary Square, the Smithsonian, or Gallery Place-Chinatown

Sewall-Belmont House, the home of the National Woman's Party

2nd St. NE and Constitution Ave., NE, Washington, DC 20002.  Ph. 202-546-1210.
Adults: $8.  One of the nation's premier women's history memorials.

Open 11 a.m. - 5 p.m., March 1 - 3

Metro station:  Union Station or Capitol South

Information:

American Association of University Women, 1111 16th St., NW. Building is open Saturday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. with archivist on site for public tours. Other organizations will have information available at AAUW.

In addition to those named above, other sponsors of the centennial suffrage celebration are: the Alice Paul Institute, Cultural Tourism DC, and Turning Point Suffragist Memorial.

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National Archives salutes women

From left, Jennifer Krafchik, Jennifer Lawless, Joy Kinard, and Page Harrington at National Archives/Patricia Leslie

The public is grateful to National Archives for its annual recognition of Women's Equality Day celebrated every August 26, the day in 1920 when the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution was passed granting women the right to vote. 

Last week Archives hosted a panel of three women who talked about Beyond the Vote: Post-Suffrage Strategies to Gain Access to Power.

A co-sponsor of the event was the Sewall-Belmont House & Museum whose executive director, Page Harrington, served as moderator for the discussion.

Jennifer Krafchik of the Sewall-Belmont House presented history of the women's suffrage movement and talked about the first woman elected to Congress, Jeanette Rankin (1880-1973, R-Montana), and cited the congresswoman's anti-World War I and World War II votes. 

Joy Kinard, a district manager for the National Park Service talked only about civil rights leader Mary McLeod Bethune (1875-1955), but given that Dr. Kinard works at the Mary McLeod Bethune Council House on Vermont Avenue, and C-Span was filming, it was a good time to promote her cause.

But it was Jennifer Lawless, an associate professor at American University and the director of its Women  & Politics Institute, who grabbed attention, enlivening the evening with her talk, humor and new information about women and elections.

She lamented the dearth of female candidates and noted how quickly women's issues have risen on the agenda of this fall's political races.  Who would have guessed two weeks ago? 

(Enter stage right Congressman Todd Akin of Missouri.)

“Women make a very important difference” in elections, Dr. Lawless said, for they “almost always decide” outcomes, and they are much more politically active than men.

In the early 1990s Republican women in Congress often sided with their female Democratic counterparts on women’s issues, but severe Capitol Hill polarization now pits party vs. party, and female representation makes no difference when votes are cast. 

The Year of the Woman was 1992 when unprecedented numbers of women ran for office, propelled to action and getting their names on ballots by the 1991 case, Anita Hill vs. a male-only U.S. Senate panel in the Clarence Thomas Supreme Court nomination battle. 

So why has the number of female candidates slowed?  Women represent just 17 percent of the members of the U.S. Congress.

You can't blame the media for distorted representations for Lawless and Richard L. Fox analyzed 5,000 news stories about male and female candidates and uncovered no gender differences in coverage. 

You can’t blame voters who, research reveals, show no bias against female candidates of either party.

You can't blame lack of money for once females get going, they can raise goodly sums of cash, and Lawless ought to know since, without a lot of effort (she indicated) she was able to raise $400,000 for her own congressional race in Rhode Island in 2006. (She lost, but once you hear her, you wonder about the loss, instead, to the Rhode Island residents who can't claim her as their representative.)  (The average congressional race costs about $1 million.)

What you can blame are poor self confidence and the misconception that women believe they are not qualified, nor do they have enough money to run for office.  A lot of money is not needed in most of the 525,000 elected positions (!) in the U.S. It's the presidential race and some Senate elections where hefty sums are necessary, and that’s what attracts press attention.

“The perception problem matters more than reality,” Lawless said.

Female candidates do better when they strike out on their own and are not associated with campaigns run and dominated by men, research shows.

The importance of appearance came up for discussion, too. 

Dr. Kinard said that although Ms. Bethune was overweight, she was always dressed to the nines with gloves, hat, and a level of sophistication which silently transcended her surroundings and sent strong messages that she was to be respected and admired. 

When people show up on doorsteps with tattoos, their level of sophistication is entirely different, Dr. Kinard said.  Look at Hillary Rodham Clinton and the way she presents herself, said Dr. Kinard.  “We need more younger women to love themselves to get a man to respect them.”

There’s more talk this year about how the male candidates dress, too:  People are talking about Republican vice-presidential candidate Paul Ryan’s “ill-fitting suits,’ Dr. Lawless said.

This fall she will be teaching a course at American University about this year's election, and it is a certainty that the course is already full. 

About 150 persons of various ages and races attended the presentation at Archives with more males present than one expected.  They made up about 20 percent of the audience. 

What:  National Archives

When: 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. through Labor Day (September 3), closing at 5:30 p.m. after Labor Day through March 14, 2013

Where: Constitution Avenue, between 7th and 9th streets, NW

How much: No charge

Metro station: Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter or walk from Metro Center

For more information: 866-272-6272

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