Women

And

Politics

Women have been treated as a minority thoughout history in the political spectrum. There have been various female leaders, however, that have overcome this obstacle and made great accomplishments toward political equality between men and women. There are still inequalities between the sexes in the political life today, and so the revolution for political equality continues.

Why are women traditionally underrepresented in politics? The first major reason for the political inequality among men and women is that women are still a minority in the fields from which most politicians come--law and business. Most women do not perceive themselves as a class of people capable of overcoming domination through political action. Also, the hours required to fulfill the duties of a political office often conflict with the hours required to fulfill their role as mothers (Henslin, 247).

Ancient Egypt, however, was extrememly advanced over most of the world in the realm of equality for women. Women in Ancient Egypt enjoyed the same legal rights as the Egyptian men--at least in theory. The rights and privileges of the Egyptians were not uniform from one class to another, but within the given classes, both men and women were accorded equal economic and legal rights. Ironically, while the Egyptians were under Greek rule, the Egyptian women had more privileges and civil rights than the Greek women living in the same society. Egyptian women could initiate litigation in the court freely without the need of male representation. There was also no gender-based bias against the women when they brought lawsuits against someone in an open court (Piccione).

Even in early European History there are examples of women dominating the political arena. Catherine I of Russia was proclaimed empress following the death of her husband Peter I. She ruled with shrewdness and intelligence. Another great female leader of Russia was Catherine II, who is also referred to as Catherine the Great and Empress of Russia. She assisted in the removal of her husband Peter III, whose sanity was being questioned. Catherine II became an absolute ruler and left her mark in history by transforming Russia into a world power through modernization and westernization (Stuber).

Women, for the most part, have taken a back seat to politics. Throughout the course of history, women have been the encouraging force behind their husbands. In 1757 the wealthy widow Martha Dandridge Custis married George Washington, and her wealthy background financed his military and political career. In a second example, Abigail Adams wrote to her husband, John Adams, while he was helping draft the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia. Her message read: "Remember the Ladies, and be more generous and favourable to them than your ancestors. Do not put so much power into the hands of the Husbands. Remember all Men would be tyrants if they could....If particular attention and care is not paid to the Ladies we are determined to forment a Rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by an Law in which we have no voice or Representation." Adams replied to her letter saying that the men would fight the "despotism of the petticoat." This example further illustrates why many women remained a background figure in the political lives of their husbands; they feared the consequences of demanding equality (Stuber).

During the Civil War, women put aside suffrage activities to help with the war effort. The United States did not offer many rights to women during this period, yet these remarkable women were willing to give up something they desperately wanted. The cause of the Civil War and one of the goals of the Women's Revolution coincided--the abolition of slavery. Even before the Civil War began, female anti-slavery associations had formed (Brooks and Gonzalez).

In 1890 Alice B. Sanger of Indianapolis broke a hundred-year tradition by becoming the first woman employed by the executive branch of the United States government for something other than domestic service. This was a major advancement in the political aspect of the Womens Revolution. In 1932 Francis Perkins was appointed Secretary of Labor by Franklin Delano Roosevelt and became the first woman to serve in the United States cabinet (Stuber).

As time passed, however, women became less tolerant of their limited role in politics. They strove for political equality through protest and legislation. On March 2 1913, eight thousand women with suffrage banners paraded along Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington. The parade's purpose was to alert the incoming President, Woodrow Wilson, and Congress about the desperation of their situation. A mob of angry men soon began attacking the marchers, though, and the police did very little to protect the women. The women endured being slapped, spat upon, tripped, pelted with burning cigar stubs, and having their banners torn from their hands. Some of the women also suffered injury when they were knocked to the ground and trampled. The scene was so chaotic that the federal troops were called in from Fort Meyer. The violent nature of the event reaped great benefits for the women, however, as they received more front-page attention than they had expected (Stuber).

It was not until 1920 that the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified and became law. Not all countries, though, followed America's lead, and Switzerland did not approve women's suffrage and their right to hold office until February 2, 1960!

One of the most moving memories in the fight for women's suffrage is the final public words of Susan B. Anthony. As one of the true leaders of the revolution for women's suffrage, she traveled the United States for sixty years fighting for social justice. Her last public words were an inspiration to all women fighting for political rights. "Failure is impossible" (Stuber)

China joined the ranks with political equality for women with the appointment of Theodora Chan Wan to the newly formed Chinese Women's Association in 1932. In 1931 Kersten Hesselgren, a Swedish sociologist, made a presentation to the L.O.N. on behalf of the legal status of women. A committee was formed, which studied such things as women's right to vote, education, and access to professions, as a result. Iceland democratically elected its first female head of state with the appointment of Vigdis Finnbogadottir as President in 1980.

The world's first woman prime minister was Sirimavo Ratwatte Bandaranaike, who served as prime minister of Cylon (now Sri Lanka) following the death of her husband. She was successful in leading the Nationalist Sri Lanka Freedom party to win the parliamentary elections of 1960. In England, Margaret Thatcher of the Conservative Party became England's first female prime minister in March of 1979 (Stuber). This was a major success in the political equality of women in Europe. Margaret Thatcher showed the world that women can indeed hold a major office and successfully fulfill the duties it entails.

Despite the tremendous advancements cited in these examples, it is evident that the fight for women's equality in politics is not over. We can expect to see more women seeking and gaining political office and going into law and business. This generation is likely to mark fundamental change in women's political participation, and it appears to be only a matter of time before a woman occupies the Oval Office (Henslin, 248).

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