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Women's Activism
at the Turn of the 20th Century |
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At the turn of
the twentieth century, women activists fought
patriarchal
oppression in many ways. Some crusaded for
women's suffrage,
others chose to live with other women rather than marry, others demanded the
right to control their own sexuality, while others pursued careers once
forbidden to them. Some did all of the above.
Susan B. Anthony
Jane Addams
(1860-1935) was an American reformer, social worker, peace activist, and
Nobel Laureate who argued that male values dominant at the turn of the
twentieth century helped create poverty, urban blight, and war.
Susan B. Anthony
(1820-1906) was a suffragist and activist committed to a broad range of
feminist issues. A contemporary called her "one of the most loved and
hated women in the country."
Boston Marriages
were long-term, committed, romantic unions between women that were
usually monogamous but not necessarily sexual. They flourished late in
the nineteenth century and provided some women with an alternative to
conventional marriage.
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 Emma Goldman
(1869-1940) was an energetic
political organizer, an anarchist, and a passionate free spirit who
outspokenly defended the rights of homosexuals. Her radical ideas and broad influence led FBI Director
J.
Edgar Hoover to call her "one of the most dangerous women in
America." |
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 Florence Nightingale
(1820-1910), the mother of modern nursing, was a tough reformer who
fought for her right to a career and an individual identity in the
stifling atmosphere of Victorian England. |
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The Settlement House Movement was composed of middle and upper
class volunteers who moved into buildings in poor neighborhoods in
order to advocate for improved social and work conditions, and to offer
services not provided by the government. Many workers formed close, lasting
relationships with one another while living and working together.
Anna Ruling (fl
1904-1906) was one of the first
German women to publicly acknowledge her lesbianism. She became the first known lesbian activist in
1904.
M. Carey Thomas (1857-1935) was one of America's
most prominent educators. She shared her home with another woman while
serving as the second president of the women-only Bryn Mawr College.
The Women's Suffrage Movement, which demanded the right for women to
vote and hold public office, was led by women whom we would identify as
lesbian today. |
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Photo
Credits: Image of Emma Goldman is a detail from a portrait by
Carl van Vechten. Images of Susan B. Anthony and Emma Goldman courtesy Library of Congress Prints
and Photographs Division. |
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