COURTESY of LWVNOW
NORTHERN WISCONSIN – The League of Women Voters of the Northwoods began its 2020-21 year Tuesday, Aug. 11, in virtual format, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment and the birth of the League of Women Voters.
Did you know that the first state to ratify the 19th Amendment, granting women the right to vote, was Wisconsin? And that the League of Women Voters was founded by Carrie Chapman Catt, who was born in Ripon, Wisconsin? These are a few of the fascinating details that Dorothy Skye and Petra Pietrzak shared about the struggle for women’s suffrage, the incomplete victory embodied in the 19th Amendment, and the ongoing role of the League of Women Voters at the national, state, and local levels.
“The League of Women Voters was founded just six months before American women won the right to vote in 1920,” the league said. “Both represented landmark advancements for our nation’s democracy and civil rights. The suffrage movement began as a ‘mighty political experiment’ designed to help 20 million women carry out their new responsibilities as voters. On this 100th anniversary of both landmarks, the questions for women voters still are, ‘Now what?’ and ‘How can women make their votes informed and influential?’”
This program can be viewed on www.youtube.com by searching with the program title.
The LWVNOW encompasses Florence, Forest, Langlade, Lincoln, Oneida and Vilas counties. The local league belongs to the state and national League of Women Voters, a non-partisan organization devoted to helping members and fellow citizens develop educated political opinions and act upon them through the democratic process. Monthly meetings and sponsored events are open to all. For more information, email [email protected] or visit www.lwvnow.org.
Answers to questions about voter registration and voting can be found at myvote.wi.gov, from your local clerk or local library.