20th Century Women

The convention took place in Seneca Falls on July 19 and 20, 1848. At the convention, Elizabeth Cady Stanton introduced the "Declaration of Sentiments," which she modeled after the "Declaration of Independence." The "Declaration of Sentiment" set forth the various plights of women in America, including the following:.
             áñ Married women were legally dead in the eyes of the law.
             áñ Women were not allowed to vote.
             áñ Women had to submit to laws when they had no voice in their formation.
             áñ Married women had no property rights.
             áñ Husbands had legal power over and responsibility for their wives to the extent that they could imprison or beat them with impunity.
             áñ Divorce and child custody laws favored men, giving no rights to women.
             áñ Women had to pay property taxes although they had no representation in the levying of these taxes.
             áñ Most occupations were closed to women and when women did work they were paid only a fraction of what men earned.
             áñ Women were not allowed to enter professions such as medicine or law.
             áñ Women had no means to gain an education since no college or university would accept female students.
             áñ With only a few exceptions, women were not allowed to participate in the affairs of the church.
             áñ Women were robbed of their self-confidence and self-respect, and were made totally dependant on men (Stanton, 670-673).
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             At the convention Stanton introduced a resolution that would allow women to vote, which was the necessary first step to gaining equality. If women could vote, they could force the legislature to create laws that would alleviate their other woes. It took many years of fighting and.
             protesting, but their efforts paid off. In 1920, women were finally allowed to vote and the women's movement simmered down.