Here We Go Again?

The British Parliament passed the Tea Act of 1773 in an effort to financially assist the British East India Company, which was suffering at the time with too much tea sitting idle in warehouses. One goal of the act was to reduce the cost of exporting tea to the American Colonies by eliminating export tariffs, which would in effect give the East India Company a monopoly on tea sales in America. The Colonists recognized this as a tax at a time when people living in America had no vote in Parliament. Discontent ensued at this outrageous taxation without representation and as Americans are wont to do, they took to the harbor in Boston and dumped the tea overboard. This act of civil disobedience has come to be known as the Boston Tea Party and is considered to be an early contributing factor in the American Revolution.

Radical ideas have always been a part of the American political landscape and perhaps no idea has been more radical than that of women’s suffrage. The idea that women should be allowed to vote was considered contrary to the natural order and the women agitators that originated this insidious challenge to the established and God-given social order were initially thought to suffer from extreme female disorders and not taken seriously. Perhaps one of the female disorders these ladies suffered from was persistence, for despite incredible opposition, they maintained the fight for over 80 years.

The Seneca Falls Convention in 1848 is widely considered to be the beginning of an organized effort to promote the concept of women’s suffrage. In 1872 Susan B. Anthony was arrested for voting in the Presidential election. The jury in the case was ordered by the judge to find her guilty and she was fined $100 and ordered to jail until the fine was paid. After the imposition of sentence and for the first time during the trail she was allowed to speak, she lamented:

“This high-handed outrage upon my citizen’s rights”, saying, “… you have trampled under foot every vital principle of our government. My natural rights, my civil rights, my political rights, my judicial rights, are all alike ignored. I shall never pay a dollar of your unjust penalty.” (she never did pay)

As in the case of most social change, it is those actually in power, that when they over-reach; give the most assistance to those whose cause they oppose (see out of touch British authorities above). This judge, through his zealous abuse of power cemented the resolve of the movement and no better recruitment tool could have possibly been devised.

In 1916 Alice Paul launched a militant movement known as the National Women’s Party (NWP). Members of this movement referred to themselves as the Silent Sentinels. In 1917 the Silent Sentinels put on public display the full force of their militancy by daring to take the unthinkable step of marching in front of the White House. This had never been done before and was considered to be so disrespectful as to border on treason.

At a protest in June of 1917 some women held signs referring to President Woodrow Wilson as “Kaiser Wilson.” This was beyond the bounds of civilized society and onlookers were outraged at this show of blatant disrespect for the President of the United States and for the men that had fought to insure:

“…that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

This could in no way be tolerated and bystanders (loyal Americans all) began to rush in and forcefully grab the signs of these hooligans, necessitating police intervention. Over 200 of the protesting thugs were arrested and many who refused to learn their lesson, went on a hunger strike and subsequently endured force-feeding

Once again we see that the over-reaction of those opposed to the protesters do more to advance their cause than they themselves were able to do. The reaction to force-feeding women that were guilty of nothing more than making a political statement in public was rapid and overwhelming. It pressured President Wilson into changing his stance on the subject and three years later on August 26, 1920 the 19^th amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified. Tennessee, just days before, became the last state needed to insure ratification.

Interesting historical side note: Mississippi in a surprisingly progressive and forward-looking vote ratified the 19^th amendment in 1984.

It’s a pretty simple amendment:

“The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”

 

Today we have a President that is a very successful businessman, a world-class golfer, the world’s best negotiator, a natural politician and as he says, a man that knows how to unite our country. He may be all these things, but I think it is safe to say he is not the student of history that most past presidents have been. This was on display when he called an American citizen a son-of-a-bitch for kneeling during the National Anthem.

Nobody that I have heard has challenged Colin Kaepernick’s right to do this, but most hard-working Americans find it insulting and outrageous in the extreme. There may be no more emotionally charged issue in our country than not standing for the National Anthem or destroying an American Flag as a means of protest. As a seasoned liberal protester myself, I would never choose this method to make my voice heard. When people elect to do this, the reaction is so visceral, so electrified with anger that many other people cannot see beyond the act itself and are unable to hear the voice behind the act or consider the validity of the underlying issue.

It was not the ladies marching in front of the White House that pushed the issue of women’s suffrage over the top, it was the violent reaction and the treatment they were subjected to that finally made it possible for people to see with clearer eyes and hear with open ears the message they had been voicing for nearly 80 years.

45 has now taken a shot across the bow of a protest that was struggling to gain traction, not because of the underlying issue, but because of the method selected to bring attention to that issue. He has done more to unify those that feel Mr. Kaepernick’s point that the issue of police shootings needs to examined and discussed in this country than Mr. Kaepernick could ever hope to accomplish by kneeling during the national Anthem.

Those that support the issue Mr. Kaepernick is trying to highlight have now been given a gift-wrapped opportunity to elevate this issue in the public consciousness, thanks to a President that is unaware of the lessons of history. Instead of engaging in a shouting match with 45 they should now focus their attention to bringing their issue to light, insist on meaningful dialogue and action, and send 45 a bucket of KFC along with a nice thank you note.

 

Love To All!