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| Susan B. Anthony |
I am trying to think of an appropriate Halloween costume to wear for the elementary school dance. A friend suggested I dress up like the suffragette for whom the school is named. Unfortunately, Susan B Anthony is pretty dour and severe-looking. I'm afraid she'd be a scary costume, so I'm off to think of other things.
However, I did come across a funny suffragette photo while doing my research, which caused me to take a break and pose some thoughts and questions.
These women are marching to convince the rest of the US that women should have the right to vote. I'm going to assume that these states are the Stars and somewhere ahead or behind them are women (labeled as states) with Stripes on their capes. Pretty darn theatrical.
At first I wondered if it was an impromptu event, but if so, how did they make sure all the costumes matched? Even the shoes look the same! No, this looks like it took some time. Today we'd be using duct tape to fashion the funny conical hats, and maybe garbage bags for the capes.
Views of women have altered a lot even in my brief life span. I started school when girls couldn't wear pants to school. My mother told me I couldn't play clarinet in the school band because that instrument was for boys (and showed me the illustration next to the entry for "clarinet" in the World Book (featuring a man playing it), just to drive her point home. I did get to take it, against her wishes. I wasn't any good, so my rebellion was a moot point, I guess.
In 1988, I was hired as purchasing manager for the Four Seasons Clift Hotel in San Francisco. Right away, I was told that I was the first woman ever hired into that position. Why that job was male-dominated, I'll never know. Because I had to deal with storeroom clerks? or the stevedores who delivered pallets of food? Because I had to supervise inventory, or create cost analyses?
While I never went out on a limb for my gender, I never felt like the weaker sex, or that I was being held back by being a woman. But I don't know how I would feel if I were told that I couldn't vote. Maybe that would be me in a snazzy get-up, marching in a parade to raise consciousness about the plight of women.
