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A review by ljrinaldi
History Smashers: Women's Right to Vote by Kate Messner
5.0
Quick, when did the US pass the 19th Amendment and what does that Amendment do?
Yes, it has been 100 years since the US gave the right to vote to women, but not all women, of course, no that would be far too easy.
The way I was taught about this in school, back in the 60s and 70s, the right to vote was a gift to the women for their help in World War I, as though that was their reward for all the hard work they did.
Yeah right, as though the government every gave its citizens anything without a fight.
And this book gets into the nitty gritty of it all. We learn what racists these White women were who were first fighting for the end of slavery, and then turning around and saying that Black men should not get the right to vote before they did. Nor should Black women. Nor should recent immigrants who were less desirable, and from Eastern Europe. It is amazing how so many of these great women had such hatred in them.
This book, written at the middle-grade level is very clear on what was really going on, because history should not be so cleaned up that we miss the evils that our previous generations did. This book also covers the Black women who fought for voting rights, that are often ignored. Most people know about Susan B. Anthony, but how many know About Ida B. Wells.
And for those who wonder why the women in congress often dress in white when protesting things, it is because white was the color that the women suffragists wore when protesting.
Great book. Should be used in classrooms, if we ever have gatherings of students again. Highly recommended.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.
Yes, it has been 100 years since the US gave the right to vote to women, but not all women, of course, no that would be far too easy.
The way I was taught about this in school, back in the 60s and 70s, the right to vote was a gift to the women for their help in World War I, as though that was their reward for all the hard work they did.
Yeah right, as though the government every gave its citizens anything without a fight.
And this book gets into the nitty gritty of it all. We learn what racists these White women were who were first fighting for the end of slavery, and then turning around and saying that Black men should not get the right to vote before they did. Nor should Black women. Nor should recent immigrants who were less desirable, and from Eastern Europe. It is amazing how so many of these great women had such hatred in them.
This book, written at the middle-grade level is very clear on what was really going on, because history should not be so cleaned up that we miss the evils that our previous generations did. This book also covers the Black women who fought for voting rights, that are often ignored. Most people know about Susan B. Anthony, but how many know About Ida B. Wells.
And for those who wonder why the women in congress often dress in white when protesting things, it is because white was the color that the women suffragists wore when protesting.
Great book. Should be used in classrooms, if we ever have gatherings of students again. Highly recommended.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.