Home > Suffragettes and Kitchen Soldiers- How did women’s roles change during the war?
Suffragettes and Kitchen Soldiers- How did women’s roles change during the war?
This discussion addresses the following outcomes:
- Discuss the ethics surrounding wartime activism and women’s fight for political equality. (CO 3, 5, & 6)
As you read about in the assigned articles and saw in the videos, the First World War represented an opportunity for American and British women to gain access to the vote. But the major US women’s organizations were divided on how to proceed. Carrie Chapman Catt’s National American Women’s Suffrage Association (Links to an external site.) (NAWSA) sought to score sympathy for their cause by openly supporting the war effort. Through their demonstrations of loyalty and sacrifice, the NAWSA hoped to advance their cause at the national level, earning political concessions as a reward for their dedication to America and the goal of women’s suffrage.
By contrast, Alice Paul’s National Women’s Party (Links to an external site.) (NWP) took a more provocative stance, denouncing the NAWSA’s efforts at supporting the war as distracting from the real work of securing women’s suffrage. Instead, the NWP used the war as an opportunity to shame the current administration by arguing about the hypocrisy of fighting for democracy abroad when half the nation’s population at home was denied the vote. They picketed the White House, leading to the arrest of over 200 members, many of whom went on hunger strikes out of protest. While imprisoned, these women were force-fed by the state, generating public sympathy over their treatment. In 1920, after many years of struggle, the states ratified the Nineteenth Amendment (Links to an external site.), providing women the right to vote.
In preparation for this discussion, make sure you read the following articles: “Onward kitchen soldiers (Links to an external site.)”, “Suffragettes and Soviets: American Feminists and the Specter of Revolutionary Russia (Links to an external site.).”, and “'How Long Must We Wait? (Links to an external site.)'” and view U.S. in World War I (Links to an external site.), Female Anti-War Reformers in WWI, (Links to an external site.)and Women’s Changing Wartime Roles (Links to an external site.).
Then, in an initial post of at least 250 words discuss the following:
- How did women’s roles change during the war and how did their experiences differ from men’s?
- Is it ethical to advocate for political agendas at home during a time of war? Why or why not? Use evidence from the readings and videos about suffrage to support your argument.
Your initial post must use evidence from the assigned readings, including at least two full citations in proper APA (Links to an external site.) or Chicago (Links to an external site.) style.
