Today, we remember the life of Inez Milholland Boissevain, the only woman considered to be a martyr for suffrage.
Pro-life suffrage leader Alice Paul asked the young lawyer to lead the suffrage march on March 3, 1913 in Washington D.C. Her attire earned her the title the “American Joan of Arc.”
It was the day before Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration. Few were there to meet him at Union Station because 8,000 suffragists dressed in white were marching down Pennsylvania Avenue towards the White House – and ultimately towards an angry crowd of men. Two hundred people were hurt while the police looked on – or participated in the mob scene. No one was arrested for the assaults.
Inez carried a banner that proclaimed, “Forward Out of Darkness, Leave Behind the Night, Forward Out of Error, Forward Into Light.” It eventually became the slogan of the National Women’s Party and more recently inspired the title of an issue of Feminists for Life’s magazine The American Feminist® entitled “Forward Into Light,” about violence against women.
Inez took to the road leading rallies for suffrage. On October 22, 1916, she collapsed on stage in Los Angeles while touring the American West. Her last public words were, “Mr. President, how long must women wait for liberty?”
She died at the age of 30 on November 25, 1916. She became the first woman memorialized in the nation’s Capitol.
Heralds are necessary.
Our history must be retold.
True equality must be championed.
Women-centered solutions must be secured.
As you walk in the shoes of the early American feminists, please consider how best to leverage your tax-deductible, year-end gift.
The FFL Board of Directors has announced a year-end match for single gifts through December 31, 2013.
Your new or increased monthly gift will be double-matched. This provides core support year-round – and this is what we need the most!
Corporate matching gifts mean you can double your tax-deductible gift yet again!
The year-end match is our most important fundraiser of the year.
Help us reach the leaders of today and tomorrow and better serve those at highest risk of abortion.
Please go to www.feministsforlife.org/
Because women deserve better,
Serrin M. Foster
President
PS. Please consider gift memberships before the next great issue ofThe American Feminist is published! http://www.feministsforlife.