Once again, call me late to the party, but last night I watched the HBO movie “Iron Jawed Angels” for the first time. But in some ways, I’m glad I watched it now, because I think it has some timely relevance to our current situation.
What really struck me is the tension between the Iron Jawed Angels group (created by Alice Paul and Lucy Burns), the National Woman’s Party (NWA), and the National Woman’s Suffrage Association (NWSA). The NWSA was working with President Wilson and the democrats to get women’s suffrage passed state by state. The NWA were impatient and wanted a constitutional amendment passed by Congress. At one point, members of the NWA met with President Wilson and, dripping with condescension, he told them they needed to be patient because he had more important things to do than cater to their “special interests.” So, what did the Iron Jawed Angels do? They actively campaigned against Wilson and other democrats who wouldn’t support women’s suffrage, held parades and staged the first ever protest in front of the white house. Their jailing for “obstructing traffic” led to hunger strikes by the women and forced feeding that was eventually reported in the press. All of the bad publicity led Wilson to support a constitutional amendment, which was eventually passed.
When I saw President Wilson patronize these courageous women with his talk about more important issues and their need for patience, I immediately thought of how we’ve been feeling lately with so many in our current Democratic Party who want us to shut up, be patient, and trust that we will be taken care of in the future. I guess its really true that there’s nothing new under the sun.
So these women went against their party and their families to risk everything, including their lives, to fight for their rights. They were not diverted by worries about aiding the opposition by challenging their party. They knew what their priorities were and risked everything to take a stand.
Unfortunately, like the civil rights struggles later, these women had to endure prison and physical abuse to finally get their message heard. This might also be prophetic for our times. I only hope that I have an ounce of the courage these women had when the time comes.
And one final outrage…
WHY, OH WHY, IN TWENTY YEARS OF SCHOOLING, DID I NEVER LEARN ABOUT THIS IMPORTANT PART OF MY HISTORY??!!