Scan barcode
A review by readsforlove
Suffrage Song: The Haunted History of Gender, Race and Voting Rights in the U.S. by Caitlin Cass
5.0
I am a headstrong and independent women. I hate when people (especially men) try to tell me what to do, expecting me to just roll over and comply. I hate being talked over or ignored because I'm assumed to have no valuable contributions to things. It's annoying and frustrating and something I think about in my interactions with men.
And then I dip into history, and I see just how far society has come, and that humbles me so freaking much. I have no idea who I would have been if I had lived in our history. Would I have spoken up? Would I have fought? Would I have stood strong? Or would I have done what was expected of me? Dipping into this book made me ask questions like this--and many more--and is one of those books that I walked away from feeling like a better person. It also really delved into the harm that white women caused to people of color in their fight for suffrage. It didn't glorify the leaders of this movement, but showed them in all their dedication and ferocity AND their cruelty, callousness, and greed for women's rights above all other disenfranchised groups. And that is very uncommon. With a BA in English, I rarely heard professors talk about how white women harmed people of color, and when I did hear mention of it, it was always in a broad sense about the movement, never about specific people making choices that caused this harm and pain. That is so important to acknowledge. History should not be hidden.
Overall, a very good read. I recommend embracing the many rabbit trails of historical bread crumbs the author leaves and researching more beyond just what this book explores. We need our eyes open.
And then I dip into history, and I see just how far society has come, and that humbles me so freaking much. I have no idea who I would have been if I had lived in our history. Would I have spoken up? Would I have fought? Would I have stood strong? Or would I have done what was expected of me? Dipping into this book made me ask questions like this--and many more--and is one of those books that I walked away from feeling like a better person. It also really delved into the harm that white women caused to people of color in their fight for suffrage. It didn't glorify the leaders of this movement, but showed them in all their dedication and ferocity AND their cruelty, callousness, and greed for women's rights above all other disenfranchised groups. And that is very uncommon. With a BA in English, I rarely heard professors talk about how white women harmed people of color, and when I did hear mention of it, it was always in a broad sense about the movement, never about specific people making choices that caused this harm and pain. That is so important to acknowledge. History should not be hidden.
Overall, a very good read. I recommend embracing the many rabbit trails of historical bread crumbs the author leaves and researching more beyond just what this book explores. We need our eyes open.