"The women were innocent and defenseless. And by the end of the night, they were barely alive. Forty prison guards wielding clubs and with their warden's blessing went on a rampage against the 33 women wrongly convicted of 'obstructing sidewalk traffic.' They beat Lucy Burn, chained her hands to the cell bars above her head and left her hanging for the night, bleeding and gasping for air. They hurled Dora Lewis into a dark cell, smashed her head against an iron bed and knocked her out cold. Her cellmate, Alice Cosu, thought Lewis was dead and suffered a heart attack. Additional affidavits describe the guards grabbing, dragging, beating, choking, slamming, pinching, twisting and kicking the women."
Thus begins an account of the "Night of Terror" (November 15, 1917) that I believe originally comes from a photo essay by Katharine Winans posted on The Citizen's Voice and titled, Why Women Must Vote. Have a look at that, please, because I want you to see the photos of some of the women who fought and suffered for our right to vote.
Have you studied the photos now? ... Good. Please proceed.
This is a quick diary to share an email I just received from my wonderful momma. We got to talking politics, Kansas primaries and candidates, racism, dominionism and the Party of Nope's vision for America etc. etc. on the phone yesterday, and I woke up this morning to a great email from her, which she had sent out to 'her list.' I'm fairly certain she wrote this herself (she usually re-works stuff she passes on to make it personal), and I think it's worth passing on to my fellow Kossacks as a reminder to all those who may be tempted to sit this round out this fall. Perhaps it will be a persuasive argument in your GOTV efforts, too.
Momma's email:
Hi there, my good friends, male and female.
Don't forget that the Kansas primary election is August 3, 2010. Even if you can't vote in the Kansas election, VOTE wherever you are!!!
My women friends, remember the sacrifice of those women who really suffered to snare the right of women to vote! Check out this link that documents the brutal treatment in 1917 at Occoquan, Virginia, prison, of women who had picketed the White House as part of the campaign to win the vote for women.
Suffragette story
It took a lot of sacrifice to win the vote for women, and so women today should honor their sacrifice by taking our right to vote seriously, and actually getting to the polls. The inspiration of an email currently circulating (see link above) is Connie Schultz of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland.
Here is her article from 2004: Connie Schultz's article.
Connie Schultz is the wife of U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio. She wrote ...and his Lovely Wife about her experiences as the candidate's wife. It also covers many other issues about arising from humble origins and becoming a journalist. It is funny and insightful and I highly recommend it as worth the time to read.
Remember, Vote!
I don't have time to add more. I was just so pleased to see this and wanted to get it out there. It's also a little tribute to my wonderful liberal momma, who instilled good values in me and has taught me so much.