Winning the Vote for Women and The Birth of Social Activism

Blue Hill, Maine - Blue Hill resident Posie Cowan will discuss her research on the fight for women’s right to vote in the United States, and her personal connection to it through her great-grandmother on Wednesday, September 19th at 7:00 PM at the Blue Hill Public Library. Posie will display four of Sophie Meredith's suffrage banners, tell how she discovered them, and what she learned from her subsequent research.

Before finding the banners, Posie did not know that her great-grandmother dedicated her life to suffrage and women's rights. She also did not know that Sophie Meredith was arrested four times for demonstrating in Washington DC in 1918! Some suffragists, led by activist Alice Paul, were jailed for picketing the White House and demonstrating in the nearby Lafayette Park. In jail, some went on hunger strikes and were force-fed by the doctors and prison personnel. These brave suffragists were the first social activists in the US to hold picketing demonstrations in front of the White House.

          This period in American history is not generally very well-known. Posie invites the public to come learn about the efforts of this militant wing of the suffragists from 1913 to 1920 to gain the support of the press, politicians and the American people.  This presentation will be followed on Wednesday October 10th 7:00PM, by the feature film, Iron Jawed Angels, starring Hillary Swank and Anjelica Houston which chronicles Alice Paul's brilliant campaign to win the vote. For more information, call the Library at 374-5515.